College tuition is expensive, but the lack of a university degree is even more costly, in terms of lost opportunities, wages, education and personal enrichment. Unfortunately, paying for college is usually a challenge no matter how you do the math, but some innovative investors have found ways to trim the cost of college while managing their real estate portfolios at the same time.

Here are just a few of the strategies; some may work for you; others may not apply to your particular situation or coincide with your financial or educational goals. But a glimpse into what others have done may help to stimulate your own ideas about how to accomplish financial and academic goals at the same time, by using real estate to your advantage.

1 If you or your partner plan to attend an out-of-state institution, and you want to qualify for less expensive in-state tuition rates, then plan ahead and buy property in that state. Do it in time to become qualified as a resident before the tuition bills arrive, and you could save a bundle. Keep in mind that your tax obligations may change because each state has its own rules and regulations regarding state income tax filing. If you’re lucky, your college is in a state that has no income tax, and you will get the added benefit of paying only federal taxes while you live there.

2 Some states recognize even a partial investment in property as qualification for in-state residence. You may be able to buy a house cooperatively with others, for example, and only own a fraction of the property but still qualify. Or you could go in with others to purchase a house with a garage apartment attached. Retain ownership – and the responsibility of paying a portion of the mortgage – for only the garage apartment, and use it as your primary residence.

3 Regardless of the rules for in-state status, investment in real estate can be advantageous. Instead of paying rent while attending school, buy a house and rent half of it to another student. Use their contribution of payments to offset the mortgage payments, and then sell the property for an equity gain after graduation (or continue to hold on to it as rental property).

4 Lease your current home for income, and then buy another home in the state where you plan to attend school and make it your new permanent residence. If you are not moving out of state, but still need to move to another town to go to college, lease your home and buy property to live in where you plan to attend school. Use part of the house in your university location as income property while in school. After you graduate, you can keep it as a vacation home or rental property, or sell it and pocket the equity as a graduation present to yourself.

5 By shortening the life of a 30-year $200,000 loan to 15 years, you can potentially save hundreds of thousands of dollars by reducing the amount of interest you pay over the life of the mortgage. If, for instance, you own a home with a 30-year mortgage and have children who will attend college in 10 or 15 years, consider refinancing the mortgage on your house. By switching to a 15-year mortgage, you can pay off your loan in time for them to attend school, so you don’t have that obligation hanging over you when the time comes to ante up with expensive tuition payments. And, at the same time, you may be able to save enough in interest to offset the cost of tuition and university housing.

6 Own a home that has accumulated equity? Take out a second mortgage and use the money to pay tuition. You can pay back the loan over a long period of time at a predictable rate, and you will probably be able to deduct many of the closing costs, interest payments and other expenses. Education expenses also offer unique tax breaks, so consult a tax planner and find out exactly what your options are in terms of tax deductions. One convenient way to analyze your options is to have your tax consultant provide you with a side-by-side comparison of benefits, based on several borrowing scenarios.

Another wonderful opportunity for combining real estate investment with an academic pursuit is to work your way through school as a realtor. Although the earning potential in real estate is one of the highest of any profession, the educational prerequisites are minimal. University towns can be great places to work in real estate. Each semester a new crop of students arrives, and all of them are competing for housing. The first phone call they make is to a realtor, and that realtor might as well be you.