It’s tough to think about saving money for the future when today’s troubled economy makes it difficult just to get through the present.

But when it comes to parents saving for their retirement and their children’s college education, that saving needs to continue, according to financial advisers. The sooner you start, the better.

“It’s a time-frame issue,” says Andy Garrison, adviser at Ameriprise Financial Services Inc., 1321 Wakarusa Drive.

How many years will it be before the children enter college? How close are mom and dad to retiring? Those are questions parents should ask themselves, Garrison says.

“The most important thing is your retirement,” he says. “You only have a handful of years to reach retirement, but a kid who is 18 to 20 years old has several years to make that up if they get loans for college.”

Parents should decide early on at what age they want to retire and how much money they think they will need at that time.

Start saving for those needs and put whatever else you can in a fund for college, Garrison says.

“If you save $1,000 or $2,000 for your kid’s college, that’s better than nothing,” he says.

Parents also should continue putting money into retirement savings plans, such as 401(K) plans offered by many employers, says Darin Bugbee, an adviser with Lawrence Financial Group, 3300 Mesa Way.

“You need to take full advantage of that,” he says. “To save for a child’s education, just contribute on a monthly basis, and maybe you’ll eventually have more money that you can contribute there and in other different things along the way.”

Knowing what type of college their children are likely to attend also helps parents in developing a savings plan, Bugbee says.

“If you send them to a private school then obviously that’s going to cost more than KU or K-State or any state school,” he says.

There are college-savings plans that offer tax breaks, Garrison notes. He points to the so-called “529 plans.” Those are administered by states that contract with investment management firms to provide a variety of investment choices. Money can be withdrawn from those accounts tax-free at federal and state levels as long as it is used for higher education expenses.

Kansas offers the Learning Quest 529 Education Savings Program. To find out more about the savings program, visit www.learningquestsavings.com or call 1-800-579-2203.