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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]A lot of people who claim to be "donut hole" families have lived lives of increasing lifestyle creep as their incomes have climbed up 200k, and then want to complain that they don't get enough need-based aid. Well, did you really need a new car every 5 years? Expensive vacations? To redo the kitchen?

If you want to argue that a family making over 200k is middle class, then live like middle class people -- budget, accept you won't be able to afford everything you want to do, and sock money away for retirement and college.

We make well under 200k and this is what we do, and we have friends making over who go out to eat three nights a week, drive luxury cars, and take multiple vacations overseas every year, have weekly cleaners, etc. Those people are not entitled to need-based aid. It's not my fault, or the college's fault, that they chose to just live nicer, more luxurious, easier lives instead of saving their additional income for their child's education. We've scrimped and saved and still won't have enough. AND work in helping professions. I don't cry myself to sleep over the doctors and consultants and well-paid feds who will be disappointed in their FA award while crying into their Tesla upholstery and trying to console themselves on the flight to Aruba. Boo freaking hoo.[/quote]

We make around 200k. Kids have never been abroad. Most vacations are to relatives, but we'll do long weekends at a cheap OBX hotel. Our cars get replaced at the 15 year mark and are not luxury. We still will not be able to pay 4x our annual income to put two kids through college. It's not a big deal because they can go to state school, but people pretending that people should attempt to live in poverty for the off chance that their kid gets into Harvard are insufferable. [/quote]
+1 My kid is going to a great state school, but that's because we can't afford expensive private -- donut family.  It's ridiculous for UMC to be expected to pay the same as wealthy families.   $220K in the DC area is considered MC, btw.    A HHI of $280K is not *that* different to $220K after taxes.
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It's $20-25K extra per year.  That's a huge difference.  If you have been making that for at least 4 years before college you could have saved $80K in just that timeframe.

Why does everyone feel entitled to expensive private college?  Just like most things in life, you go with what you can afford.  There are literally still the majority of colleges that are/can be affordable for your family.  Making $280K/year puts you in the Top 7-8% of all people in the USA.  Let that sink in.  You have so many more privileges than 92% of the people in our country.  
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Sure, but those expensive colleges are $80k per year, and we have multiple kids.

4  years to save $80K, so you'd have to work 16 years to cover $320K full four years of college, maybe a bit less if the markets were favorable during that time, and 32 years to cover two kids at $320K each, assuming you are making the same for 32 years and zero inflation.  Let that sink in.

Maybe you only read the parts you wanted to read in my post, but I did say that my kid is going to a great state school with some merit aid.

Also, you have zero knowledge of my background. I didn't grow up UMC. My parents don't even speak English.[/quote]

And your background is irrelevant.  You make $280k/ year.  That is no poor. And once again, how many kids you chose to have is your issue.  Most families with multiple kids do not send them to elite universities because they can’t afford it.  Desire to send them there only have 1 kid (or two).

And that 20k saved per year is jus t difference from w
220 time 280.  Someone at 220 can make choices to save as well [/quote]
My background is irrelevant yes, but math is math.  Based on what you stated, such a person would have to work about 30 years to afford that kind of expense.  Yes, it's a choice, but you make it sound like it's easy for donut whole families to pay the same amount as families making $800K.  Yes, such a family has other choices, but that's not the point. The point is that expensive colleges expect $280K family to afford the same amount as a $800K family. That is ridiculous.[/quote]

And you make it sound like your kids do not have a way to get a good education.  They do—just not t25.  But they can go to a t100 school or state school for minimal debt and get a great education.  
Fact is most with stats won’t get into t25 anyhow. Do find a great school you can afford [/quote]
Again, that is not the point.  And again, my kid is going to a great state school.[/quote]

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