<p>Hi:</p>
<p>Does any one have any experience with the monthly income & expense form reporting? We are self-employed so I will have to estimate.</p>
<p>What are they really looking for on these forms? Hidden income? Wasteful spending? How the heck you are managing to live on your paltry income...I wonder that myself sometimes :)</p>
<p>Any one have any thoughts or suggestions for the best things to be sure to point out?</p>
<p>Somemom.</p>
<p>Wow a thread named for me... I'm touched... :)</p>
<p>The answers are yes, yes, yes, and yes.</p>
<p>Some colleges will ask for one of these sheets when they cannot figure out how you support yourself on the income you have reported. This often occurs when the stated rent or mortgage (times 12) is more than the entire income reported.</p>
<p>The issue here is that the college is trying to see if you have any income you haven't reported. How are you living?</p>
<p>Be truthful. If the answer is you are borrowing to do it, say that. If the answer is you are not making ends meet, say that. In my opinion, many times the information gained by going through this process makes very little difference in the bottom line EFC anyway. Most families who are asked to do one of these will have a near 0 EFC anyway.</p>
<p>From your past posts, you seemed like the best resource, so I thought your name might catch your eye :p</p>
<p>Thanks for taking the time- it feels so intrusive!</p>
<p>Not a problem. In the future you (or anyone else) can also Message me here. I am busy, but I do try to check in every other day or so.</p>
<p>Wow. Intrusive isn't the word! While I understand the purpose, I would not let my kids apply to any school that demanded that kind of miscroscopic look into my life. The huge amount of detail on the tax forms and FAFSA should be more than sufficient! Sorry if anyone is offended, but there's a limit!</p>
<p>Well, a friend and colleague of mine once described the financial aid interaction this way: an exchange of information for money. No one is forcing you to share the information, but it is the entry ticket to get the money.</p>
<p>As I said in a previous post, I am not a huge fan of this kind of document since I don't think it nets that much information, but I understand the rationale behind it.</p>