<p>Okay, so I know the high income financial aid scenario has been beat to death, but my family is a little different and I'm just looking for advice/suggestions.</p>
<p>My family's income is pretty high approx. $280,000/yr before taxes (this is including health care benefits, bonuses, etc.) </p>
<p>I'm the only kid in college, so how do I need aid you ask? </p>
<p>Simple. My parents have, over the past 5-10 years, employed terrible money management skills (ironic seeing as my dad is a controller at one of the largest companies in Florida and manages his business's budget impeccably well.) </p>
<p>Trips to Europe, new cars, buying my siblings condos to get them out of the house, and my least favorite, hundreds of thousands of dollars of ART hanging on the walls. (All debt-financed, too)</p>
<p>For my first undergraduate year, summer, and first semester of sophomore year I was at a top-20 private school. Eventually I found out my dad was dipping into his 401k and selling off company stock incentives given to him in order to pay my tuition. </p>
<p>Obviously, my parents always told me to just not worry about money. However, I couldn't help but feeling guilty especially since my academic performance was under-par to what I should have been achieving and I felt like I was wasting all my parents' money. </p>
<p>In the end of my Fall semester of sophomore year, I filed notice that I would not be returning in the Spring. I enrolled in a community college in my home state for the Spring just to sort of relax, take classes I was interested in, and reevaluate my need to attend such an expensive school. I applied to a generic state school where all my high school friends attend and am planning to enroll there starting this summer. However, I can't help but feel that this school is going to be so academically inferior in so many ways and I really want to go back to my prestigious private school even though my family is very relieved in having the burden of the tuition lifted. Also, one of my financially insolvent sisters is due in June for her first kid (naturally my parents have to pay all expenses, essentially giving them a 4th kid,) so this furthers the financial burden.</p>
<p>Considering all of this, (sorry for the lengthy post, if you've made it this far) what are some financial aid options for this type of situation? I know loans are always possible, but I'm not sure if more debt-financing is really what my family needs. Can the loans be in my name only? I'm really new at this because I always thought we had enough money not to be in this situation...</p>
<p>Any help or response is appreciated. TIA!</p>