Apart from the challenges of education, which is for the child to grapple with, parents have their own hurdles to overcome i.e. sharply rising cost of education.
As a parent if you are not adequately geared to meet this particular challenge your child could well miss the bus on a solid degree regardless of his/her skill and aptitude.
Consider this - a 2-year MBA course at a premier management institution today would cost you nearly Rs 4 lakhs. At an inflation of rate of 10% for education, this amount would bloat to Rs 2,691,000 after 20 years when your child will sign up for the MBA course.
The good news is that help is at hand in the form of child insurance plans which are tailor-made to meet the future financial needs of your children. Child insurance plans are available in both forms - unit-linked plans and traditional plans to suit individuals with varying risk profiles.
A sum invested regularly in the plan can help accumulate a corpus that will secure your child’s financial future. The amount of contribution will depend on how much you plan to save. Your financial planner can be of assistance in chalking out an ideal financial plan for your child’s future.
Why Plan for Your Child’s Future?
Deciding to have a child and grow your family is a huge decision. Once you welcome a baby, you want to do everything in your power to ensure that your child will always have everything they could ever want. The rising costs and the rate of educational inflation could throw a spanner in the works.
To ensure that your child always has the finances they need to chase their dreams, you should plan for their future and purchase a child plan. We all know that life can be unpredictable. In the blink of an eye, everything could change and your child may be left to deal with life without your support. In such a case, planning for their future and securing it financially is crucial. This is why it’s vital that you plan for and secure your child’s future with a good child plan.
Where Should You Invest?
When you’re investing for your child’s future, you need to make prudent choices. You need to select the right mix of debt and equity instruments to ensure your child’s future is completely financially secure. You will need to consider your age, your child’s age, your liability, risk appetite, income, expenses and financial goals. If you have more than 10 years to invest, before your child is likely to head off to college, you can choose slightly more risky investments such as equities. These investment avenues provide you with more opportunities to grow your wealth.
If you have fewer years to invest, you should look at debt or mixed funds instead. They may not grow your money as exponentially as equity funds, but they are also much safer. You can also opt to invest in gold to help diversify your portfolio.
Once you make your investments, you should remember to revisit them regularly. Check how well your investments are doing and make adjustments as required. If you don’t do this, you could end up with far less than you intended.
Planning for Your Child’s Education
A good education will give your child the confidence and skills they need to make their way in the world. To ensure that your child gets the best possible education, to need to plan your finances. Here’s how you can do that:
Consider the Cost
The cost of education is rising every year. You need to think about what the tuition fee could be like in 15 or 20 years and save accordingly. You should also think about the fact that your child might want to go abroad for education. Then, you will have to factor in the cost of flight tickets, food, accommodation and pocket money. Over and above this, you should also keep a bit of a buffer in case the costs rise more than you expect.
Think About Hobbies
Remember, an education doesn’t just refer to the hours your child spends in school. The tuition fees you pay is only a part of the expenses that come attached with a good education. You will also need money to pay for any special classes or hobbies your child would like to explore. For example, your child might show interest in a sport like tennis. You should also factor in the cost of potential tennis lessons, the cost of buying racquets, balls specialised shoes and more.
Assess Your Assets
Before you start investing, you should take a look at what assets you already have on hand. You can decide how much to invest based on this. But, you must remember that you should invest separately for different goals. Let’s say you’re saving for your child’s education at a home at the same time. You should not dip into the money you’ve saved up for your house to pay for your child’s education or vice-versa unless it’s absolutely necessary.
Start Immediately
It’s never too early to start planning for your child’s future. Ideally, you should start investing in their future as soon as they are born. The longer you have to invest, the higher your returns are likely to be.
Planning for Your Child’s Marriage
Every parent dreams of the day that their child will find the ideal life partner, settle down and start a family of their own. Most parents will save up for their child’s marriage for several years in the hope of giving them their dream wedding. Planning and paying for a wedding isn’t easy and costs are only rising every day, so having a good Child Investment Plan in place is necessary. Once again, time is of the absolute essence here. The earlier you start saving and investing, the more you’re likely to have to make your child’s dreams come true.
Importance of Insurance
Insurance is an integral part of every good financial plan. If you make plans to invest without thinking about insurance, you’d be making a big mistake. Life is uncertain, and you never know what might happen tomorrow. You may not be around to look after them forever. If something were to happen to you and you were no longer able to invest in their future, your child could be left struggling to make ends meet. This is why you must always include insurance in your financial plans. Insurance will provide a financial safety net to your family members and your children in case something untoward were to happen to you. There are a number of insurance plans available in the market. You should choose one that best suits your needs. Remember to find policies that offer a high sum insured, as you don’t want to leave your family without sufficient financial protection.
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