<p>How does financial aid apply to off campus housing? Can you get a check to cover your housing expenses if you have enough financial aid to cover it?</p>
<p>you have to talk directly to your college as policies vary from school to school.</p>
<p>Some schools will let you carry over only the amount of on campus housing to off-campus housing. </p>
<p>Some schools will not extend FA to off campus housing, some schools will reimburse you only the cost of on-campus housing, but it could take a matter of months until the reimbursement happens.</p>
<p>Many schools have a different COA for on vs off campus housing. If you are off campus and are due any funds after tuition is paid, they provide them to you, but you may need to rent a year round place, so pay rent all summer, pay a deposit, and or sept rent before you receive the funds</p>
<p>As previous posters said it varies by school. My kids both live off campus. My daughter had to pay deposits and the 1st months rent before her financial aid check came in. Her school is pretty quick about paying the money out so she had it in hand 1-2 weeks after school started. My son's school is a lot slower and he did not get his check until over a month after school started so had another months rent due.</p>
<p>Be aware that any monies received for education and used for room and board, will be taxable as income.
Taxable</a> Income for Students</p>
<p>Scholarships and grants used for room and board are taxable, but not loans.</p>
<p>OP, you can often find the various Cost of Attendance budgets on the school's website. They sometimes are broken down by type of housing, so there might be a Fulltime/on campus budget, a fulltime/off campus budget, and a fulltime/commuter (living at home) budget. The commuter budget will generally include money for getting to/from school, but not for food. Again, though, this all varies by school. This is one of the things that is NOT standard from school to school.</p>
<p>Scholarships and grants used for room and board are taxable, but not loans.</p>
<p>While colleges consider self-help part of financial aid, neither I nor the government do.
( although subsidized loans I will accept ;) )</p>
<p>Work study is taxed however- although it is deducted from income on FAFSA.</p>
<p>When you live off campus your EFC may go up, however your overall costs may go down-</p>
<p>When the school sends the aid check late, do they take into account this when its time for paying the bills?</p>
<p>In our experience all financial aid and school merit money is paid direct into the bursars account first. The direct school bills (tuition/fees, meal plan etc) are usually charged to the account. Only after these charges have been covered will the remaining money be paid to the student. Outside Bills such as off campus apartment rent that is due before you get the check is the student's problem to sort out. </p>
<p>When you get the check depends on the school. My daughter probably got hers almost 4 weeks before my son.</p>
<p>To maximize the possibility of receiving your refund check in time to pay your rent: Apply for aid early. Watch your financial aid account carefully if your school uses this as its means of communicating with you about financial aid. You will need to send in any requested information quickly - and PLEASE follow directions. If you send a form without the proper signature, it will hold things up while the office waits for a signed form. If loans are offered to you and you want them, you must actually accept them, apply for an MPN, AND do entrance counseling. Failure to do any of these things will result in no loan being processed for you. And don't forget that you only get 1/2 the aid award each semester (because it's awarded for the year).</p>
<p>Recap ... apply early, respond quickly & thoroughly to all requests, and follow directions. If you do that, you'll get your money in a timely manner! :)</p>