<p>i just started and feel like im really late.
is it better to finish it as early as possible?
why?</p>
<p>The FAFSA for the 2010- 2011 school year just came out January 1st, so I don’t think you are “really late.” What is important is that you submit the FAFSA by each school’s deadline. </p>
<p>At this point of the year, many have to use estimates to fill out the FAFSA. It is fine to use estimates first and then edit the FAFSA with the actual numbers later, but nothing is finalized until the actual numbers are in.</p>
<p>Do colleges still send you award letters even tho they see ure SAR wit estimates</p>
<p>I don’t work so for my financial info do i just put 0?</p>
<p>What? FAFSA just came out…you got many months to do it.</p>
<p>Colleges can do estimates, but sooner rather than later you need to provide the true numbers. Colleges sometimes change aid packages even in the summer (for the place that you deposit at and commit to that is) as outside scholarship info comes in from you, or they have more money freed up–it can happen. So you want them to have the real and true picture of your finances.</p>
<p>Zero is your income number from salary if you had none–if you ran tag sales or won the lottery, that would, more or less, need to be reported under other income.</p>
<p>I have finished about 5 FAFSAs with students, so far. Nasty process though as the website is very buggy. Very. Sad that FAFSA does not seem to have more competent software writers.</p>
<p>I actually finished it yesterday, arghhhh, but I had to refresh several times because there were server problems. The end result is always the same, no money, but it is a must do. Use estimates and after you file your taxes, correct.</p>
<p>Finished and submitted ours last night using estimates based on 2008 taxes. Our EFC was ridiculous! $36K and change - stupid us we have two 529s for each of our kids and I guess the schools want to take ALL of it first! After the first year - how are we supposed to pay then?</p>
<p>The 529 accounts would not have that big an impact unless they are huge amounts. Assets over protected allowances have an affect of 5.6% of their value on the FAFSA EFC. So if you had say $200,000 in a 529 account the impact on the EFC would be a little over 11,000.</p>
<p>The EFC is much more driven by income except when there are large assets. The maximum impact an assets can have is 5.6%. The maximum impact income over a certain amount can have is 47%.</p>
<p>First time completing FAFSA, 2007. Completed it in the am 1/1/07. Worked on preliminary figures all 12/31/06. 2008, pretty certain I completed it again on Jan 1st. 2009, had two daughters, so information was submitted twice…got an early start. This year, I’ll file soon but have yet to pull prelim figures. As long as you file before school’s deadlines, you should be ok.</p>
<p>What kind of assets pretty much make filing for financial aid moot ? ( e.g. $ 1 M, $ 2 M, etc…). Thanks.</p>
<p>Thanks swimcatsmom for the info. I guess our large EFC is based on my husband’s income, but it’s confusing because after taxes, mortgage, bills, etc the net number is significantly lower than that. We’ve been very disciplined this year and have completely eliminated all consumer debt. We own both our cars and hope to keep them going another 10 years. </p>
<p>Each 529 has about the same amount as our EFC, so I don’t see how we can pay more than that after the first year.</p>
<p>My daughter applied to 7 schools - 2 financial safeties, two middle of the road, and 2 reaches. Her first choice is a private and I’m fairly certain she’s going to get in, but I’m just pessimistic about finaid.</p>
<p>My dad filled out the Fasfa I don’t qualify for a Pell Grant. Basically my family doesn’t have any money because my brother is in boarding school. There was nowhere to indicate that on the Fasfa. Do you think it would help to write a letter explaining my situation to the schools I applied to?</p>
<p>Actually there are some colleges and universities, such as Harvard, make the FAFSA due by February 1st.</p>
<p>Pemberley, from what I have readhere in CC and from what I remember when we completed the form, the FAFSA form does not take into consideration discretionary expenses such as boarding school tuition or credit card debt – that’s a choice your parents made. The CSS form, does ask you to report tuition expenses. I don’t know how much bearing it has but you do have the opportunity to enter tuition costs. </p>
<p>Back to the FAFSA completion topic, we’re done! Fortunately, I had no server problems although I couldn’t print it at home (I printed it at school). </p>
<p>Question: Relatively speaking, what would you all consider an EFC as “low”?</p>
<p>Swimcats…(or whomever)…</p>
<p>I wanted to do it all using 2008 just for “fun”!, even though I’m self employed and my numbers vary WILDLY by year. But I wanted a “practice” before I get my taxes done (I have my fingers crossed for documents, and an accountant who swears he’s on standby for me as soon as their software is updated for the year). </p>
<p>Can I go all the way through it, not SEND…then correct it all if/when I get my taxes done in time?</p>
<p>You can do that but you won’t get an EFC until you actually submit it of course.</p>
<p>Make sure you correct everything carefully before you do sent it. I did trial returns one year so I could get FAFSA done early. When I went back in and did my actual taxes I didn’t correct some of my guesstimated figures. Fortunately it was caught before we actually filed the return because my husband had to take our papers to the county tax place for some deal to do with our property taxes and him being retired and the clerk there noticed it. It wasn’t anything major number wise, but I did feel silly!</p>
<p>If some of your schools didn’t show on the receipt, wait until it get processed. Then checked it again. Maybe you didn’t miss anything.</p>
<p>I submitted my application the day it was available.</p>
<p>early bird gets the worm. :)</p>
<p>I submitted to 10 colleges successfully.
But I don’t know how to submit for the rest three colleges.</p>