In the backdrop of increasing college tuitions, parents in Massachusetts expect their kids to save $9,282 on average for college by the time they finish their high school.
College Savings Indicator study conducted by Fidelity Investments and the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority (MEFA) finds that 47 percent parents are yet to tell their kids that they are expected to contribute to the savings for the college education.
“The study’s findings are a sobering wake-up call for parents to improve communications with college-bound kids,” Melissa Ridolfi, vice president of Retirement and College Products at Fidelity, said.
“While parents need to be realistic when it comes to how much they can contribute to their kids’ education and expecting children to assume more responsibility for college costs makes sense, the right time for the college talk is long before the first tuition bill is due.”
The study also revealed that 70 percent of parents start saving quite early for funding the college tuition of their kids, while only 37 percent are able to achieve the college funding goals in reality, which is higher than the national average of 28 percent.
“Compared to rest of the nation, Massachusetts parents have always shown a strong commitment to college savings, and these survey results show we have the opportunity to build on these numbers,” Tom Graf, Executive Director of MEFA, said.
“With the new college savings tax deduction and lower account fees for the U.Fund, we are creating more incentives to save and helping families achieve their educational goals.”
The study also found 66 percent of parents start saving for their children’s college before they turn five.