My husband and I would like to begin a small savings account for our baby, that would be untouched for a long period of time, such as until our baby graduates from high school. Family members have gifted our baby with small amounts of money, and we expect that he will continue to get some money from relatives for birthdays and things like that. What is the best type of account to open for money that will go untouched? Our intent is that our baby will be able to use the funds after graduating from high school in order to offset the cost of college.
In Canada we have an RESP, a registered education savings plan. It's a great way to save money for your child's education. We put in $150 a month the government will top up to $200. The money is invested and cannot be touched until your child is 18 and attending post secondary schooling. We have found the money grows quite quickly and hoping that it will cover the entire cost of post secondary education.
That's a good way to help yourself from spending a lot of money for your child's college education in the future. In my case, my parents invested on an educational plan that matured as soon as I graduated from high school. It helped offset the large price of my college tuition, and also gave them some capital for their remittance business. We don't really have any form of college fund supported by the government in the Philippines so I can't help you as much. If you're living in the US or the UK, they might have a college fund for you, based from what I'm hearing from my relatives living abroad. Good luck!
I think they call it an educational plan and you have the option to choose the type of coverage. Some plans cover both high school and college education (particularly if you intend to let your child attend a private high school) while other plans focus only on either high school or college. Since in certain countries public education is quality and easily accessible, many parents would rather settle for a college educational plan.
