College costs keep going up and up. Fortunately, there are many ways to save for college education, including tax-advantaged savings plans and U.S. Savings Bonds. There also are options for borrowing money, including bank loans and a variety of federal government student loan programs.
For more information on saving and borrowing for college costs, including what to consider if you're having difficulty repaying a student loan, some federal government Web sites can help. One is the U.S. Department of Education's Web site at www.studentaid.ed.gov, which even includes a calculator you can use to determine how much to save to meet college expenses and how to maximize your savings efforts. Another site, www.students.gov, is a comprehensive Web site with information from the U.S. government and other sources on topics such as financial aid.
The FDIC Protects Deposits to $100,000
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is an independent agency of the U.S. government that protects depositors from losing money if their insured bank or savings institution were to fail. Generally speaking, your funds in checking and savings accounts and "CDs" (special accounts you'd hold for anywhere from one month to five years) are fully insured up to $100,000, and sometimes more, under current laws.
"If you or your family has $100,000 or less on deposit at a bank, as is the case with most people, your money is completely safe," said Kathleen Nagle, a supervisor with the FDIC's Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection.
