It’s never too early to start thinking about how you’ll pay for your child’s education. 

According to a study conducted by Nerdwallet, an astonishing $29 billion in free college money was left unclaimed for the 2016-2017 school year. Among those statistics, Utah ranks highest in students who were eligible to receive free money, but missed out on the opportunity simply by neglecting to complete their FAFSA forms. If you or someone you know is preparing to attend college, make sure they know the numerous ways they can receive FREE money to help pay for their educational costs.

FAFSA: First and foremost, it is important to know about the website www.fafsa.gov. It is worth your while to check out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and all the financial resources they offer to help students pay for college. You can begin applying for FAFSA as early as October 1st for the upcoming year using your tax information from the previous year. Make sure you fill it out as early as possible as supply is limited, and be sure you update and reapply for FAFSA each year you are attending school. Send your FAFSA to all the schools you are interested in attending so they can send you their financial aid offers. Students must also include parent’s information on their FAFSA until they are 24 years of age; exceptions can be found at https://fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1718/help/fftoc02k.htm.

Employee Tuition Reimbursement: If you or your children are preparing to attend college, ask your employer if they offer any education benefits to students through tuition reimbursement or scholarships.

529 Savings Plan: These are tax advantaged savings plans that allow funds to grow tax free if used for educational purposes. There are 14 different investment choices that range from age-based options to static options, or customized options. These accounts can be opened by anyone for as little as $1 and anyone can contribute to the account at any point before the student withdraws the funds. For more information about this program, visit www.uesp.org.

Individual Development Account: This 3-1 matched savings program allows an individual to save up to $1,500 and receive $4,500 over the course of a 1-to 3-year period. Funds also grow tax free as long as they are withdrawn for use of assistive technology or educational purposes. There are income limitations and eligibility requirements. For more information, visit www.uidan.org.

Grants: Usually offered through FAFSA, grants are often based on an individual’s financial need. Grants are free money you don’t have to pay back, and the most an individual can receive in Federal Pell Grants for the upcoming year is $5,920. Be sure you apply early and often, as supplies for grant money is often limited and is distributed on a first come, first served basis.

Scholarships: Probably the most well-known form of free money, scholarship eligibility can be based on such things as interests, talents, program of study, grades and community involvement. They are usually offered through schools and universities, departments and cultural and religious organizations. Scholarships are also free money that you don’t have to pay back, and you will never have to pay to apply for one. A few helpful and fun scholarship databases include: www.fastweb.com, www.unigo.com, www.chegg.com, www.cappex.com and  https://stepuputah.com.

Work Study: This payment option is received by employment through the student’s college or university. Work study provides students with flexible jobs that allow them to complete school work during their work hours, or provide more hands-on training related to the student’s field of study. Paychecks can be used to pay tuition, fees, student loans, etc. Income received through work study must be claimed on the follow year’s taxes, but does not count against the student on FAFSA the following year. To apply for work study, mark “yes” on question 31 of FAFSA.

Federal Loans: Only borrow what you need for tuition if you choose to take out student loans to fund your education. Federal loans are offered through the government and there are four main types:

•      Subsidized loans – These do not begin building interest until the student has graduated from the college or university. They are typically offered to undergraduate students, and repayment plans can be deferred 6 months after graduation.
•      Unsubsidized loans – These allow interest to begin accruing from the moment the loan is signed. This means students will essentially be paying interest on interest once they graduate from school. These loans are typically only offered to graduate and professional students.
•      Direct Plus loans – These are loans taken out for a student by a parent.
•      Direct Perkins loans – These loans are offered through specific colleges and universities. They are usually based on financial need, and supply is often limited.

Private Loans: Again, only borrow what you need for tuition if you choose to take out student loans to fund your education. Private loans are offered through banks and other financial institutions. They are typically less flexible with repayment options, but offer all the same options as federal loans and do not require the completion of FAFSA.

This article was written by Kirstin Kvam USU Extension Finance Program Coordinator, Salt Lake County

Resources:

https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/loans/student-loans/fafsa-college-money-left-on-table/

https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/loans/student-loans-federal-vs-private-loans/

www.fafsa.gov

Have you filed your taxes yet this year? There’s a reason so many people opt to hire someone else to do their taxes for them— it can be a daunting task! Doing them yourself is a good way to save a little money. Today we’re featuring some free programs to help you get them done.

Spring is here, and you know what that means: tax season. If you haven’t filed yet, there are some great programs through Utah Tax Help that can guide you through the process of filing online or even file your taxes for you, depending on your household income.

Earn it. Keep it. Save it. is a coalition of Utah statewide partners from the public, private, and non-profit sectors and provides free tax preparation and filing assistance for people who make $64,000 or less and want to prepare their own federal and state tax return, FOR FREE, with limited assistance. To get started taxpayers need basic computer skills, internet access, an email address, a valid Social Security Number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), and tax documentation.  CAP Utah leads this coalition.  T

To file your federal and state tax return for FREE visit,www.UtahTaxHelp.org (tax filing software is provided by unitedway.org/myfreetaxes).

