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Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Programs designed to save money

I always ignored these programs because who really has the patience to read the fine print, log onto the website, apply for the card, etc? Now I've eagerly signed up for the following and am standing by for my savings to flow in: UPromise. I've added my local grocery store and now I just need to remember to use the card.

Sallie Mae, my student loan provider, initiated a link to UPromise. I always thought this was just a savings account for one's children to save for their college. Considering I still owe 30K - when did I graduate? 2000, yes kids it doesn't matter how much money you make post college you will not pay it off in 10 years. Anyway, UPromise also allows you to register and apply all savings to your student loan!!! Considering I owe 30K now, I'd like to get this paid off before I start saving for Cookie Monster's college bill.

Conventional wisdom would say, start a 529 savings plan for your child's college fund now but with the current recession these plans have lost 13% in the 4th quarter of 2008. My source is this website: http://www.savingforcollege.com/

My plan is to encourage Cookie Monster to get straight A's in school so she can get scholarships like all my smart friends did. I have also savings plan for her that should give her around 10K when she turns 21. That's 10K more then I had when I turned 21!

2 comments:

Jan said...

Think I started a Upromise Account years ago and forgot all about it. Wonder if it is still good and what the hell was my user name and password?

lindzlou4 said...

Hi,



Want to win $10,000 for higher education expenses?! Enter a 30-second video contest at www.tuition-tales.com for a chance to win!



We work with Upromise and for many families and students struggling with today's economy, college tuition simply breaks the bank. Upromise is offering a creative opportunity for future, current and even recent graduates to win $10,000 toward higher education expenses.



The Tuition Tales video contest launches on March 24 and runs through May 3, and encourages people to submit a 30-second video entry at www.tuition-tales.com. The videos will be judged on creativity, quality and a demonstrated need for help paying for college. One contestant in each of three categories – Saving for College, In College Now and Paying it Back – will win $10,000 for college education expenses. Twelve finalists will win a $250 Bed Bath & Beyond® gift card and $250 Bank of America Visa Check Card.



The top 12 videos will be selected by a combination of online votes and a panel of judges. Once selected, all 12 finalists will be posted online and the public will vote (May 13 – 19) to determine which Tuition Tales video wins in each category. Contestants must be at least 18 years old to enter and can submit entries on behalf of themselves, a family member or friend.



To see last year’s winning video, let me know and I will send it your way. If you have any questions, feel free to call me at 561-998-1995 or email me at jguzman@tilsonpr.com



Good luck!



Jackie Guzman