Did you intend to pay from your current salaries for tuition or do you have money saved? colleges aren’t going to give you $$$ if you have plenty of cash a 529.

Community college like everyone else who can’t afford college.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:if you have college savings, you use them all even if you planned to spread it out. You take early distribution from retirement, use other savings, take out a home equity loan, see if relatives will chip in. Or you and your kid take out loans. Your kid gets a summer job. Or asks to defer a semester or year and works to save up.

+1. we did a HELOC when times were rough with two kids in college and only one income. Of course ask to file for changed circunstances with the college if that actually hapoens. But the college most likely will ask you to refile the FAFSA CSS. If you have already filedhave your kids take out the unsubsidized government student loans. If none of that works, aporoach the college about what your child needs to take and what GPA at community college with an eye towards transfer.

Many of us live on one salary and manage to save. The difference is we aren't living in million dollar homes, taking lots of vacations, eating out and other lifestyle choices. I think school should look at income from the last 10 years and lifestyle choices.

Kid could take a gap year and work.

Anonymous wrote:if you have college savings, you use them all even if you planned to spread it out. You take early distribution from retirement, use other savings, take out a home equity loan, see if relatives will chip in. Or you and your kid take out loans. Your kid gets a summer job. Or asks to defer a semester or year and works to save up.

+1. we did a HELOC when times were rough with two kids in college and only one income. Of course ask to file for changed circunstances with the college if that actually hapoens. But the college most likely will ask you to refile the FAFSA CSS. If you have already filedhave your kids take out the unsubsidized government student loans. If none of that works, aporoach the college about what your child needs to take and what GPA at community college with an eye towards transfer.

If this is private schools with endowments you can also appeal directly to the financial aid office. My dad got laid off when I was a seniors. He was depressed and I ended up doing ispecjal meetings with all the financial aid officers myself as a 17 year old. They were mostly very nice about it.

if you have college savings, you use them all even if you planned to spread it out. You take early distribution from retirement, use other savings, take out a home equity loan, see if relatives will chip in. Or you and your kid take out loans. Your kid gets a summer job. Or asks to defer a semester or year and works to save up.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can appeal the financial aid based on a change in circumstance.

If they got into a college that is generous with financial aid you may get a good amount. But most colleges don't meet need.

Might need to consider the CC->state U plan if other options aren't affordable.

You can ask for reconsideration. Do it before committing.

But you have to prove an actual change in circumstances.

As others have said you submit a form for a change in circumstance but there is no guarantee the college will make any changes especially when at least for 2024 you might not see a massive drop in income with buyouts etc. but an lower expected family contribution would show up for next year. someone in other thread said fafsa was under treasury before it shifted to dept of ed. They would probably be handing this but it might be bumpy. Good luck

Anonymous wrote:So imagine hypothetically you are two feds. You did fafsa. The merit aid is all allocated. The kid has been pigeonholed academically and financially and suddenly secure positions disappear.

What do you do? How can you fix things to get your kid into college? Or is child just stuck?

This happened to a bunch of korean kids after the LA Riots when their family went form affluent to trying to avoid foreclosure" overnight.
Those kids didn't come back to school that Fall, it Happened in late april and it was just too late to line up financial aid.
I know several kids that kids took the year off.

It was disruptive but they are all doing fine now.

It's going to really suck if your kids can't go to college this year because you can't replace the income but hopefully things will work out for you by next year.

Any rolling schools kid can still apply to that might supply merit?

Anonymous wrote:You can appeal the financial aid based on a change in circumstance.

If they got into a college that is generous with financial aid you may get a good amount. But most colleges don't meet need.

Might need to consider the CC->state U plan if other options aren't affordable.

You can ask for reconsideration. Do it before committing.

You can appeal the financial aid based on a change in circumstance.

If they got into a college that is generous with financial aid you may get a good amount. But most colleges don't meet need.

Might need to consider the CC->state U plan if other options aren't affordable.

1 year ago, you’d be ok and the college FA office would be able to work with you and the Feds.

In 2025? Who knows.

So imagine hypothetically you are two feds. You did fafsa. The merit aid is all allocated. The kid has been pigeonholed academically and financially and suddenly secure positions disappear.

What do you do? How can you fix things to get your kid into college? Or is child just stuck?