529 higher ed savings question.

Anyone?

If you are the beneficiary of the 529 account then the proceeds can not be used for anyone else but you to be considered a qualified expense.

uhhh pretty sure you can change the beneficiary. Where are you seeing this?

You can change the beneficiary but only within the generation of the original beneficiary. So like you can transfer from your son to your daughter, or to a niece or nephew. But you can't transfer from your wife to your kid. This is what I got from a 3 minute Google search. Could easily be wrong about that.

Ah ok. So then in that case, do you think it would be smart to put it in wife or somebody else's name until JR gets into college? Or not worth the hassle?

I think you are correct.

quote:

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3. Only family members can withdraw 529 plan funds without penalty. While anyone can open a 529 plan account, only family members of the original beneficiary can use the funds for educational expenses without incurring a tax penalty, says Mackey McNeill, a Kentucky-based certified public accountant. However, families who want to change the beneficiary can choose among multiple generations, she notes. For instance, if a couple's oldest offspring receives a scholarship, they could reassign funds to nearly anyone else related to the child, such as siblings, parents, grandparents, first cousins, aunts, and uncles, McNeill says.

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