Financial aid for net HHI of $150K - $200K?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for this information. Yes, our net income after taxes only is about $200K. Other deductions like retirement contributions, health insurance, etc. account for about $50,000, so our net take-home income is about $150,000.

Do schools adjust the parent contribution amount differently than what is shown on the Family Contribution Report that we see to account for cost of living in high-cost areas, etc.?

$150, you can comfortably to afford to pay.

I wish we could comfortably afford to pay, but paying $80K - $100K+ for 2 kids out of $150K (or even $200K) net income wouldn't leave much left for living and other expenses in this expensive area unfortunately.

Then it sounds like you either need to reduce your expenses or go public. We make $160-180K and have paid $20-30K for private. We live in a house you'd never consider and only vacation every few years. We also have plenty for activities, retirement and college fund.

Yes, we could also afford $20K - $30K, but over $80K would be challenging. We are not big spenders at all and we also do not live in a big, fancy house. Our house is small and simple. Staying in public will require us to move, which is also an option.

No, we could as we saved for college early on and almost have our house paid off by making it a priority. You don’t have to move for public. You choose to.

Let's just agree that we all have different life experiences, obligations, priorities, circumstances, etc. and we shouldn't make assumptions about others. We also prioritize saving as much as possible and we do the best we can with what we have. We are comfortable and do not live a fancy life. We also have major medical expenses, so that doesn't help our situation. Yes, many people choose to move for better school options if they are able to do so.

With major medical expenses that should be far more of a qualifier for financial aid than someone else who owns multiple houses and travels/spends a lot. We have done both private and public. You make the best of any school you are at, especially public and you can always supplement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for this information. Yes, our net income after taxes only is about $200K. Other deductions like retirement contributions, health insurance, etc. account for about $50,000, so our net take-home income is about $150,000.

Do schools adjust the parent contribution amount differently than what is shown on the Family Contribution Report that we see to account for cost of living in high-cost areas, etc.?

If you're maxing out 410ks, schools (and colleges when the kids get older) view that as money you can use for tuition.

This is not true. My children receive financial aid and we’ve been told multiple times that the schools view retirement as off limits. Home equity, on the other hand, is factored into FA awards.

Most retirement plans are not voluntary so that makes sense. There is a big difference from someone in this area buying a $400-500K house and a million dollar house on the same income.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have a 360k HHI with soon to be 3 in private. We asked for aid, but got zero. We also have little savings, but we own two homes. I guess the school would prefer large savings, but only one house.

You have a comfortably salary and two homes. You need to reduce your expenses.

We are very very tight. You do understand tht we pay 120k in tuition and we have 2 mortgages, right? Yes, we rent one house and make good money out of it, but it does not cover 2 mortgages. We thought about selling one house and with what we would make we could pay up the mortgage on our current house, but we would give up on the rent. That would only free up and extra $500 per month. My husband is also partially supporting his parents. We don’t take fancy vacations (only visit family), fly only with miles, don’t eat out, nothing…

[Anonymous]

Our HHI is just north of 200k and we have one child in private school. We applied to several private schools, were admitted to all, and all offered us aid with about the same aid package: assumption was we could pay about $20k in annual tuition. That's increased each year as the cost of tuition has increased.

We own one house with a mortgage we are still paying, no car loans currently, and do have money in a 529 as well as in retirement accounts. Basically, we are solidly middle class in this area but nowhere near what many are making who are private school families.

As others have said, you might as well apply as you never know what different schools may be offering.

[Anonymous]

People who claim familiarity with the finances of "close friends" should have their statements taken with a grain of salt. Unless you are in that family, you have no idea if your friends are lying or withholding vital information. Just like those images of happy couples on FB who end up divorced much to everyone's shock, you really, truly have no idea what goes on behind closed doors. No idea. I've lived in DC for three decades and the city has becoming much, much more flashy. People are in debt up to their eyeballs keeping up with the Jones.

[Anonymous]

Not sure if this needs a S/O but I'll ask here first:

For a family with a gross income of <150k, what kinds of aid packages might be offered? And for lower school, what would make your child desirable to these schools? No sports.

