What Is A Florida 529 Savings Plan?

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Find out What Is A Florida 529 Savings Plan and how you can get up to $50 free and get your application fee waived thanks to the Florida 529 Summer Jump-Start Promotion. This post is sponsored by Florida Prepaid College Plans, through my role as a Believer Blogger. All thoughts are my own.

What Is A Florida 529 Savings Plan?

From saving for diapers, to tooth fairy visits, to the constant need for new shoes and clothes, to the latest gadgets, to the ever updating school supplies, to just paying for everything that life throws our way it seems like there is always a strain on our bank accounts. Add in the thought of saving for college and EEEKKK. I mean, when do you start saving for college? How do you start saving for college? How much extra money do you have to have to start saving for college? Is it ever too early to start saving for college? Is it ever too late to start saving for college? Where do you even start?

I don’t know about you, but when there is something that I know will take me some time researching or I just don’t know much about…I keep pushing it down my TO-DO list. Not because it’s not important, because it’s probably the most important thing on there, but because it intimidates me. So, I will push it off as long as I possibly can. Then what happens? I realize that it was WAY easier than I expected. And I am hear to tell you today that is exactly what saving for college is. WAY easier than you expected. Yes, you read that right. You can start saving for college in just a matter of minutes with whatever amount of money you would like to use and pay absolutely NO fees.

And for a limited time only you can actually jump-start your savings with up to $50 for FREE and you can get your application fee WAIVED, that’s another savings of $50. And guess what? Getting that extra $50 for FREE is easy too 😉

Let me introduce you to the Florida 529 Savings Plan.

• The Florida 529 Savings Plan allows you to develop your own plan to save for college. You decide when you want to enroll (open enrollment is year-round and there are no fees to enroll), how much you want to save and when you want to save. You also get to choose how you want to invest your savings using the investment options offered by the plan.
• Florida 529 Savings Plan can be opened by any individual 18 years of age or older that is a U.S. citizen or legal U.S. resident with a valid Social Security number. So that means friends, grandparents aunts, uncles or parents can open the plan.
• A Florida 529 Savings Plan can be used to pay for any Qualified Higher Education Expense as defined in Section 529 of the federal tax code, such as tuition, fees, room and board, supplies, and more.
• If you just moved to Florida and already have a 529 Savings Plan started, funds may be transferred from another state’s 529 Plan into a Florida 529 Savings Plan. The IRS calls this a “rollover” and allows you to do so once every 12 months for the same Beneficiary.
• If you have a Florida Prepaid Plan and someone opens up a Florida 529 Savings Plan for your child, that’s fantastic! They actually work great together. For example, a Prepaid Plan will cover tuition and other specified fees. Pair it with a Savings Plan to pay for books, a computer, room and board, and other Qualified Higher Education Expenses.
• You may transfer your Florida 529 Savings Plan to another eligible student or close the plan and withdraw the remaining balance. Any earnings that are not used for Qualified Higher Education Expenses are subject to federal and, if applicable, state income taxes. In addition, there is a 10% federal tax penalty on the earnings not used for Qualified Higher Education Expenses with certain exceptions for death, disability and scholarships (to the extent of the amount of the scholarship).

As you can see, a 529 Savings Plan isn’t intimidating or scary. It’s actually probably one of the easiest ways to start setting aside money for your child’s future.

I mentioned above that right now you can actually get up to $50 for FREE when you open a 529 Savings Plan, and here’s how to get that FREE $50:

1. Enroll in a new 529 Savings Plan by October 13, 2019 and you will earn a $50 contribution into your new college savings account when you set up automatic monthly contributions.
2. When you enroll by October 13th, you will get your application fee waived, that’s a savings of another $50.
3. Use Florida 529 Savings Plan Code SAVING20 when you enroll to take advantage of these savings.

Get started with a Florida 529 Savings Plan

That’s a FREE $50 to help you jump-start that college savings plan. I don’t know about you, but I will take all the free money you want to send my way 🙂  Don’t forget to use Florida 529 Savings Plan Code SAVING20.

Have you started savings for your child’s college education yet?  Don’t be scared, Starting Is Believing.

Learn more about Florida Prepaid College Plans online and feel free to follow Florida Prepaid College Plans on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube to stay up to date with information on open enrollment but get tips on college and more.

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*Funds earned will be deposited directly into your Florida 529 Savings Plan account. The Florida 529 Savings Plan is an investment plan that may be used to set aside funds for future higher education and certain K-12 education expenses. Funds may be used tax-free to pay for any qualified higher education expense nationwide.

*Savings Plans are not guaranteed, so the value of your investment is subject to market fluctuations. For specific information about your tax situation, please consult an investment adviser or certified public accountant.