Saving for education at John Hancock Investment Management
The cost of secondary and college education has skyrocketed over the past 30 years as the skills required to compete in our global economy have become ever greater. A 529 education savings plan can help you save more, be better prepared, and set your child up for success.
Discover our Education Planning Center
529 plans are designed to provide:
- Tax advantages
- A choice of investments
- Flexibility
- Control
529 plans are designed to provide:
- Tax advantages
- A choice of investments
- Flexibility
- Control
Why use a 529 plan?
College costs—and student debt—are on the rise. A 529 plan may help you save more for college than traditional savings vehicles. See how much you could save. What's more, you can use your 529 account to pay for tuition, up to $10,000, for children in kindergarten through grade 12.¹
College costs have risen faster than other expenses
Changes in Consumer Price Index components, indexed to 100 in 1982–1984
Nearly half of today’s students are taking on debt
Percentage of each generation that has college loans
With a 529 plan:
- Your money is invested, it can accumulate and grow tax free,² and can potentially grow over time. That means that you may have more when it's time for your child to go to school.
- 529 plans have no income, age, or state residency requirements.
- Unlike UGMA/UTMA accounts, you retain control over your 529 account.
- You can take advantage of special gifting flexibility, including lump sum contributions of up to $75,000 for singles, and $150,000 for couples filing jointly per beneficiary without triggering federal gift taxes.³
- A 529 plan can work in concert with financial aid. Explore options with our financial aid estimator.
John Hancock Freedom 529 plan offers additional benefits
- It’s easy to get started. You can open a 529 plan with as little as $250 and each account can accept up to $475,000 per beneficiary.⁴
- You may be eligible for in-state tuition at the University of Alaska.⁵
- You receive creditor protection through the State of Alaska.⁶
- You can use our Education Planning Center to receive college guidance from birth to graduation.
How 529 plans work
Designed for educational goals
A 529 plan is a tax-advantaged savings account designed to help you invest for your child's educational needs. 529 plans are sponsored by states, state agencies, or educational institutions and used by parents and grandparents to pay for a child’s education. You can also use them to fund your own education.
An easy way to save
You can open a 529 plan with as little as $250. Other individuals, including family members and friends, can make gifts into your account. Most plans allow you to make regular, automatic contributions right from your bank account. Remember, the sooner you start saving, the quicker you can take advantage of tax-free growth. See what the cost of waiting can do to your goals.
Flexible and easy to use
The funds in a 529 plan can be used to pay for qualified college expenses, such as tuition, fees, room and board, textbooks, and computers. (They don't cover things such as bedding, decorations, or food.) For primary and secondary schools, up to $10,000 can be used to pay for tuition expenses.¹
You retain control
Life happens. If your child doesn't need all of the funds or receives a scholarship, you can switch the beneficiary to another family member. You can also withdraw the money to use for nonqualified expenses, although you'll pay taxes and penalties.
529 plans offer significant tax advantages
529 contributions grow federal tax free. As long as it’s used for qualified expenses, your money isn’t taxed when withdrawn. Many states also offer a full or partial tax deduction or credit for your contributions.⁷ That’s extra money you’ll have for school. Use our state tax calculator to learn more.
The tax advantage of a 529 plan can make a big difference over the long run
$500 monthly contributions in hypothetical accounts growing at a rate of 6%
Using our time-tested, multimanager approach
At John Hancock Investment Management, we bring our multimanager approach to the John Hancock Freedom 529 plan. That means our plan design combines multiple investment strategies from multiple managers in a single portfolio. The result is greater diversification, backed by the oversight of three leading organizations: the Education Trust of Alaska, John Hancock Investment Management, and T. Rowe Price. This unique partnership offers a level of investment oversight that many other 529 plans can’t match.
Enrollment-Based Portfolios
Our Enrollment-Based Portfolios offer broad diversification and automatically become more conservative over time to focus on preservation of capital when you need it most.
Portfolio 2037-2040 Portfolio 2033–2036 Portfolio 2029–2032 Portfolio 2025–2028 Portfolio 2021–2024 Enrollment Portfolio ⁸Multimanager Lifestyle Portfolios
Our Multimanager Lifestyle Portfolios offer the same level of diversification—by asset class, investment style, and manager—across three risk/reward profiles that stay fixed over time.
Multimanager Lifestyle Moderate 529 Portfolio Multimanager Lifestyle Balanced 529 Portfolio Multimanager Lifestyle Growth 529 PortfolioStatic Portfolios
Our Static Portfolios offer the ability to invest for a specific asset class exposure and risk tolerance.
Equity Portfolio Fixed-Income Portfolio Future Trends Portfolio Money Market Portfolio Short-Term Bond PortfolioIndividual Portfolios
Our Individual Portfolios offer the ability to invest in single underlying funds to complement an existing portfolio or to build your own.
American Mutual Portfolio Blue Chip Growth Portfolio Capital Appreciation Portfolio Equity Income Portfolio International Value Portfolio Mid-Cap Value Portfolio New Horizons Portfolio Small-Cap Stock Portfolio- Some states don't consider withdrawals from a 529 plan to pay for primary or secondary school costs a permissible expense. The tax consequences of such payments will vary depending on state law and may include penalties. Please consult with a tax or legal advisor.
- State laws and treatment may vary. Earnings on nonqualified distributions will be subjected to a 10% federal penalty tax. Please speak with your tax advisor for more information.
- For 2019 and 2020. The donor must elect that the gift be treated as having occurred over a five-year period in order for it to qualify for the federal gift tax exclusion. If additional gifts are made to the same beneficiary during this five-year period, a federal gift tax may apply. If the donor dies within this five-year period, a pro rata share will be included in the donor's estate for federal estate tax purposes. State gift and estate tax laws may vary.
- Contributions cannot cause the account balance to exceed $475,000 per beneficiary.
- As a John Hancock Freedom 529 account holder or beneficiary, you may qualify for in-state tuition at the University of Alaska, regardless of the state you live in. To qualify, you need to hold your account for at least the two years immediately preceding enrollment. Please refer to the Plan Disclosure Document for more information.
- Each account is designed to be protected from the claims by creditors of the account holder and beneficiary, with the exception of contributions made to accounts after being in default of child support obligations for 30 days. Please refer to the Plan Disclosure Document for more information.
- Consult your financial, tax or other advisor to learn more about how state-based benefits (including any limitations) would apply to your specific circumstances.
- Prior to 11/15/2019, this portfolio was named the College Portfolio.
Learn more
Financial advisors: See how adding a 529 plan to your practice can help you take a more holistic approach to helping your clients pursue their financial goals.
Discover the benefits of a 529 plan and the unique advantages of our multimanager approach.
Get the brochure
Discover the benefits of a 529 plan and the unique advantages of our multimanager approach.
Get the brochure