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.

Parents with prospective college freshmen living under their roofs have turned to hiring college coaches to help their children gain entry to their dream schools. These coaches are part advisor and part magician because they promise to boost your child's acceptance prospects well above the usual suspects of safety schools. Business Week recently reported that some parents pay up to $40,000 for these services. It's also not uncommon for parents to pay an average of $15,000-$20,000 to help their children gain coveted places in top-tier universities. So are these investments really worth it? Well, Clark admits that he has a big-time bias: He knows plenty of people who went to mediocre schools and have gone on to be very successful in life. So he believes that simply having a degree is a more important predictor of success than going to a particular prestige university. Of course many parents feel the opposite and want to get their children into a specific school. But Clark thinks it's crucial to just get the education and not worry about any particular school name being on the diploma.

One of the hottest areas of Clark's site is his 529 Plan Guide. He's now made his fourth revision to this invaluable resource so that you can continue being "Clark Smart" when saving for a child's education. The idea behind 529 Plans is that the money you save will grow tax-free and can be spent tax-free on college education. If the child doesn't go to college, you can transfer the plan to another child for free without being taxed. If there are no other children you want to have the money, you can use it yourself. But beware that you'll pay a 10 percent penalty plus tax if you take this latter option.

All 529 Plans must have state sponsorship, but you're not limited by where you live as far as making contributions. You may, however, enjoy a state tax deduction if you select your own state's plan. 529 Plans are great when they're purchased correctly. But a lot of money goes in the wrong way through commissioned salespeople, banks, stock brokers and financial advisors who take a cut of your money. You should buy 529 Plans directly through the state that sponsors them. If your state isn't listed in the "Honor Roll" section of Clark's guide, pick a state from his "Dean's List." There you'll see plans from Utah, Iowa and New York. These are the lowest-cost plans available across the board. Utah is by far the single best plan in the country. One of the most unique things about 529 Plans is that they're all very flexible. You can put in as little as $15/month or a rich grandparent can pop in as much as $60,000 all at once. One caveat from Clark: Do not save for your child's college education until you save for your own retirement. There are no scholarship plans for retirement!

You’ve probably heard of college savings plans. What you may not know is that every plan must be sponsored by a state, and states can sponsor more than one plan. Clark has a guide on the site telling you exactly which plans will give you the best bang for your buck. Utah has the lowest cost of any plan in the country, and is Clark’s top choice. You can find more great plans on Clark’s list. In addition, residents of one state can buy a plan in any other state. But you want to buy one of the good plans. On the other hand, Morningstar conducts an annual survey of plans to give you the worst 529 plans out there. One of the worst plans in the country comes from Alaska, for example. But the state also has a great plan. The way you tell the difference is if you see that the plan is sold by a commissioned-salesperson. You don’t want this. You want plans that are either “direct sold” or they say “direct plan” on them. Cost is the central issue with these plans, so pay attention.

Over the years, Clark has been a big advocate of saving for your child’s college costs through college savings plans – also known as 529 plans. Unfortunately, these plans have suffered in the market lately because the law allowing money to be spent tax free was about to expire. So people stopped putting money in. The good news is that a more recent law passed by Congress negates that and makes permanent the tax free status of 529 plans. So, contributing is a wonderful idea. What you need to remember is that are two kinds of plans – bad ones and good ones. The bad ones are the outrageously priced, commission-laden plans that take a huge chunk of your money. The good ones are those with very little commissions that you set up yourself. There is no need to pay a commission to a firm or company because you do it all yourself. One unnecessary level is that each plan must be sponsored by a state, according to the law. And states can lend sponsorships to multiple plans. So, there could be good plans and bad plans in one state. That’s why you need to refer to Clark’s 529 plan guide. The guide has only good plans for various states. Clark recently opened a 529 plan for his son and it took him all of 8 minutes using the guide. Get smart about this and keep more of your money.

