@BelknapPoint That actually is an interesting point about the income being counted twice. I never thought about. Of course, if you don’t withdraw IRA money in those years, then it won’t be counted twice. It seems like the money going into the IRA is counted no matter what. In other words, if you didn’t put it into the IRA, it’s still counted as income. If you don’t put the money into the IRA, any dividends/gains every year will be counted as income and the asset will be counted. If you put it into the IRA, then it’s only counted if withdrawn.
I think this point underscores the importance of good planning around college years. There are many other considerations (ie., when you sell an asset, grandparents giving gifts, etc) that can save people thousands of dollars if planned properly.