College Confidential - View Single Post - Is financial aid based primarily on income or savings?

vballmom · 11-09-2008, 07:08 PM

For FAFSA, income weighs much more heavily than assets at the level of income you're talking about. Your parents' contribution from income will be 32% of your adjusted available income that's less than $26,000, and 47% of of the amount over $26,000. Adjusted available income is income minus FICA, federal & state income tax, and minus an income protection allowance that's dependent on your older parent's age and how many children are in college. In your case, unless your parents' savings are over $55,000 or so, they won't be a factor in calculating your EFC. In plugging these numbers into an EFC calculator, I get an EFC of around $30k based on $160k gross income and one child in college.

FAFSA ignores the net equity in your family's house. CSS Profile requires that you report the net equity, but it's up to the individual college how it's used in their formulas.

11-09-2008, 07:08 PM	#2
vballmom Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: Silicon Valley, California Posts: 635	For FAFSA, income weighs much more heavily than assets at the level of income you're talking about. Your parents' contribution from income will be 32% of your adjusted available income that's less than $26,000, and 47% of of the amount over $26,000. Adjusted available income is income minus FICA, federal & state income tax, and minus an income protection allowance that's dependent on your older parent's age and how many children are in college. In your case, unless your parents' savings are over $55,000 or so, they won't be a factor in calculating your EFC. In plugging these numbers into an EFC calculator, I get an EFC of around $30k based on $160k gross income and one child in college. FAFSA ignores the net equity in your family's house. CSS Profile requires that you report the net equity, but it's up to the individual college how it's used in their formulas.
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