Fewer people are investing in 529 plans or college savings plans these days. Why? Apparently, many of these plans have gone down in value instead of going up so they’re not investing. These people should be upset because they’ve been dealing with a greedy commissioned broker. Remember that you can open a 529 plan yourself. You don’t need a broker. Check out Clark’s 529 plan Honor Roll and Guide to get started.

Parents are saving for their kids’ college education in very large numbers these days. That’s a great thing, except if you’re doing it in place of saving for your own retirement. According to Allstate insurance, half of parents are saving equally for retirement and college. And one in seven are saving only for their children’s college and not at all for their own retirement. This is not a good idea. If you’re putting off saving for yourself, you not have had enough time to build up what you’ll need. There are no scholarships or financial aid in retirement, and you need your money to compound over time. So, as long as you’re putting the max you can into your retirement account, feel free to save for college. If you could be putting more into your retirement plan, put off the 529 plan until you get a good nest egg going. Don’t be scared by the statistics about how much college will cost. You’ll make it happen.

When it comes to parents and kids, Clark gets more calls about how much college will cost than any other question. He always stresses that parents should be saving for their own future first, and then saving for their children’s college education. That is one important note. The second is that there are a lot of dirty scoundrels out there selling people completely inappropriate plans. In fact, the NASD (National Association of Securities Dealers) found that 90 percent of sales of 529 plans by brokerages have been inappropriate. By inappropriate, we mean that the brokerages are charging monstrous fees for setting up an account. They can line their pockets by recommending plans that aren’t the best for you but cost a lot in commission. The good news is that some of these bad brokerages are heading for the hills because the SEC is after them. That means that the legitimate companies will be left, and that is good news. Even better is the news that the two best companies are are emerging as the giants in the 529 field. Vanguard and TIAA-CREF are considered the best and people are starting to realize this. For help picking funds, check out Clark’s 529 guide. In the next few months, Clark hopes to have several more to offer you. A 529 plan is the best way to save for your child’s college because if they don’t go to college, the money is yours. Not to mention the fact that through 2011, money spent on college education is tax free!

Clark gets many calls from the parents of newborns, who want to know about putting aside money for their children’s’ college education. Clark asks them first how much they are saving for themselves, and often he is met with silence. He wants you to save for your children, of course. But you need to save for yourself first. New data out shows that people are saving tons through 529 plans. Also known as college savings accounts, these are tax exempt accounts that allow you to put away money for college education. Better yet, the money is spent tax free. People have spent $50 billion this year, which is 67 percent more than last year. In the next year, it will be up to $100 billion. But please max out your retirement savings account before you start one of these plans. Your retirement savings account is the most tax efficient plan out there. Secondly, if you are invested in a 529 plan, make sure it is with a legitimate, low-cost plan that does not charge commission. Clark has created a 529 Honor Roll that gives you his top choices for plans and tells you exactly how to contribute money. Coverdell accounts also allow you to put money away for your child's elementary, middle or high school education.

Clark has been very concerned with corruption going on in 529 or college savings plans. These are wonderful investment opportunities to help pay for college educations and all of the earnings are tax-free for the next seven years. They are very flexible, too. But Congress overlooked some things when they set up the 529 system. According to law, these plans must be sponsored by a state and administered by a brokerage or financial house. Unfortunately, the states don’t always check out the companies that offer to host the plans and some corrupt organizations have gotten involved. As a result some plans have been hijacked and investors’ money was stolen. But Clark has a sure fire way not to get taken. He has put together a “529 Honor Roll” that includes great plans with very low fees. The best, in his opinion, comes from Utah. Utah gets highest honors in his new, revamped survey. But the other 11 plans are listed on the honor roll. Check it out. If your state is on the list, go with that one because you’ll get the added tax benefits of being a resident there. If your state is not on the list, go with Utah. You can also put money into Coverdell plans at the same time. Just remember to fund your own retirement first. That is always your first priority.