Clarkhoward.com - Clark's recently updated 529 plan guide

Clark sometimes gives advice on air that he doesn't take -- and then he gets hit with the consequences. Here's an example of his self-proclaimed financial stupidity: Clark predicted that there would be a big push during the Christmas shopping season for hi-def DVD players, either Sony's Blu-ray or Toshiba's HD DVD. The two formats were in a war and he advised consumers to stay out on the sidelines until the marketplace sorted things out. But then he turned around and got a steal of a deal on a Toshiba HD DVD player. Clark jumped because the deal included the player and 5 free movies. He and his wife both loved the picture quality from their HD DVD player.

But now Blu-ray has won the format war, so Clark is stuck with a largely worthless piece of equipment. Now he'll have to wait until the studios put their remaining HD DVD titles on quadruple markdown clearance and snatch them up. As for you, this coming Christmas will be a good time to buy a Blu-ray player or a Sony PlayStation 3, which features built-in Blu-ray. If you're in the same boat as Clark with his dinosaur player, you can also get an HD up-convert DVD player that uses computer technology to simulate a hi-def picture from your existing standard-def DVDs. Clark and his family watched the third Indiana Jones flick on an up-convert and it looked great.

Parents across the country are freaked out over their 529 statements. They're seeing balances shrink because they may be heavily invested in the volatile stock market. Do not do stocks when your kids are teens -- that's like playing with fire. Note that doing a 529 plan and picking mostly stock investments is only a problem if your kids are 5 or less years from college. If they're not, you can actually benefit by contributing dribs and drabs each month during the tough times in the stock market. That way you accumulate more stock for your dollar before the selling prices bounce back.

Clark has 2 simple rules for you to follow when it comes to 529 plans. Rule No. 1: Make sure you're going the commission-free route when you buy. You wouldn't go to a commissioned stock broker, so why would you buy into your 529 plan through a commissioned salesperson? Rule No. 2: Do the age-based portfolio options. You need different investment mixes when your kids are 5 and when they're 15, for example. That usually means taking on risky stocks in the early years and picking safer options as you get into the teen years. Age-based portfolios adjust roughly every 2 years to make your risk level more and more conservative. So don't stop contributing because you're worried about the stock market. Just change how you invest. Check Clark's recently updated 529 plan guide for his top picks of plans around the country. You usually get a state tax advantage by going into your state's plan. But if you're state is not listed, forget the tax benefit and go into one of Clark's top 3 choices. One final caveat: Make sure you fully fund your 401(k), Roth or SEP before saving for college. There's no scholarship plan for retirement, but your kids can always take out loans or work their way through school.

RIP-OFF ALERT: Clark gets very steamed whenever he hears about children or seniors getting ripped off. Here's a scenario that affects the latter group: Clark has been getting a lot of reverse mortgage questions. Reverse mortgages offer a way for retired folks who are running out of cash to be able to remain in their home and get a check each month by borrowing against the value of the property. This can be a good option if you don't want a family member to inherit the house, but historically the fees on reverse mortgages have been too high. Now Kiplinger's reports that insurance salesmen and women are convincing seniors to do reverse mortgages, cash out the value of their homes and…you guessed it…buy variable annuities. AARP finds that 1 in 10 people doing reverse mortgages were conned into doing so with the promise of such pseudo-investments.

This is unconscionable. Clark doesn't know what goes on in the minds of the banks, brokerage houses and insurance companies who push these modified reverse mortgages. The variable annuity shtick is bad enough, but it's really infuriating that they're pouring salt into a wound by stripping the equity from a home. Clark believes it's not enough to fine people who push this stuff; the only way to stop this is to send them to prison. The fines that can be levied are never enough and just reinforce the idea that crime pays. So you must be the cop on the beat for your elderly relatives. Be nosy and find out what's going in their lives. Hopefully they were there for you as a young person, so try returning the favor by being there for them in a time of need.

Clark has a longstanding beef with his nephew David, who is addicted to frequent flyer mileage programs and jumps through all kinds of hoops to accumulate miles. Here's what David doesn't understand: There's an industry-wide trend of airlines devaluing frequent flyer miles. U.S. Airways is just the latest example; they're making the miles tougher to redeem and earn. Having a stockpile of miles is like having a reverse savings account -- the value leeches out of them everyday. What if you use a credit card that earns frequent flyer miles? Clark would prefer that you ditch it and get a card that pays you cash instead. With cash, there are no restrictions on when you can use it. Clark's producer Kim is one of those people conned by the mileage programs. She once redeemed miles and had to fly to the wrong city, while changing planes 2 times to get there and 2 more times to go home. That's a lot of work to take a "free" trip. So what should you do with your mileage balances? The full-fare airlines are adding international routes all the time, so look for new service announcements on their websites and jump when you get the opportunity.