I find it interesting that you find major fault with the 529 plans.
Well, once again it's a numbers game and I kept my notes from the first time. In 2002 when our kid was 10 (with eight years to go) I presumed a $4800/year savings rate into a fund with a 0.60% ER and 10% (admittedly wildly optimistic) annual returns in a 27% tax bracket.
We used the formula
FV = (payment/year)*[(1 + return-fees)^^years - 1]/(return-fees)
Before taxes that's ($4800)*[(1+0.1-0.006)^^8-1]/(0.1-0.006) = $53,710.
A 27% tax bite (paid every year!) knocks that 10% return down to 7.3% which starts working against the compounding very quickly. After taxes that's ($4800)*[(1+0.073-0.006)^^8-1]/(0.073-0.006) = $48,718, so a 529 plan saves you $4991 with these numbers. Looks pretty good from the dollars standpoint.
But that was 2002. Since then I've retired to a lower tax bracket, the brackets themselves have come way down, and I've noted some amazing fund expenses from Vanguard & Fidelity. I've also realized that 10%/year is not too likely from your average mutual fund. So let's use some more realistic 2004-5 numbers: $4800/year, 0.60% ER, 7% annual return (still optimistic) in a 15% tax bracket. I'll presume we still have eight years left (although now the actual number is slightly less than six).
Before taxes is ($4800)*[(1+0.07-0.006)^^8-1]/(0.07-0.006) = $48,195 and after taxes is ($4800)*[(1+0.0595-0.006)^^8-1]/(0.0595-0.006) = $46,413. Using 21st-century numbers instead of the hyped '90s data gives a more realistic 529 plan that saved me a whopping $1781 over eight years. Keep in mind that I've lost control over using that money for anything but education. No college commuter car, no starter-house down payments, no wedding gifts, nothing but education. If the kid does it all on scholarships & work/study then the 529 money is hostage to another generation (or we pay a penalty). I've saved on taxes but I'm not sure that the expense was worth the cost of relinquishing control.
And what if I'd been able to find equivalent returns from a generic S&P500 fund with lower expenses? Let's take Vanguard's 0.09% ER (one of the cheapest funds in existence) and pay taxes: ($4800)*[(1+0.0595-0.0009)^^8-1]/(0.0595-0.0009) = $47,270.
I'm only $925 behind the 529 plan after eight years, a difference of 1.9%. I paid taxes but I ended up with almost as much money and all of the control over it. And frankly, most of that Vanguard fund's gains would be cap gains taxed at a 10% or even 8% rate instead of 15%.
I'm not trying to prove that 529s are a bad deal. But qualifiers like "good" or "bad" are meaningless without a numerical context and an appreciation for the loss of control over what the money can be used for.
I still think that 529 plans benefit the custodian the most. You have to admit that your 0.65% ER is one of the lowest around, and many are much higher than that. A 529 plan may also be a good deal for big savers with high tax brackets and a long time to compound before college, but for many of us a UTMA or gifting can cut way into the 529 plan's advantage. A low-turnover index fund with rock-bottom expenses in a low tax bracket has considerably narrowed the 529's lead, but everyone has to do their own UTMA/gifting tax math.
Or I could remain blissfully ignorant, stick with the 529, and get a life.