They say it takes a village to raise a child. With college costs rapidly rising, it takes courage to dream big, plan ahead and start saving and investing for higher education costs... and sometimes it also takes a little help from your friends!

With the NextGen College Investing Plan, anyone can establish an account for a beneficiary — a niece, nephew, cousin or family friend—and you can contribute to the future college costs of that beneficiary. Or, if your loved one already has a NextGen account, consider making a contribution to that account in leiu of a traditional birthday or holiday gift. Even a relatively small gift on a special occasion can amount to a significant contribution toward higher-education expenses.

You can contribute up to $13,000 ($26,000 for married couples) per year per beneficiary without incurring a federal gift tax. If you choose to make a larger contribution to a beneficiary's NextGen account, you may find that you are eligible to make a special gift-tax election of up to $65,000 ($130,000 for married couples) that could reduce your gift tax and estate tax liability¹, making NextGen contributions an effective way to reduce estate taxes and do something important for special people in your life.

Learn more about NextGen by spending some time on this site. Today is a good day to walk the journey with a special child in your life.

Please remember there is always the potential of losing money when you invest in securities.

1 Contributions between $13,000 and $65,000 ($26,000 and $130,000 for married couples filing jointly) made in one year can be prorated over a five-year period without subjecting you to gift tax or reducing your federal unified estate and gift tax credit. If you contribute less than the $65,000 ($130,000 for married couples filing jointly) maximum, additional contributions can be made without you being subject to federal gift tax, up to a prorated level of $13,000 ($26,000 for married couples filing jointly) per year. Gift taxation may result if a contribution exceeds the available annual gift tax exclusion amount remaining for a given beneficiary in the year of contribution. For contributions between $13,000 and $65,000 ($26,000 and $130,000 for married couples filing jointly) made in one year, if the account owner dies before the end of the five-year period, a prorated portion of the contribution may be included in his or her estate for estate tax purposes. Please consult your tax and/or legal advisor for such guidance.