The investment in a college education can easily be the most expensive purchase a family can make (with the exception of their home). However, from what I can see with the rising cost of college, it may be possible for that education investment to surpass the purchase price of even a modest home.

It is not uncommon for families to get a pre-approval for a mortgage loan before they can purchase a home but, as a society, we have no official process or financial check point in place when the same family is looking at committing (or possibly over committing) themselves to a similar sized investment in a college education.

My hope is that a family would spend as much time focusing on their college investment as they would on securing the right priced home and the accompanying mortgage. However, that may not always be the case.

The following represents some examples of what families/students may experience if they embark upon the college years and are unprepared for the associated costs:

• A student may end up going to a college that is way out of their price range. If they have a zero EFC and have to pay 18K a year out of pocket to cover costs, that school might not be the best fit (financially not necessarily academically).
• If a student is emotionally and academically connected to the University and is willing to pay the cost (no matter how high) to attend, they may end up being saddled with excessive student loan debt.
  • Which they will be stuck with long after graduation
  • More than likely it will inhibit their ability to be contributing alumni (donating back to their Alma mater)
• Chances are… a student may not be able to come up with the funds (through loans or other means) to pay for even the first semester and be unable to register for subsequent semesters and be forced to withdraw from the college.
  • Unfortunately, they wont be able to have access to transcripts since they have an outstanding financial obligation to the college.
• A student can have a bad experience (financially) at one college and they may decide to forgo their educational goals altogether.. which, in my mind, would be a travesty.

I am sure there are probably some other issues/challenges/hurdles that you may be able to identify that are born from not investing the time and research into college expenses and how to pay for them. If you can think of any, please feel free to share below in the comment section. The more challenges we can identify, the better we are able to respond to eliminating those hurdles for families/students.

In the meantime, I would encourage you to utilize CheapScholar’s College Resource Center to find great tips about saving for college, paying for college, student loans, and the financial aid process. Education and knowledge is the key to helping future generations realize their college goals and avoid some of the pitfalls mentioned above. My hope is that CheapScholar.org is helping out in that effort.