Today, I will review Pennsylvania's 529 plan - the PA "529 Investment Plan".
This 529 program is managed by Upromise Investments and the investments are managed by Vanguard [I have reviewed Vanguard
What I Like About The PA 529 Investment Plan
* Investment Management By Vanguard. I really like Vanguard's performance and low expense ratios.
* Upromise Linked. You can link your Upromise qualifying purchases to this 529 which can help boost your savings.
* Tax Deduction For PA Taxpayers. From the PA 529 Investment Plan website: "For each beneficiary, PA residents may deduct up to $12,000 in contributions annually from their Pennsylvania state taxable income ($24,000 if married filing jointly, provided that each spouse has taxable income of $12,000)." If you have two children and have established two separate 529 accounts, then you can take an even larger deduction!
* Investment Options. There are three age-based options and ten individual investment portfolio options available. I like choices!
What I Would Like To See Improved
* This is a general improvement that I would like to see with all 529 plans, not just the PA 529 Investment Plan. I would like to see an option that allows one to withdraw money from the 529 plan penalty-free if one has paid for a child's college and there is no need for the college savings plan any longer. Right now, there is a 10% federal penalty tax if one pulls the money out of any 529 plan for anything other than qualified educational expenses. I would like to at least have the option to roll any extra money over to a Roth IRA - free of penalties.
Read reviews of other state 529 college savings plans HERE.
Receive each post automatically in your E-MAIL by clicking HERE.