Invest
Every dollar you save today can help reduce the amount you may need to borrow tomorrow. With professionally managed investment options designed for different goals, timelines, and comfort levels with risk, your savings have the potential to grow over time and help you prepare for future education expenses.
Saving vs Borrowing
The difference with START
Saving even a small amount each month may cost significantly less than borrowing the amount you will need when the time comes to pay for future education expenses. Consider these hypothetical scenarios:
Scenario 1: Noah’s parents start investing $100 a month into a 529 plan account right after Noah’s birth. In 18 years (assuming a 5% annual rate of return), they could potentially save more than $35,000.1
Scenario 2: After exhausting federal student aid options, Amelia has to borrow $35,000 to attend college. Based on a private student loan rate of 7.0 percent, Amelia could be faced with a monthly payment of $406 for 10 years (or $48,720).2
Investment Options
The Louisiana START College Saving and START K12 programs offer a variety of investment options designed to support different savings goals. There is no limit on the amount of investment options that can be selected in each account. You can change how new contributions are invested at any time and update the investment allocations for existing funds twice per year.
Year of Enrollment Portfolios
Professionally managed portfolios that automatically become more conservative as the beneficiary approaches their anticipated year of enrollment in higher education.
Individual Portfolios
Choose from individual portfolios to create an investment mix aligned with your goals. These portfolio allocations do not automatically adjust over time.
Capital Preservation Portfolio
A lower-risk option designed to help protect your principal if preserving your savings is more important than pursuing growth.
Target Risk Portfolios
Professionally managed portfolios that offer a straightforward investment strategy ranging from conservative to aggressive.
Individual Portfolios
Choose from individual portfolios to create an investment mix aligned with your goals. These portfolio allocations do not automatically adjust over time.
Capital Preservation Portfolio
A lower-risk option designed to help protect your principal if preserving your savings is more important than pursuing growth.
- 1 A plan of regular investment cannot ensure a profit or protect against a loss in a declining market.
- 2 This hypothetical example is for illustrative purposes only and assumes no withdrawals made during the period shown. It does not represent an actual investment in any particular 529 plan and does not reflect the effect of fees and expenses. Your actual investment return may be higher or lower than that shown. The loan repayment terms are also hypothetical.