Volatility unnerves 529 investors. (College Savings).(college tuition costs)(Brief Article)

MOST PEOPLE are concerned about the sagging market, but parents and grandparents in particular have become increasingly skittish about the chance that their efforts could still fail to cover tuition.

An Alliance Capital study has found that 72 percent of all college savers rank portfolio insurance as the feature they most want to see in a 529 plan--the better to safeguard their principal from risk.

The sudden hunger for insurance is just one of the ways 529 plan investors are reacting to the ongoing market slump, explains Richard Davies, executive vice presid