I think in current system, second column, Years 2 to 4 would look like 20K, so total would be 100K. In other words, 60K deficit has to be funded, loans, scholarships or what else.
Not sure what you mean. My table was intended to show the total cost before FA that the family would pay in each year, if each kid attended a $20k college.
I assume you described effect of proposed changes. And I am trying to compare that with current system. We agreed that current system and new system wonât impact families with kids at least 4 years apart. So second column, like to see as current system vs proposed system if that makes sense.
Subsidized loans are the next to go. Actually, I am surprised they werenât eliminated in this bill. The Department of Education has been ready to get rid of them for years. Eliminating sub loans for grad students was the first step. I feel like getting rid of the 150% cap on sub loans in this bill is the regulatory relief provided short term, with eliminating sub loans as a long term goal. But thatâs just my opinion, and itâs not on the immediate horizon.
Someone posted about it, which reminded me that I never looked into it like I had intended. Thatâs why I chimed in. Here is a good article: Pandemic Relief Package Simplifies FAFSA. I will highlight some additional important changes in a separate post below.
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What the table was intended to compare was the cost of college for a family with kids 1 year apart versus 4 years apart, before any FA effects.
As per current EFC way or 2023-24 EFC way?
Can you elaborate this 150% cap thing please?
The $20k in the chart is the list price (without FA) of the college in question.
(The regulations donât go into effect until July 1, 2023 for the 2023-2024 award year.) Additional changes of note, in no particular order, and not including all changes:
Untaxed income and benefits will no longer include child support received. According to the article I cited, âthe definition of assets will include the annual amount of child support received.â Not sure how that will work, but the article says it will be a more beneficial treatment.
Untaxed income and benefits will no longer include cash support and any money paid on the studentâs behalf. This is really helpful for some students ⊠although schools may include it for their own aid, I suppose. I am thinking of grandparent 529 payments as an example.
Changes to Simplified Needs Test and Automatic 0 formulas that make it harder for folks like us to easily explain them!
The removal of free/reduced lunch from the list of means-tested benefits for determining eligibility for the above formulas.
Changes to Pell eligibility. The article says this about the changes: âAlthough this change does not really simplify Pell Grant eligibility, it does allow the use of a lookup table to show applicants whether they will be eligible based on family income, dependency status, and the number of parents in the household. It also makes it easier for single parents to qualify for the maximum Pell Grant.â
Students will no longer lose eligibility for federal student aid because of a conviction for the sale or possession of controlled substances while receiving federal student aid.
Male applicants will no longer be required to have registered with Selective Service.
Students will no longer have to file for a dependency override every year if they attend the same school in subsequent years. The aid office can assume nothing has changed unless the student informs them of a change.
And a very welcome change: Dependent students who do not qualify for a dependency override can now, if the financial aid administrator allows, receive unsubsidized Federal Direct Stafford loans if the parents refuse to complete the FAFSA, even if the parents havenât cut off all support.
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Ok I get that, what if that 20K is EFC (irrespective of total college cost or cost after loans)?
@PPofEngrDr, there was a regulation put in place several years ago that limits the timeframe students can receive subsidies on their loans. The 150% Subsidized Loan Limit means a borrower can get subsidized loans for no more than 150% of the published length of their program or âmaximum eligibility period.â This applies for borrowers who took out these loans as a first-time borrower on or after July 1, 2013.
A person in a two year program loses eligibility after 3 years. A person in a 4 year program loses eligibility after 6. There are rules for tracking part time status. After the 150% is reached, borrowers are no longer eligible for sub loans and they are responsible for paying interest on their prior subsidized loans. Say that a borrower gets a bachelors after 5 years in school. They later return to school in a new bachelors program. They donât have a new clock - they only have a year left for any bachelors program. And once they hit that 6 year point, the subsidized loans they previously borrowed will start accumulating interest while they are in school. Try explaining that to students!
The reporting required is kind of a pain. Grad schools, which canât award subsidized loans, had to comply with the reporting requirements because ⊠drum roll ⊠Congress didnât specifically exempt them from having to do so.
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Most of the announced FAFSA changes have been delayed a year (now starting with year 2024/25).
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ok, it means we should be able to reach out to various elected officials, all the way from the WH to those in Congress and perhaps state levels, so they can rectify some provisions (such as the one about multiple children in college at the same time or the âproviderâ v. âparent you spend your time withâ clauses).
Some changes can be implemented without making the major FAFSA changes that ED says cannot be made right away. I donât see anything that says, for example, the move to ignore student gifts from the formula wonât occur earlier. Similarly, nothing says that the move to ignoring multiple children in college in the formula wonât be implemented earlier. The concern ED has is in the FAFSA simplification ⊠formula changes happen often, so they may well end up implementing some of the changes in 2023-24, after all. This is wait-and-see right now. As it stands, everything has to be implemented by 2023-24. Congress will specify exactly what can wait, and anything not included in that legislation will be statutorily required to be implemented in the original timeframe.
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This will not be a popular post but I never understood the benefit given for more than one kid in college at the same time or by having money adjusted for parents making the choice to have multiple children. I am not talking about low income kids whose EFC would be minimal anyway. Of course I did not plan correctly and had kids about 3 years, 3 months apart , but who ended up 4 grades apart because of the way their birthdays fell. No overlap in college. Bad planning. 
Itâs tough because college is so expensive and most people need help. It will be interesting to see what changes end up being implemented.