I'm just curious if this is something we could consider, or if it would be a total waste of time to even apply. We cannot afford even 10-20k a year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not sure if this needs a S/O but I'll ask here first:

For a family with a gross income of <150k, what kinds of aid packages might be offered? And for lower school, what would make your child desirable to these schools? No sports.

I'm just curious if this is something we could consider, or if it would be a total waste of time to even apply. We cannot afford even 10-20k a year.

If you can't pay even 10k I would probably wait. Even with good financial aid, expenses add up with camp and extended day care. Some schools have good additional benefits for those on fin aid and some do not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have a 360k HHI with soon to be 3 in private. We asked for aid, but got zero. We also have little savings, but we own two homes. I guess the school would prefer large savings, but only one house.

You have a comfortably salary and two homes. You need to reduce your expenses.

We are very very tight. You do understand tht we pay 120k in tuition and we have 2 mortgages, right? Yes, we rent one house and make good money out of it, but it does not cover 2 mortgages. We thought about selling one house and with what we would make we could pay up the mortgage on our current house, but we would give up on the rent. That would only free up and extra $500 per month. My husband is also partially supporting his parents. We don’t take fancy vacations (only visit family), fly only with miles, don’t eat out, nothing…

Not PP. But I think they might be implying that private tuition is a luxury and so is owning two homes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our HHI is just north of 200k and we have one child in private school. We applied to several private schools, were admitted to all, and all offered us aid with about the same aid package: assumption was we could pay about $20k in annual tuition. That's increased each year as the cost of tuition has increased.

We own one house with a mortgage we are still paying, no car loans currently, and do have money in a 529 as well as in retirement accounts. Basically, we are solidly middle class in this area but nowhere near what many are making who are private school families.

As others have said, you might as well apply as you never know what different schools may be offering.

Is your $200K HHI gross or net?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not sure if this needs a S/O but I'll ask here first:

For a family with a gross income of <150k, what kinds of aid packages might be offered? And for lower school, what would make your child desirable to these schools? No sports.

I'm just curious if this is something we could consider, or if it would be a total waste of time to even apply. We cannot afford even 10-20k a year.

If you can't pay even 10k I would probably wait. Even with good financial aid, expenses add up with camp and extended day care. Some schools have good additional benefits for those on fin aid and some do not.

It is definitely worth applying. You never know and it could work out well!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone with a net household income of $150K - $200K receive financial aid at a private/independent elementary or middle school? How many kids are you paying tuition for and what kind of financial aid package have you received?

I’m just curious since you’re receiving financial aid
do you go on fancy vacations and have a house cleaner?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks for this information. Yes, our net income after taxes only is about $200K. Other deductions like retirement contributions, health insurance, etc. account for about $50,000, so our net take-home income is about $150,000.

Do schools adjust the parent contribution amount differently than what is shown on the Family Contribution Report that we see to account for cost of living in high-cost areas, etc.?

If you're maxing out 410ks, schools (and colleges when the kids get older) view that as money you can use for tuition.

This is not true. My children receive financial aid and we’ve been told multiple times that the schools view retirement as off limits. Home equity, on the other hand, is factored into FA awards.

Most retirement plans are not voluntary so that makes sense. There is a big difference from someone in this area buying a $400-500K house and a million dollar house on the same income.

No. Retirement plans are voluntary for most workers. The exception is if you have an ownership stake in the company. You can’t be forced to contribute to a 401k plan.

[Anonymous]

So presumably, at a HHI of $300K with TWO kids in private, we should get some aid?

[Anonymous]

^ Adding from above, we got nothing this year for one child, but am hopeful next year when sibling joins we will get something?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our HHI is just north of 200k and we have one child in private school. We applied to several private schools, were admitted to all, and all offered us aid with about the same aid package: assumption was we could pay about $20k in annual tuition. That's increased each year as the cost of tuition has increased.

We own one house with a mortgage we are still paying, no car loans currently, and do have money in a 529 as well as in retirement accounts. Basically, we are solidly middle class in this area but nowhere near what many are making who are private school families.

As others have said, you might as well apply as you never know what different schools may be offering.

Is your $200K HHI gross or net?

This is our gross income before taxes. Tuition, even with financial aid, is tight for us but it has been worth it for our kid. We are not intending to stay in privates through high school, though.