BANK OF MONTREAL COMBATS RISING EDUCATION COSTS
By Adnews Staff
The Bank of Montreal is trying to help parents pay for the children's education. The bank launched a registered education saving plan this week called InTuition. The RESP is available for a minimum contribution of $100 per month, or a minimum investment of $1,000. Investors of InTuition will receive a diskette that allows users to develop their own personalized education savings plan. The diskette will calculate a family's total education cost based on the number of children and their current ages. It will compare the cost of paying for a child's education in various ways: borrowing the money, paying as the child attends school or investing now. It will calculate education costs for each child based on current education savings, expected return on investment, percentage of costs the parents will cover and whether or not the child will live at home during college or university. The program will also separate the education costs for each child into manageable monthly contributions and calculate the amount of money the government would contribute under the new Canada Education Savings Grants Program. The diskette will match parents with a diversified portfolio of mutual funds based on their tolerance for risk and the amount of time they have to save before their child attends college or university. The Bank of Montreal will promote InTuition and its diskette using magazine ads and point-of-sale materials created by Vickers & Benson Advertising of Toronto.