I’m not sure whether my parent’s household size should be 4 or 3. I have an older brother who is 28 and mentally disabled. He lives at home with my parents, and they have legal guardianship over him. They also claim him as a dependent on their taxes. My brother receives money from SSI, but only about 6K. Should I include my brother in my parents household size or not?
I would think that the answer is yes, given that the $6,000 SSI payment is probably less than half of the support your brother needs.
you should, as the household size is based on how many people your parents provide for. Since your brother does not live on his own, then he would be counted.
In this case, it is because the brother is disabled that he can be included in the household.
If he were not disabled…I don’t believe he could be counted on taxes or for financial aid purposes at age 28.
http://www.finaid.org/educators/pj/householdsize.phtml sorry, this site explains it more clearly