I am going to be starting school in June for the next summer semester at a CC with the plan to transfer over to a 4yr after. I am going to be using a 529 plan to pay for all school expenses along with using it to help pay for off campus housing and groceries.
However I am a bit confused on some aspects related to how I will pay for room & board. I am aware that for it to be considered a qualified expense, the amount taken out for room & board can't exceed the amount listed in the schools COA numbers for that year & I have to be enrolled on at least a half-time basis.
I will be enrolled in summer & the next fall + spring semesters, my school for example lists the summer budget for non resident (what I will be considered as) as $7,279 for housing & $1,941 for food, and the 9 month academic year non-resident budget as $24,264 for housing & $6,472 for food.
I will be enrolled on a half-time - full-time basis during all of these semesters and had some clarifications on how taking out money will work.
For some context, the summer semester would be June-August, however I will be registered for the next fall semester in late May on a full-time basis.
Would I be able to just add up the two budgets ($7,279 for summer housing and $24,264 for 9month semester housing) and withdraw that amount from the account as a qualified expenses for the entire year for use?
Or would it be during the summer, I can only use the $7,279 amount until late May when I would be technically registered for fall, at which point I can use the $24,264 housing budget as well?
I am not sure if this would be the right place to ask or if I should just go to my school directly and ask, but I haven't been able to find much information directly referring to how using these two different semester budgets would work.
If for example, it works in the way where I can just add up the two housing budgets ($31,543), I would be able to just divide that by 12 and use that number to know what I can use for rent each month. If it's the other option or something completely different, then I would have a fully different number on what I would be able to use for rent each month.
Any insight or help is greatly appreciated, thank you!
original posted by onujo to r/personalfinance on Fri, 22 Mar 2024 23:39:33 GMT.