Educate your kids, but not at the expense of your retirement

Many parents feel responsible for putting their children through college, and that's obviously a worthwhile goal. But in today's economy, it might not be practical. Four years at a state university can cost at least $56,000 these days, while a private education might run $132,000 or more. That might be too pricey for parents whose job security is threatened and whose retirement savings have been decimated. Though your kids may wish you would just pick up the tab, it will probably cost them much more later if you show up broke at their doorstep during your "golden" years. And federal loans for college have some of the most flexible payment options and lowest interest rates of any type of debt. So instead of shouldering the whole cost or borrowing against your home equity, teach your children to dig for scholarships, grants, and loans, and to manage debt wisely. If your child gets into several schools, play one against another to negotiate a better package (remember Negotiate everything). And encourage your children to consider whether the course of study they want to pursue will provide good earning power early in their careers. That's when most school debts have to be repaid, says Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, author of "Zero Debt for College Grads" (Kaplan, 2007). For more on this, see Make a realistic plan to pay for college.