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In its role of providing valuable tools and resources to families who are saving for college, leading college savings authority Savingforcollege.com has recently announced the addition of a new calculator to its current offering of college savings and financial aid calculators. The UGMA/UTMA 529 Conversion Calculator, available for free to any Savingforcollege.com visitor, helps parents decide whether or not a conversion of assets from an existing UGMA/UTMA account to a 529 college savings plan is advantageous for federal tax purposes. The Uniform Gifts to Minors Act (UGMA) and the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (UTMA) are types of custodial accounts that are set up by an adult on behalf of a minor. The calculator takes into account some of the more complex rules and tax consequences associated with UGMA/UTMA rollovers, including the "kiddie tax". Upon entering information relating to their UGMA/UTMA assets, calculator users will be directed to results depicting how much money each conversion scenario would make available to pay for college. The calculator also generates a comprehensive PDF report that users can elect to receive by email.

College-savings plans managed by T. Rowe Price for the state of Alaska placed among the top ten direct-sold 529 plans for investment performance through September 30, 2013 over all measuring periods -- one, three, five, and ten years -- according to Savingforcollege.com's newly-released 529 Plan Composite Performance Rankings. This included the top spot in both the three-year and ten-year categories.

Many families faced with the burden of increasing college costs and sizable student loans still feel a 4-year college degree is worth the time and money necessary to achieve it, according to an online poll at Savingforcollege.com, the leading independent resource and authority on 529 plans.