A lot of high income parents save aggressively & invest for their retirements. Many just don’t have a fund DEDICATED for college.
When the time comes to send junior(s) to college, the decision then becomes should I divert some retirement funds for fullpay college and work years longer? Or should junior go to a better value school and I can retire on schedule?
Since the VAST MAJORITY of the highly professionally successful and highly compensated people I come across are not Ivy educated, I have my answer.
Upper class people are also used to a certain lifestyle. My husband and I don’t live extravagantly, but we wanted to be able to still travel (but we know how to travel cheaply) and have money for minor emergencies here and there, if need be, home repairs, etc… and we live in an expensive area.
If we were to take money out of retirement for college tuition, it could reduce the retirement income enough where we might not be able to do those things…
We did put money into a designated college fund, though.
And, this:
My husband has been very successful in his career and he went to college and a law school that many outside the area have never even heard of.
Paul, the people who are earning 400k now (with 18 yo kids) weren’t earning 400k when the kids were born such that saving 40k per year would have been a walk in the park. I certainly agree it’s important to save from the beginning, but claiming 18 years ago these people could have saved 40k per year - per kid! - is naive.
Oh ok. Never mind! I didn’t realize you were referencing a specific case! I thought it was more a general comment about 400k-earning parents. Carry on!
I’m sure this has been said, but threads where people are blindsided that the kid got no or little FA, despite having the stats for the Dream School. I flinched at the comment above about posters who say to research the colleges (because I say that, yup, and I mean it.) But, c’mon. Colleges have web sites, NPCs, anyone can at least try to put 2+2 together.
Posters whose parents make $250K/year and create a thread to say that are insulted by a low-dollar merit award because given their profile, they are entitled to more money.
The ones where the OP has no idea of what typical academic stats are required for admission to a particular school and then are angry because they are waitlisted , but try to use "lots of ECs " as rational of why they should’ve been selected over someone who was more academically suited for the school.
Threads about “how much spending money” you give your kid. Someone always ends up telling someone else they are spoiling their student by giving them too much money.
How would you like it if that person responded that you were depriving your kid? Especially when you don’t know whether the kid with more spending money chose a less expensive school than yours? Maybe the increased spending money is chump change compared to what your family is spending all-in?
Threads where posters brag in a big way about how frugal they are: they keep their cars until they have 300,000 miles on them. They live on a shoestring budget even though they have a million in savings. They buy their clothes at salvation army or other similar places. They spend $100 a year on clothes and don’t understand how others could possibly spend more.
I’m not defending spendthrift habits, but one can be just as extreme on the spectrum, being frugal just to impress others in the same vein as people who spend money to impress a different set of folks.
Quite frankly, some of the people crowing loudly about how frugal they are seem more tacky than people who have the “best of everything.” Each one of them are trying to impress others, and neither is living an “authentic” life.
Threads where students say they need financial aid, but later say their parents earn $100k+.
Threads where 8th graders ask about chances at Harvard (or any school).
Posts where people make assumptions about other people (i.e. he/she is just looking for one answer, he/she is jealous, etc.)
Should I choose Harvard or Duke? I really like Duke and gosh they gave me a great scholarship. However, it’s Harvard. How can I pass up Harvard? Oh by the way, I haven’t been accepted yet, but please make my decision for me.
Re: post 1070, that doesn’t apply to people who simply must live frugally because their income dictates that, nor to people who are admirably sensible with their money.
But you know the type…
I read about a guy who said when someone toilet papered their house that he saved the TP to use; and when his wife objected, he told her she was wasteful with his hard earned money.
What will actually annoy me on “Ivy Day”, more than any particular thread, will be the fact that CC will likely crash, as it has done for Ivy Days in the past. I won’t be able to come here and talk about annoying threads.
The Ivy Day thread. All those kids applying to 5-8 Ivies, listing one or two they already got likely letters from…very insensitive to the kids who applied to one or two and are hoping they get noticed by one at all. Even with sky high stats.
Also, not a particular thread, but the disparity between the kids who are devastated by being gapped, and those who wonder how to get a FA refund for travel, or for study abroad.
This time of year…threads that clearly say that students want to atrend unaffordable colleges (parents won’t pay, insufficient need based aid, colleges too costly to begin with, etc).
When posters will comment on getting rejected or waitlisted and then comment how they don’t really like the school anyway and will make negative comments about the school on an acceptance thread. Yea, I know your ego was bruised but why spoil the fun for all those who got accepted and are excited about the school? And why the heck did you apply at all if you REALLY didn’t care for the school? Lame.