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	Web Reviews From 1997 to the present, President/Creative Director, Jim Cota has been writing informative reviews of Web sites and other internet related issues for the Indianapolis Business Journal. If you've missed the articles in print you can catch up on past stories here. Articles are reprinted with permission of the Indianapolis Business Journal, copyright 1997 - 2005, IBJ Corp.

Pad Your 529 Plan with Upromise

There has been some debate lately about whether prices of general goods and services are currently in (or heading toward) an inflationary or deflationary cycle. Regardless, one thing is certain: the cost of going to college continues to climb. Many colleges and universities announced tuition increases of more than 10% in the last year. Thankfully, there are some creative methods around to help you save. One that is particularly interesting is Upromise.

Essentially, Upromise is a loyalty program where you get cash back for purchases you would be making anyway. By registering your grocery, debit, and credit cards, Upromise acts as a clearing house for the rebates paid to you by the companies that offer them. Then, when you're ready to invest the money, you can either open a 529 plan through Upromise (via CitiGroup Asset Managment, The Vanguard Group, or Strong Financial) or have the money transferred to an existing brokerage account.

One of the powerful features of the Upromise service is the breadth of products, services, and companies that are part of the program — and more are being added all the time. The rebates are paid by hundreds of companies (from AAMCO Transmissions to Citibank to Whirlpool) and cover thousands of products (from gasoline to soft drinks to prescriptions). You can even get rebates paid from online shopping, your phone bill, and more than 8,000 restaurants (including several in the local area). There are even rebates for large purchases, like new cars and homes, paid through General Motors and Century 21, Coldwell Banker, and ERA, respectively. In fact, you can earn up to $300 simply by refinancing your mortgage. Most of the rebates are in the form of percentages, ranging from 3% to 10%, but the larger purchases are generally paid out in pre-set dollar amounts. There is varying lag time — between 10 to 60 days — for most deposits to make it into your account and be cleared for investing.

According to their site, Upromise is "designed to make college more affordable for everyone — whether it's your own child, a friend's child, a grandchild, a child you expect to have one day, or even yourself." One innovative feature of Upromise is the ability for family members (like grandparents) to choose to have their rebates credit the accounts of their grandchildren. By clicking a link, you can send an e-mail to your family to spread the word about Upromise and/or invite them to help contribute their rebates to your child's account.

Does it work? Yes. And no. I signed up a month ago and so far the account has a whopping balance of twenty-two cents. (I have a friend who's been a member for about a year with a balance of around $100.) But by linking the account directly to an existing 529 plan, I've opened the door to get tax-deferred rebates for purchases I'd be making anyway. Will Upromise be enough to send my kids to college? Definitely not; unless they sign up Target and Pottery Barn, and then there might be a chance…