Every month, since The Kids were born, I’ve received “child care” monies from the federal government totaling around $350. While I try not and rely on that money to pay our basic bills, I guess I do because it always gets spent. I was sad to learn that when The Kids turn six in December, I would lose the Universal Child Care Benefit (UCCB) of $200 a month. Well, I would have, but the rules have recently changed.
As of January 1, the amount for children aged zero to six will increase from $100 to $160 and kids aged six to 18 will now receive $60 (whereas they previously received nothing).
How You Can Save for Your Child’s Education
That means you will receive an extra $60 a month and a lump sum payment of $720*. If you’re like us, I’m sure that there are many things you could spend this found money on today. However, how about saving it for tomorrow by putting all of it into your child’s Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP)?
An RESP is a savings plan used by parents to help them save for their children’s post-secondary education. With the rising costs associated with sending a child to college or university, an RESP can really help.
Did you know that if The Kids begin their post secondary education in 2027 (only 12 short years from now!), the forecasted cost of an undergraduate degree is $47,000, and if they live away from home, that amount jumps to almost $102,000**. There are many benefits of saving for an RESP and the earlier you start, the more money your children can have for their future.
Benefits of Saving for an RESP
- The government provides grants (based as a percentage of your contribution up to a certain amount) although certain conditions apply to qualify for these,
- The money is tax sheltered until maturity. No tax needs to be paid until the money is withdrawn and at that time, your child will be taxed at a student rate, which is typically very little to nothing,
- Kids can focus on gaining an education, without worrying about how to pay for it.
The realm of RESPs may seem a little daunting at first, however, there are people that can help you make the right decision for you and your family.
One such company is Heritage Education Funds Inc. (Heritage), a Canadian company and one of Canada’s leading providers of group RESPs. They’ve been helping families since 1965. They also offer flexible savings options and they invest your money in lower risk things like equities and GICs. Contact a Heritage Education Fund Representative to get started towards the future that you want for your children.
Don’t forget to enter their Annual RESP Draw where you have a chance to Win 1 of 8 contributions of $2,500 towards a Heritage Education Funds RESP plan. Draw date is December 31, 2015.
Does Your Child have an RESP?
Find Out How You Can Save for Your Child’s Education with RESPs @HeritageFunds #resp http://t.co/Facn0k4aOz
— Journeys of The Zoo (@zoojourneys) August 12, 2015
* Based on a family with two children under the age of six.
** This data refers to the needs of each child and was obtained from Heritage Education Funds Inc. website.
Connect with Heritage Education Funds Website | Facebook | Twitter
Disclosure: As a Heritage Education Funds Ambassador, Journeys of The Zoo received compensation in exchange for sharing our story.
Wow.. $47,000 – I had no idea it would be that much! Better start saving!
it’s so important to start saving as soon as your child is born. use those RESP benefits.
Dear Mrdisco,
The earlier you start, the more you can save, however, it’s important to remember that if you didn’t get started when your kids were born, you can start anytime and still make a difference in their future. Even as little as $760 can make a difference and I’ll show how much in my next blog post.
Besos Sarah
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Thankfully, I no longer have to worry about paying for my children’s education as they are all adults. Of my 7, 5 went to Uni and one is about to go to college as well. Getting further education is very expensive and anything you can do now to ease the burden later should be done, you’ll be glad later on. 🙂
Dear Elizabeth,
Congratulations to all of your children for seeking out the education that they wanted.
Since Ed is nearing retirement, we have more money now to save then we will in a few years (even though it might not really seem like it) so we’re putting away every bit that we can.
Besos Sarah.
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As the mother of a son about to enter university this fall (and a second son in grade 11 this year who will likely go on to university or college), I have to say set a RESP up as soon as you can. Not only will you force yourself to save for their education but you will benefit from the govt’s contribution. The amount of OSAP loan given is impacted by your household income so if you both have good jobs then potentially the OSAP loan that your child will qualify for will be low. I sat in a presentation at the university where the financial lady was discussing that a $6,100 payment was required for the residence/meal plan installment on July 31st (the scary thing is that OSAP does not pay out the first installment until Sept 9th). If your child qualified for a loan from OSAP of over $10,000 then they had to pay $2,000 of the $6,100 by July 31st but if they qualified for less than $10000 the amount owing at the end of July was $6,100. Either way you had to pony up either $2000 or $6,100 -many parents in the audience were going a shade of green. I was never so thankful for setting up the RESP as I was that day. You may think you have lots of time to set it up but you should set it up ASAP.
neither of my girls have an RESP. My mom actually wants to help us out by getting us started with one for each of our girls because it is really important to us we just havent put much thought into it until recently (they are going on 1 and 3)
This is a subject that causes me great stress. No matter what, I feel I am not doing enough.
I have to go read all about this and enter to win that $2500.
