Missouri's college savings plan will now have lower administrative costs.
At a press conference at the University of Missouri St. Louis today, Missouri State Treasurer Clint Zweifel announced a new five-year management agreement with Upromise Investments and Vanguard that will decrease the cost of the MOST 529 plan by 44 percent. The partnership is estimated to save Missourians $18.5 million.
Zweifel says Missourians are saving at historic levels. More than 120,000 Missourians use MOST, 63,000 in the St. Louis region. He says small investments do matter.
"We know that on average a family that saves $50 a month over the course of 18 years ends up with about $18,000 toward college," Zweifel said, "That is a critical tool in the tool box and that is exactly what encouraging saving is all about."
Under the agreement, Missourians who prefer to save through a financial advisor will have expanded options through DWS Investments, which is the world's eighth-largest mutual fund company.
Note: Changes were made to this post to reflect that the lower costs will be administrative in nature.
