<p>yeah. simple as that. i'm thinking about getting a car. and i think i'll get anyhow. but i'm just wondering if a student have a car, s/he gets lower finaid (u know since a car is an assets right??)</p>
<p>if anyone has experience, let meknow. how does having a car (and what kinda) naffect financial aid.</p>
<p>like an expensive car cuts more finaid
and a crappy old car cuts less. ???</p>
<p>It has no impact at all, except for the fact that all your work study money will go into the car (that is my S's complaint at least)</p>
<p>There are a few schools which require the CSS Profile and include supplementary questions, one of which asks what cars the family owns, including make and year purchased. I have found that there are not many, though, who require this info.</p>
<p>FAFSA does not ask at all. Neither does Profile. UVA does ask the year, make and model of your cars.</p>
<p>In reflecting back to January, I remember that Rhodes College asked the car question via the Profile, and Swarthmore asked it on the institutional form. They were the only ones of eight schools S1 applied to that cared.</p>
<p>I just read our copy of the CSS Profile. It doesn't ask for information about car ownership at all.</p>
<p>There are a number of questions different colleges CAN choose to add to the overall Profile. Some may concern cars.</p>
<p>Thumper, I suspect none of the schools your student applied to asked the car questions. I just pulled my Profile, and question # 101 was Yr. make and model of parent's first car, 102 was purchase price of parent's first car, 103 was amount owed on car, 104 was yr. make and model of second car, 105 like 102, 106 like 103, #504, 505, 506 concerned student's first car. Below these questions is a note from the CSS which says: Colleges below will receive answers to the following question numbers: RHODES COLLEGE 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 504, 505, 506.</p>
<p>The questions on the Profile regarding cars must be on the "institutional questions". The regular profile does not have items in the 100's. You are correct, ds's schools did not have any institutional questions.</p>
<p>Yes, I think that must be it, Thumper. Seemed like Rhodes was grasping at straws to me, but I guess their endowment calls for cost saving measures. I was happy to tell them about our luxurious '87 Chevy truck and the '03 Corolla. :)</p>
<p>Buying a car can INCREASE your aid.</p>
<p>Particularly if you purchase a car with funds in the child's name. Lowering your liquid assets for many will lower their EFC, and thereby increase your aid package.</p>
<p>For example, if the student has 20K in their name in a savings account on the day the FAFSA is filled out, the federal methodology will earmark 35% of that ($7,000) for college use the first year. No asset allowance for the student, so that increases your EFC by $7,000 (and thereby decreases your aid package by $7K).</p>
<p>On the other hand, if the student buys a car for $20K the day before he fills out the FAFSA, his assets are $0, the EFC drops by $7K, and the aid increases by $7K.</p>
<p>It's less severe with parental money, where the top assessment is about 5%-- but the same principal applies.</p>
<p>sblake7, you are exactly right. That is the sort of thing that colleges like Rhodes are trying to catch. But if your schools do not ask the question, buying a car or an expensive computer or any big ticket item with student savings before you complete the FAFSA, can help the EFC.</p>
<p>So, if I open a bank account as a raising sophomore, and spend all of the saving before my guardian fills out FAFSA then my earnings will not have to contribute to the EFC. Right?</p>
<p>Correct -- the assets won't hurt you if you spend them before filling out the FAFSA. The can't assess what you don't have. Student's income above about $2400 earned in the year before starting college will be assessed as income, though.</p>
<p>What is the percentage of my earnings I will have to contribute to the EFC when the earnings exceed $2400?</p>