LACs fin. aid. compared with UCs and Ivies?

Paying for College
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<p>Colleges I'm applying to: UCs, Dartmouth, Cornell, Brown, Pomona, UChicago, Vassar, Bates, Oberlin, Tufts.</p>

<p>My household income is below $70,000. (Might be below $60,000, not sure.) I'm concerned that the LACs won't provide as much financial aid as the universities. I'm also a resident of CA, so UCs will automatically be cheaper, disregarding financial aid. </p>

<p>I find myself leaning towards the close-knit communities of LACs, but am worried about financial aid. Supposedly, the Claremont Colleges offer great packages the first year, then withdraw them later. Can someone shed some light on my financial aid prospects for the colleges mentioned above? Thanks!!</p>

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<p>If your income is under 75k, dartmouth will eliminate tuition.</p>

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<p>Withh inncome of less than $70K, the LACs should end up less than the UCs which will probably give you nothing but loans and work study.</p>

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<p>Nearly every school on your list can be less expensive than a UC instate.</p>

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<p>Our data point from last year:<br>
UC offered: $1000 grant + federal loans + PLUS loan + suggestion that we take private loans + workstudy of 20 hrs/wk. It was insulting.
LAC offered: large scholarship + larger grant + federal loans + workstudy of 8 hrs/week. Our out-of-pocket is actually smaller than our FAFSA EFC.</p>

<p>I would anticipate that with the problems out here in Calif, the UCs will be even less generous next year and for the foreseeable future. Remember that LACs aren’t dependent on state funding; in this environment, that’s a good thing.</p>

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<p>what has been said above is probably true but most lacs do use the profile which gives a more detailed picture of your family finances than the fafsa. If your parents or you have lots of savings, 2nd homes, rental properties, their own business your numbers may be affected.</p>

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<p>Thanks for all the great responses! I feel more comfortable about applying to all those LACs now. speedo, my parents actually have three homes, so I’ll have to see how that turns out…</p>

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<p>if those are California homes, with California appreciation, you may not get much need-based aid from Profile schools since the net equity will be considered like cash and available to pay for college.</p>

<p>Use the financial aid estimator on collegeboard for a starter.</p>

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<p>I agree with blue, that 2 the equity from 2 of your homes (and maybe even the equity from your primary residence) will be considered as cash. In addition, any rents collected from those homes will be considered income. So if you are “house rich” especially in the other 2 homes, it could greatly affect you getting need based aid. </p>

<p>Definitely run your numbers through a financial aid calculator.</p>

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<p>What if the mortgages are far from being paid off?</p>

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<p>with that many assets it’s just too difficult to predict what the colleges will do in terms of finaid when they run their numbers.</p>

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<p>Essentially, the difference between the mortgage and market value = net equity.</p>