Saving for College Expenses Early Puts Time on Your Side

Keeping up with the rising cost of college, especially in a dicey economic and market environment, is nothing like the good old days for some people.

"My father was a farmer and when the tuition bill came he always sold a cow," said Merra Lee Moffitt, a certified financial planner with Waddell & Reed in Wyomissing, Pa.

Moffitt's son plans to attend a private university and, with nary a bovine in sight, the family's college savings must get the job done. Unfortunately, too many parents who made earlier projections on rosy scenarios are now tempted to shove college savings to the back burner.

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