If your household income is less than $54,000, you can qualify to have your taxes prepared for free at a VITA site located in many of your local communities.  Call 211 or 1-888-826-9790 and they can set up appointments in your area.  This Volunteer Income Tax Assistance service is provided by Earn it. Keep it. Save it Coalition.

1: Visit a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Site

You can file your taxes utilizing the skills and expertise of one of our IRS certified volunteers by visiting a designated Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) site. There you will be matched with a volunteer trained to assist you. If your household income is $54,000 or less you qualify to have your taxes prepared for free at a VITA site.

Call 2-1-1 or 1-888-826-9790 to schedule an appointment.

Find a VITA Site.

2: File Online Now for FREE

You can also file your taxes for free from the comfort of your own home. All you need is a computer, internet access, an email account, and all of your tax documentation. The process takes about 60 minutes. If your household income is $64,000 or less, you qualify to file online for free. 

File online for free now.

If you are going to file online for free make sure to download and print these instructions to help you through the process.

Download the instructions.

If you have questions or are experiencing difficulties (including if you are accidentally charged by the online software), please contact the national helpline:

• 1-855-My-Tx-Help or 1-855-698-9435
• Hours of Operation: Monday – Saturday, 7:00AM – 8:00PM MST
• Email support: info@myfreetaxes.com

Visit utahtaxhelp.org for more information on these great programs.

Are you one of the lucky Americans who gets a tax return? Check out this quick financial tip from USU Extension Family Finance Pro Amanda Christensen and learn how to use that extra money wisely.

Have you used a food, grocery or coupon app? We’ve got the lowdown on of some of the top apps in these categories to help you decide whether or not they are worth a download.

Grocery and Coupons

Favado – This app is pretty awesome. You start off by entering your zip code or allowing location access so that the app can search for stores near you. From there, you pick stores of your choice. You can either view the ads for those stores, or better yet, compare the prices for the stores you picked. For instance: I chose Smith’s, Winco, and Costco. I could compare their ads in their entirety, or search for a specific item like broccoli. Smith’s broccoli was $0.79 per pound, while WinCo broccoli was $0.98. By doing this with all my grocery list items I could see where to get the most bang for my buck. You can also add the items you searched for or saw in coupons to a list by store.

Walmart– This app has a great feature: Savings Catcher. You can scan your Walmart receipt and the app will search prices of competitors in the area for advertised deals on the items you purchased. If a lower advertised price is found, Walmart give you the difference on an eGift card. This app also lists the weekly ad and current prices in store. You can order non-grocery items from this app and pick them up at the store, and refill prescriptions from this app. To order groceries, use the Walmart Grocery app, where you are able to select non-perishable foods to be delivered to your front door or complete all of your shopping and have it hand delivered to your car in the parking lot.

*Note: other stores also have their own apps to help with grocery shopping lists, couponing, etc. Smith’s grocery store app allows you to add coupons directly to your Fresh Values card, which eliminates the hassle of cutting and turning in paper coupons. Target’s Cartwheel app allows you to scan items in the store to see if there is a coupon or sale in addition to weekly ad prices. Check to see if the stores at which you typically shop have apps, and then see what they have to offer.

Grocery IQ or Grocery Pal – The best feature on these apps is that you can scan a barcode or use a voice search to find coupons. When you scan a barcode or search for an item, coupons from stores around you will pop up, then you can add the coupons and items you want to your list. This could be handy if you are in a store and want to quickly check prices elsewhere.  You can also view the weekly ads for stores in your area.

Nutrition Tracking

MyNetDiary –  This easy-to-use app is a classic nutrition tracker. You enter your personal information and select if you want to gain, lose or maintain weight. The app then tells you how many calories you should eat each day to achieve your goal. It tracks the amount of the fat, carbs and protein in the foods you enter, and calculates your allowed amount remaining in each category for the day. Perhaps the best part is that you can enter in your own recipes. With many other nutrition trackers, there are preset meals to choose from. With this app, you can select the ingredients that actually made up your lunch for the day, and it will calculate the nutritional information. You can also log exercise, water intake and add personal notes in the app. Using an activity monitor like a Fitbit, you can also track your steps and how many calories burned in the app.

Nutrition Education

Eat and Move -0- Matic – This is a great nutrition education app for families and children, produced by the National 4-H Council. Its designed to be like a game and is geared toward children. Your children may not find it the most exciting game to play on their own, but it is a good educational app for you to go through with your children. The app teaches how food and exercise work together. For example, it would take 27 minutes of jumping rope to burn the calories contained in an 8 ounce glass of chocolate milk.  It has dozens of food and exercise selections to choose from and lists the calories for each food. This is great for helping parents understand how much physical activity their children should be doing for the food they are eating, and it can teach children that they need to exercise to stay healthy and balance what they eat with physical activity.

