(MONEY Magazine) – Q. Our nine-year-old son received a $28,000 settlement following an auto accident. We'd like to invest the money for his college education. How should we proceed so that there's enough money in nine years to pay his way? BILL MARTIN Annandale, VA.

A. If he's got his eye on one of the deluxe private emporiums now dispensing baccalaureates at $125,000 a pop, you need to win the lottery. In nine years the tariff at the nation's top schools may exceed $220,000. Therefore, you might urge him to set his sights on a topnotch public college where today's $43,500 four-year tab for in-state students could grow to only about $75,000. Even then, don't expect your investment kitty to pay all of his school bills. Here's why: To turn $28,000 into $75,000 in nine years, you'd have to earn an average annual return of 11.6%. That may prove tough to do. Even though stocks have done much better than that lately, they have returned an average of 10.5% annually over the past 70 years.

Still, by putting the $28,000 in equities, you may be able to pay most of the college bills and fill in with loans, scholarships and grants. For risk-reducing diversification, Columbus, Ohio financial planner Peggy Ruhlin suggests that you divide the money equally among four high-performing no-load stock funds with different investment objectives. She recommends Neuberger & Berman's Guardian Fund (up an average of 14.4% annually in the three years through Oct. 31; 800-877-9700), which invests in large, undervalued companies; Vanguard U.S. Growth (20.5%; 800-851-4999), which buys big growth companies; Dreyfus New Leaders (12.6%; 800-645-6561), for small, fast-growing companies; and SoGen Overseas Fund (12%; 800-628-0252), which holds small and mid-size companies in developed and emerging countries.

Q. My friend's wallet, containing her credit cards, driver's license and Social Security card, was stolen. She closed her credit and bank accounts, but the thief easily opened new ones in her name because he had all the necessary information. The credit bureaus agreed to put notices in her files to stop anyone from getting instant credit in her name for two years, but she's afraid the problem will eventually recur unless she gets a new Social Security number. Can she do this and, if so, how? DENNIS KNITOWSKI New York City

A. Alas, she can't get a new number just because hers was stolen. The Social Security Administration will issue a new number only if she can prove that misuse of her old one put her at a major "disadvantage." How major? Let me put it this way: According to Social Security spokesman Tom Margenau, each year fewer than 1,000 people receive new Social Security numbers. That makes your friend's chance of a new number slightly better than her odds of entering the federal witness protection program, which has accepted only 6,680 clients since 1971. But tell her to stop worrying. The bad guys have most likely moved on to other prey already.

Q. I'm planning to sell a vacation home that I have always rented out. If I use the proceeds to pay off the mortgage on another rental property I own, can I defer my capital gains? If not, do I at least have two years to roll over the money into a new property, the way I would with a personal residence? GLENN MAENZA Glen Mills, PA.

A. Sorry, the capital-gains rollover is strictly for the house you live in. In fact--not to rub it in--President Clinton has proposed completely eliminating the tax on profits from the sale of most personal residences. Your only hope of giving Uncle Sam the slip on your vacation rental is with a like-kind exchange. Swap your property for any investment real estate with the same or, in some cases, greater value, and you can defer taxes on the transaction indefinitely. Timing and other details are crucial, however, so consult your tax adviser before you even contemplate this move.

Reporter associate: Barbara Solomon

MONEY also answers your financial questions on Cable News Network's Your Money Saturdays at 2:30 p.m. and Sundays at 6:30 a.m. eastern time. Send your question, plus your name, address and phone number, to

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