College and graduate school tuition has risen an average of 6% annually between 1990 and 2016. Yet, in the past year the rise was "only" 1.9%, after factoring in discounts and scholarships.

There are essentially two reasons for this. First, the number of 18 and 19 year olds has declined. Second, with the economic uptick, more jobs are available, and some young people are opting out of the college route.

Families applying in this cycle can look forward to a respite from the economic madness, which is good news. For families applying in the next few years, the news is not so encouraging. In fact, a "mini-baby boom" means that the class of 2025 should be the largest ever. With the advantage soon returning to the colleges' court, we will have to wait and see where tuitions go.

For more on this, please check out the following article: College Tuition Hikes Are Finally Slowing, Thanks To Simple Economics.