Recipes and Cooking

Cooking Matters – This app’s focus is healthy, affordable and delicious meals. While it doesn’t have as many recipes as Pinterest, the recipes this app does have are healthy, simple and look very appealing. Many of the recipes use few ingredients. It also lists the serving size of each recipe and has a nice conversion feature to tell you how many ounces are in a pound or how many teaspoons are in a tablespoon, etc.

Do you use any of these apps? Are there any you love that we’ve missed? Let us know in the comments!

This article was written by Sarah Hepworth Warner, Food Sense nutrition program intern, Utah County, and Melanie Jewkes, Utah State University Extension associate professor, Salt Lake County

What’s the deal with  layaway programs? Learn how to assess if layaway is a good option for you and how to set up your own layaway savings plan from USU Extension finance pro Amanda Christensen.

Layaway Highlights:

1. Read the fine print
2. Look at the cancelation policy
3. Will the payments fit into your budget?
4. Is there a sale price credit?
5. Will you be tempted to overspend?

Set Up Your Own Layaway Savings Plan:

1. Set a goal and stick to it
2. Make a plan
3.  Set up an automatic transfer
4. Watch sale prices
5. Stick to your list

Be sure to watch the video for the details on each tip.

Amanda Christensen is an Extension Assistant Professor for Utah State University. Follow her on Twitter: @FamFinPro, Facebook: Fam Fin Pro, Instagram: @FamFinPro.

It’s an emergency! My house is on fire… there’s been an earthquake… my furnace is broken! These are emergencies— Christmas is not. Check out this video from our finance pro Amanda Christensen and follow her tips to plan ahead for Christmas and save your emergency fund for a real emergency.

Highlights:

1. Christmas is not an emergency!
2. Set reasonable expectations.
3. Shop early and after.
4. Plan to give to those in need.

Be sure to watch the video for the details on each tip.

Amanda Christensen is an Extension Assistant Professor for Utah State University. Follow her on Twitter: @utahmoney moms, Facebook: Utah Money Moms, Instagram: @utahmoneymoms.

These 10 tips will help you ditch the idea that healthy foods are too expensive!

The Whole Truth

Fruits and vegetables are an important part of a healthy diet because they provide essential vitamins and minerals. They are also high in fiber and water while low in calories, so they can help us feel full longer on fewer calories.

The USDA MyPlate Guidelines tells us to make ½ of our plate fruit and vegetables, but many people find it difficult to put this into practice. The three main reasons people give for not eating more fruits and vegetables are cost, time and taste.

This week we’ll talk about how to eat fruits and vegetables on a budget, and we will cover how to make fruits and vegetables more convenient and tastier in following weeks.

Many people think that fruits and vegetables are too expensive. But the truth is, vegetables and healthy foods are more affordable for what you get out of them. Fruits and vegetables do tend to be more expensive per calorie, but less expensive than less healthy foods per gram or per portion eaten. This is because fruits and vegetables are higher in fiber, water and vitamins and minerals, while being lower in calories.

If you think about all of the nutritional benefits you get from fruits and vegetables, it is hard not to see them as a deal! Here are 10 great tips to include fruits and vegetables in your diet at a lower cost:

1. Shop in season! Fruits and vegetables are often on sale when they are in season, and usually taste better then too. You can look up what vegetables are in season here: http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/what-fruits-and-vegetables-are-in-season

2. Some vegetables are low cost year round, including potatoes, carrots, onions and cabbage. Look for recipes online to find new ways to use these staples: http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/main-recipes

3. Stock up on frozen fruits and vegetables when they are on sale. Frozen is just as nutritious as fresh, and they can keep 8-10 months in the freezer. Choose those without added sauces, fats or sugar.

4. Plan your meals ahead of time so fresh fruits and vegetables get used before they go bad. You can learn more about meal planning here: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/healthy-eating-on-budget.html

5. To reduce waste, you can freeze leftover vegetables to add to casseroles or soups later, and overripe fruit is great in smoothies or baking.

6. Canned vegetables are a great option, and are much more affordable than fresh or frozen. Choose fruit canned in 100 percent juice and vegetables that are low in sodium or have no sodium added. Stock up when they are on sale!

7. When buying canned or frozen vegetables, try the store brand. The store brand is the same or a similar product at a much lower price.

8. Check out your local farmer’s market. You can often find great deals on seasonal produce.

9. If you find a great deal on fresh produce, try freezing or canning it for later use. You can learn how from USU Extension: https://extension.usu.edu/boxelder/files/uploads/fn168.pdf
https://extension.usu.edu/files/publications/publication/FN_215.pdf
https://extension.usu.edu/canning/

10. Another way to reduce cost might be to grow your own. A backyard garden or patio planter can provide super-fresh produce all summer long. USU Extension has a lot of great resources to learn how if you are a beginner: https://extension.usu.edu/yardandgarden/

Come back next week for more tricks and tips to make fruits and vegetables more convenient and tasty.

This article was written by Carrie Durward, Extension Nutrition Specialist