Fidelity 529 plan - review

A few years ago, (I think 2002)
Grandpa setup a Fidelity 529 plan for each of the 7 grandkids.
It was supposedly graduated to contribute more for the oldest,
and less for the younger..... not large amounts, about $800 a year.
So - for our 15yr old - his plan has about $6k - enough for books :)
Not sure how much the other kids have - don't want to start a squabble..

The plan has a 3.50% load,
and it doesn't appear to be appreciating that much
compared to our own personal mutual fund holdings.
So - how does this plan look compared to other 529 plans ???

<>

tnx for any insight - BTW, we are in Illinois -

Re: Fidelity 529 plan - review

Phil, ask this at misc.invest.financial-plan . It's
moderated but with a fast turnaround time.

I haven't checked the Fidelity site yet, but a 3.5% load?! I
hope the wizards at MIFP find something better than this.

"Phil Schuman" <> wrote
>A few years ago, (I think 2002)
> Grandpa setup a Fidelity 529 plan for each of the 7
> grandkids.
> It was supposedly graduated to contribute more for the
> oldest,
> and less for the younger..... not large amounts, about
> $800 a year.
> So - for our 15yr old - his plan has about $6k - enough
> for books :)
> Not sure how much the other kids have - don't want to
> start a squabble..
>
> The plan has a 3.50% load,
> and it doesn't appear to be appreciating that much
> compared to our own personal mutual fund holdings.
> So - how does this plan look compared to other 529 plans
> ???
>
> <>
>
> tnx for any insight - BTW, we are in Illinois -
>
>
>

Re: Fidelity 529 plan - review

"Elle" <> wrote in message
news:4qnPf.2657$
> Phil, ask this at misc.invest.financial-plan . It's
> moderated but with a fast turnaround time.
>
> I haven't checked the Fidelity site yet, but a 3.5% load?! I
> hope the wizards at MIFP find something better than this.
>
I posted in both newsgroups -
yeah... that's what caught my eye, Front End Sales Charge of 3.49% -
along with the year end statement having a $30 annual maint fee.
Heck - the account is loosing money just in fees !!

That's why I was wondering what other 529 plans look like....
or is this one just getting eaten up
because it was "sold" thru an "advisor" ?

Re: Fidelity 529 plan - review

"Phil Schuman" <> wrote
> "Elle" <> wrote
>> Phil, ask this at misc.invest.financial-plan . It's
>> moderated but with a fast turnaround time.
>>
>> I haven't checked the Fidelity site yet, but a 3.5%
>> load?! I
>> hope the wizards at MIFP find something better than this.
>>
> I posted in both newsgroups -
> yeah... that's what caught my eye, Front End Sales Charge
> of 3.49% -
> along with the year end statement having a $30 annual
> maint fee.
> Heck - the account is loosing money just in fees !!
>
> That's why I was wondering what other 529 plans look
> like....
> or is this one just getting eaten up
> because it was "sold" thru an "advisor" ?

Right. I think your suspicion is totally warranted. You try
googling for a little more info? Check Vanguard's site?
Fidelity's great but Vanguard or someone else might be
competitive, too.

Re: Fidelity 529 plan - review

You can compare plans here

Re: Fidelity 529 plan - review

Phil Schuman wrote:
> That's why I was wondering what other 529 plans look like....
> or is this one just getting eaten up
> because it was "sold" thru an "advisor" ?

I'm no 529 expert, but I have seen articles that say that 529 plans
vary extremely widely. And that some advisors were choosing bad 529
plans that paid the most commission. The link by the OP led to the New
Hampshire 529 plan, so if Grandpa did not live in NH, then I'd say he
was taken by the advisor. According to the links below, the sales load
was actually 5.75%. Maybe Fidelity reduced it to 3.50% now. On the
other hand, Utah's plan is run by Vanguard, and has no load and about a
0.25% expense ratio.

Re: Fidelity 529 plan - review

Phil Schuman <> wrote:
>
> The plan has a 3.50% load,
> and it doesn't appear to be appreciating that much
> compared to our own personal mutual fund holdings.
> So - how does this plan look compared to other 529 plans ???
> <>
> tnx for any insight - BTW, we are in Illinois -

Getting ripped off.

I use Ohio's plan. Check your state to see what options there are.