Reply to What money is fair game for financial aid?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Op here.

"We all choose how we spend $$. If you want to put it towards a house (car/trip/whatever) then college choices are limited to what the family can manage. There is nothing special about housing choices. If contributing to college is not a priority, it is totally fine, but don't expect the college to handle it for you."

I have saved for college on my one income, albeit not enough to pay full freight at a private school for all 4 years. I live in a neighborhood you would probably sneer at, so it's not as though I have lots of choices for cheaper housing here. I paid on my own student loans until was in my thirties. You make it sound as if we all have the ability to save $400K per child in 18 years, but that some of us choose to blow the money on trips to Hawaii instead of setting it aside for college. [/quote]

I don't think anybody meant that you hadn't tried hard or done well.  You should be proud of what you can pay for. But [b]private college is not an entitlement[/b].
We are in a similar situation, FYI.  We have told our kids that we can pay for in state, if they want something else it will have to be someplace they can get merit aid. [/quote]

The system of higher education in the US is seriously broken.

The cost of a private college has increased exponentially, particularly after the availability of student loans increased about 20 years ago.

When I went to (an Ivy!) college, private colleges were costly, but accessible to the middle class. This is no longer the case.

If you are middle income (less than $200K per year), you're going to pay dearly for private college, or send your child to a public college in your state because private colleges will expect you to pay close to half your net income for a single year of college. It's impossible for a middle income family to save $320K per child in 18 years solely for college (never mind retirement, emergency savings, etc.)

It would be crazy for someone with a family of four and an under $200K income to pay $80K per year for college, but that's what colleges are asking.

Why would they want a child with a crazy parent is beyond me.

My older kids got accepted at great private colleges, but got no FA, so they went in-state. My younger kids are going next year, so trying for merit aid. We are not hopeful. The system is broken.

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