"Overwhelmed" Parents Not Saving For College

(RTTNews) - Average savings by parents for their kid's college education in the U.S. has dropped by 25 percent and only less than half of the parents put aside money for their children's future education, according to a survey conducted by Sallie Mae.

Parents' average college savings have decreased to $10,040 from last year's $13,408, according to the survey "How America Saves for College 2015" conducted by Sallie Mae with the help of research firm Ipsos.

The study reports the results of online interviews that Ipsos conducted in January 2015 of 1,988 American parents with at least one child younger than age 18.

Sallie Mae said increases in the cost of living and unexpected expenses were the most commonly cited reasons for saving less despite continued signs of economic recovery and rising income levels.

Although, nine out of ten parents, about 89 percent, believe that saving for their child's future is a good investment, only 48 percent of parents are saving. Almost steady compared to last year's 51 percent and 2013's 50 percent, but far below the high of 62 percent reported in 2009.

The main reason cited by parents for not currently saving for college is that they do not have enough money. Sixty-one percent of parents cite this as a major reason and 22 percent as a minor reason for not having started saving for college. Meanwhile, nearly two-thirds of non-college-saving parents aren't saving for college because they believe their children will earn enough financial aid/scholarships to cover the cost of paying for college.