Especially if he has a younger brother…what you CAN pay for kid one matters. You don’t want to use every penny you have for this first kid, and leave kid number two with nothing left.
The most important conversation you need to have with this kid…is what you CAN and WILL pay annually for his college costs. He needs to understand that any college acceptance that does not meet your price point with all aid received…is not going to a realistic possibility.
Please consider your own family budget. Please.
ETA…your budget needs to consider all four years kid one is in college. It would be a shame for you to overextend for year one only to find out that with two in college…it’s just not possible to fund an additional three years…thus requiring kid one to transfer to a less costly college.
Will your kid be eligible for need based aid? That is a very serious question you need to know the answer to.