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Dear Peady,
Don’t be hard on yourself or worry about what could have been. It’s never too late to get started and reap the rewards of the governments contributions.
And absolutely enter the contest!
Besos Sarah.
Sarah recently posted…Get Ready for Back to School with LunchBots from @BabyJoy_ca! CAN, 8/31 #ContestAlert
Yes! We have an RESP set up for our kids, but I need to be more diligent in contributing to it! 🙂
I am so happy these days are behind me. I started saving when my daughter was 6 months old. I financed her education and wedding with ease.
When my children were growing up it was all we could do to get pay check to pay check and keep them in activities. We were not able to put money aside for them. Now that we have grandchildren we have opened up RESPs for them and are putting aside some money for birthdays, Christmas etc.
For those in British Columbia with young children be sure to apply for the bonus $1200 BCTES grant!
Families in British Columbia are encouraged to start planning and saving early for their children’s post-secondary education or training program. To help, the B.C. Government will contribute a grant of $1,200 to eligible children through the BCTES grant.
To be eligible for the BCTES grant, a child must meet the following three criteria:
1.The child was born in 2007 or later;
2.At the time of application the child and a parent/guardian of the child are residents of British Columbia;
3.At the time of application the child is the beneficiary of a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) with a participating financial institution.
http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/education-training/k-12/support/bc-training-and-education-savings-program-bctesp
These are wonderful tips and have given me great ideas on where to go from here.
before having a kids it’s a good idea to think about the financial impact
The cost of an education in this country is embarrassing so you need to start saving ASAP
Dear Debbie,
It is unfortunate that many talented and able kids may not be able to continue on with their post-secondary education and meet their lifetime goals due to high fees.
Besos Sarah.
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It’s important to save early to take advantage of compound interest rates
I dont have to worry about paying for my children’s education because they are now adults,but it hard for folks to save,they are just living from month to month
I give my granddaughter money from time to time to add to the RESP funds! Anything helps. My granddaughters are still very young so any cash gift for their birthdays ect.. goes to RESP.
We’ve thought of this but haven’t really thought any more about it. It’s hard as it is with the costs associated with school, mortgage, taxes, dialysis travel, car repairs due to all the dialysis travel and life necessities for us to invest in it at the moment. When I’m better it’s definitely something we’ll look into again.
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Dear Jason,
You have a lot on your plate right now. When you’re ready, there are lots of people that are able to help you.
Besos Sarah.
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My husband and I would love to save for our daughters education! We haven’t started up anything for them and unfortunately just haven’t had the opportunity to put away anything. With only one income it is hard to even give $5 out of a pay check. hoping things will get a bit easier financially and we will be able to set something up for them as I know how important it is
Dear Kristen,
I’m sure that you are doing everything you can to make your daughters every day life, today, the most enjoyable it can be. Saving can wait for another day.
Besos Sarah.
Sarah recently posted…This is What Happens at a Paw Patrol Show in Mexico #travel
RESP’s are so important for each child you have.
Both our kids had RESP’S from the time of birth. The money goes in until the age of 12 and then you have to make sure you apply for it early enough , but also have to have proof that they are registered and accepted into the school. Mine both got about $14,000 from them, so we were pretty pleased by them.
Dear Sabina,
That is a significant amount to receive! Good on you for doing what you could to help your kids out.
Besos Sarah.
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I believe it is different for everyone as it does depend on how much was initially invested and how many students are taking out at that time!!
The cost of schooling college and university is always going up, up, up. It will really help your kids and or grandkids get their schooling needed for the careers they choose, if you save up for them.
I agree we need to have RESPs for our children with the rising costs of education.
All my kids are grown & have families of their own, but I wish I would have been involved in a plan like the ages ago!
We are empty nesters. Is there such a plan for us? We keep a little Christmas fund. That’s about it.
Dear Sue,
I love the sound of an “empty nester fund”!
Besos Sarah.
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I don’t have a Boston Pizza any where near us. But we do have some great pizza here in Chicago!! I know a GREAT way to have and save money!! Give us our Social Security cost of living raises like the politicians make sure they get theirs & get rid of most of these stupid taxes that they raise on us EVERY year!! Then senior citizens can afford to eat real food besides cat/dog food out of a can!!
This is so important and something we are working really hard to do!
I just sent this page to my niece who has a 4 year old and I hope she takes this to heart or her daughter might not be able to afford to go to school in the future.
Dear Debbie,
I’m currently reading “The Wealthy Barber” which is a really easy and amusing read that totally debunks financial planning/saving and is Canadian based. Even if your niece only saves $10 a month, it WILL make a difference by the time her daughter goes to school.
Besos Sarah.
Sarah recently posted…WIN a Barbie Dreamtopia Rainbow Doll! CAN, 9/1 #giveaway