How do I report net annual income?

Applying to College
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Here is two more pieces of unsolicited advice.

  1. Don’t blame your father about where you actually attend college. He did not ruin your life because you couldn’t go to XYZ school. You life is more about what YOU do after school than what school you attended.

  2. When you have your own money, don’t lend or “invest” it with your dad. He will likely convince himself that he has removed all the flaws from his strategy. Any financial transactions are best with people that you can fire or sue. Not family.

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62

@monkae99 what about any income your mom has? Or assets? Those count too.

Before the day trading went south, was there any money put into a college fund for you…like a 529?

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63

Thanks for that—I really appreciate all the advice!

64

My dad might land a job which would put us out of the range for financial aid.

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Thats a good way of looking at it, I don’t want to get into a victim mentality. And I won’t for sure

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She’s a social worker so makes around $65,000 a year. This would help out but I’m pretty sure all of her income right now is being stretched for a combination of living expenses and paying off interest on debts.

My college fund was in bonds…which were later dissolved and lost in the market. So there’s nothing.

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My grandmother said she’s willing to contribute a little which helps but I’m not sure exactly how much would be feasible for her.

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Please take some time to read about University of Tulsa and University of Alabama. If you are a National Merit Semifinalist, I believe these two colleges would provide you with very generous merit aid for all four years. I posted the links above. Scroll up.

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Oh I did read into them and they seem like great programs—Sorry if I didn’t make that clear. I will definitely be applying there and have them as some of my top options.

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Not Bama - not for auto merit.
If the student is NMF, it’s five years tuition, 4 years housing and an annual stipend included.

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71

OP–You have impressive stats and give you loads of credit for plotting a path forward despite your family’s financial challenges this past year.

Washington & Lee also has a full ride scholarship that you may want to check out.

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Alabama definitely does not require a FAFSA for the scholarship to renew. My son’s on the NMF scholarship there and our costs are very low. The first year, we had around $2000 for the year, which included a bit extra on books (covers $250/semester), food, and class fees ($27/credit). This year, he was moved to an apartment and the first semester cost us about $100 in extra food costs.

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