It’s December and for many of us our thoughts are turning towards Christmas. If you have children they will no doubt have lists as long as your arm of things they would like to find under the tree on Christmas morning. According to those in the know, the top sellers this year will be a Vtech smartwatch for kids, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and a Hot Wheels remote controlled flying car. But how long will the watch, the turtles and the flying car entertain until they are flung aside in favour of the next latest thing? I would wager that it won’t be long.
What if you could find that elusive present with benefits that will last a lifetime for the special child in your life? Well, an education plan could be just the thing. I know that it might be a difficult sell to a teenager who is coveting an ipad but when they are older they will appreciate the sacrifice that their teen self had to make.
The fact is that student loan debt is high and rising in all of the major western nations. Graduates all over the world including in the UK,the US, Canada and Australia are leaving university with horrendous amounts of debt. In the US student loan debt has topped $1 trillion. In the UK the average student is graduating with average debts of £44,000 and in Australia some students are reported to have graduated with debt in excess of AU$400,000! After graduation competition is fierce for jobs and many are forced into non-graduate jobs with low salaries, or back into education to obtain postgraduate qualifications to give themselves the best possible chance of a decent salary.
With figures of this magnitude it is clear that many young people embarking on their lives face a huge struggle to pay off debts accumulated in the pursuit of a tertiary education at the same time as trying to get a foot on the property ladder and start their own families. It is at this point that the gift of an education plan will be truly appreciated. After all, what better start is there in life for a young person than to have both a university degree and no debt?
The secret is in harnessing the power of compounding to turn regular monthly savings into big bucks. Over the course of a number of years you can save significant sums which can really make a difference to both an undergraduate’s university days and their post-graduation life. That stroppy teenager might not appreciate your gift but the graduate he or she turns into most definitely will. So why not keep the expenditure on presents to a minimum this year and start investing into an education plan instead?
For more information, please contact Michele Carby at Holborn Asset Management on +971 50 618 6463 and on e-mail at [email protected]
