High EFC -- not sure I did the FAFSA correctly

[Anonymous]

OP here, Part II: Does the EFC seem right for what I posted?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous[b wrote:]If your gross income is $450,000, is it even worth completing the FAFSA?

Only if the college requires it for e.g. merit aid. Before anyone jumps at me for not knowing the difference between merit and need based, some colleges want to make sure that any aid that can be classified as need based is reported as such, so they want you to fill out FAFSA just in case.

[/b]


You fill it out because most colleges (my kids' did) require it to be filled out before financial aid will even talk to you. It's required also as a prereqisite for some merit scholarships. Also, once you fill it out, no matter what your EFC, your children then get access to the unsubsidized federal loans, which both of my kids took out, which amounts to about $26,000 over the four years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here:

AGI from 1040: $217,019
Assets: $1,275,000
EFC: 139894

I'm guessing the high EFC is due to the assets. Is this just investments and bank accounts? It should not include primary home value or retirement.

Our income (w/ retirement contributions added back) is around 140K. Savings/investments were 130k. EFC 35k

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous[b wrote:]If your gross income is $450,000, is it even worth completing the FAFSA?

Only if the college requires it for e.g. merit aid. Before anyone jumps at me for not knowing the difference between merit and need based, some colleges want to make sure that any aid that can be classified as need based is reported as such, so they want you to fill out FAFSA just in case.

[/b]


You fill it out because most colleges (my kids' did) require it to be filled out before financial aid will even talk to you. It's required also as a prereqisite for some merit scholarships. Also, once you fill it out, no matter what your EFC, your children then get access to the unsubsidized federal loans, which both of my kids took out, which amounts to about $26,000 over the four years.

Is it really true you need to fill it out for merit? We are not getting any aid, AGI probably 250 but more assets than OP, I’d rather not bother but we wouldn’t turn out Nose up at merit aid..

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here:

AGI from 1040: $217,019
Assets: $1,275,000
EFC: 139894

Some percentage (and I don't know what %) of your assets will be expected to be used. Plus, something from income. It isn't surprising (to me) that you won't be eligible for need-based aid.

Try a bunch of Net Price Calculators at the most generous schools (top ones).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous[b wrote:]If your gross income is $450,000, is it even worth completing the FAFSA?

Only if the college requires it for e.g. merit aid. Before anyone jumps at me for not knowing the difference between merit and need based, some colleges want to make sure that any aid that can be classified as need based is reported as such, so they want you to fill out FAFSA just in case.

[/b]


You fill it out because most colleges (my kids' did) require it to be filled out before financial aid will even talk to you. It's required also as a prereqisite for some merit scholarships. Also, once you fill it out, no matter what your EFC, your children then get access to the unsubsidized federal loans, which both of my kids took out, which amounts to about $26,000 over the four years.

Is it really true you need to fill it out for merit? We are not getting any aid, AGI probably 250 but more assets than OP, I’d rather not bother but we wouldn’t turn out Nose up at merit aid..

There are schools that require FAFSA for non-need-based merit, I think to make sure you are not Pell-eligible. However, it is a tiny minority, not common. Usually you can figure out from the school's merit scholarship website if FAFSA would be necessary, or email the financial aid office to check.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here:

AGI from 1040: $217,019
Assets: $1,275,000
EFC: 139894

Some percentage (and I don't know what %) of your assets will be expected to be used. Plus, something from income. It isn't surprising (to me) that you won't be eligible for need-based aid.

Try a bunch of Net Price Calculators at the most generous schools (top ones).

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous[b wrote:]If your gross income is $450,000, is it even worth completing the FAFSA?

Only if the college requires it for e.g. merit aid. Before anyone jumps at me for not knowing the difference between merit and need based, some colleges want to make sure that any aid that can be classified as need based is reported as such, so they want you to fill out FAFSA just in case.

[/b]


You fill it out because most colleges (my kids' did) require it to be filled out before financial aid will even talk to you. It's required also as a prereqisite for some merit scholarships. Also, once you fill it out, no matter what your EFC, your children then get access to the unsubsidized federal loans, which both of my kids took out, which amounts to about $26,000 over the four years.

Is it really true you need to fill it out for merit? We are not getting any aid, AGI probably 250 but more assets than OP, I’d rather not bother but we wouldn’t turn out Nose up at merit aid..

We didn’t fill it out and kid has been offered lots of merit. Nobody has said we need to do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, Part II: Does the EFC seem right for what I posted?

Yes, I would not expect aid with that much in assets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here:

AGI from 1040: $217,019
Assets: $1,275,000
EFC: 139894

I'm guessing the high EFC is due to the assets. Is this just investments and bank accounts? It should not include primary home value or retirement.

Our income (w/ retirement contributions added back) is around 140K. Savings/investments were 130k. EFC 35k

This. If you have 1.3 mil cash/stocks not in retirement funds, you’re going to have an EFC of over $60k before even getting to your salary. If it’s in retirement funds, it wouldn’t count.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ours was laughably high, as in over half of our after-tax income.

I assume it was a combination of the fact that they are counting 529s for our younger children and emergency savings not in retirement accounts.

They are. Because those are assets!

You do realize that there are people who don't make enough money to fund such things, right? Many Americans are paid so poorly that they're living paycheck to paycheck. It's not that they choose not to save, it's that they can't.

[Anonymous]

On top of that...most of our schools used their own formula and did not meet the FAFSA expected family contribition. We had to pay more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous[b wrote:]If your gross income is $450,000, is it even worth completing the FAFSA?

Only if the college requires it for e.g. merit aid. Before anyone jumps at me for not knowing the difference between merit and need based, some colleges want to make sure that any aid that can be classified as need based is reported as such, so they want you to fill out FAFSA just in case.

[/b]


You fill it out because most colleges (my kids' did) require it to be filled out before financial aid will even talk to you. It's required also as a prereqisite for some merit scholarships. Also, once you fill it out, no matter what your EFC, your children then get access to the unsubsidized federal loans, which both of my kids took out, which amounts to about $26,000 over the four years.

Is it really true you need to fill it out for merit? We are not getting any aid, AGI probably 250 but more assets than OP, I’d rather not bother but we wouldn’t turn out Nose up at merit aid..

We didn’t fill it out and kid has been offered lots of merit. Nobody has said we need to do it.

Fordham requires it before you are even considered for non-need based merit aid. That must be a relatively new policy because that was not the case several years ago when our older DC applied. College counselor at our daughter’s school said Fordham’s policy was pretty rare.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On top of that...most of our schools used their own formula and did not meet the FAFSA expected family contribition. We had to pay more.

Well they expect you to take out some loans, or in other words, for the student to pay for some of it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous[b wrote:]If your gross income is $450,000, is it even worth completing the FAFSA?

Only if the college requires it for e.g. merit aid. Before anyone jumps at me for not knowing the difference between merit and need based, some colleges want to make sure that any aid that can be classified as need based is reported as such, so they want you to fill out FAFSA just in case.

[/b]


You fill it out because most colleges (my kids' did) require it to be filled out before financial aid will even talk to you. It's required also as a prereqisite for some merit scholarships. Also, once you fill it out, no matter what your EFC, your children then get access to the unsubsidized federal loans, which both of my kids took out, which amounts to about $26,000 over the four years.

Is it really true you need to fill it out for merit? We are not getting any aid, AGI probably 250 but more assets than OP, I’d rather not bother but we wouldn’t turn out Nose up at merit aid..

We didn’t fill it out and kid has been offered lots of merit. Nobody has said we need to do it.

My DD's assigned financial aid counselor at GMU would not even talk to me about merit until we filed the fafsa. Nada. Nunca.