It is more important to securely fund retirement accounts than to save heavily for a child’s college education, according to USA Today. Deciding whether to save for retirement versus education is often filled with complex emotions. But, in fact, it is wise to prioritize retirement first.
While children can take out student loans to pay for college, it is unlikely that parents can finance their way through retirement. College students have many options to pay for their education and having a fully funded savings account might tempt the family to place less importance on free grants and scholarships that will often require more work up front, but don’t have to be paid back.
According to Dave Ramsey, saving for education is a luxury, but saving for retirement is an important necessity. Save for your retirement before any future education.