<p>Do financial aid offices take into account the age of the parent? My Mom is 60 and with the Parents Plus Loans she has to take out she will be paying back the loans out of limited social security income in a few years. That seems harsh. Do they consider age of the parent when offering aid if it will present a hardship for the parent due to age? Thanks for any advice.</p>
<p>Parent age is taken into account by FAFSA when calculating asset protection allowances. An older parent gets a higher protection allowance (though protction for a single parent is les than half that for a 2 parent family where the older parent is the same age as the single parent). That is it for FAFSA and schools that base their aid on FAFSA EFC.</p>
<p>It is your parent’s choice to take out a Parent Plus loan. Colleges do not require this. It is a way for parents to take out a loan to cover costs that the school does not fund via their financial aid award. Plus loans are often listed as the bottom line on financial aid forms but they are not student financial aid…they are in the parents’ names.</p>
<p>The FAFSA does take parent age into consideration…there is an increased asset protection allowance as the parents become older…the asset protection allowance increases.</p>
<p>I hope you don’t think I’m being harsh here…but if your parents are concerned that a Plus loan is not something they want to pay for in their retirement years, you should consider colleges where the costs are such that they will not have to do so.</p>
<p>As others have said, the PLUS is not required. It’s just an option that 's there to make it easier for families. The interest rate is not necessarily even that competitive if you have a good credit history. PLUS is not considered financial aid in most series. When you look at the compiled stats for what a school gives in terms of financial aid, PLUS or outside loans are not included in those figures… </p>
<p>And, yes, FAFSA calculations for the Expected Family Contribution do take into account the oldest parent’s age. But bear in mind that very few colleges if any, that meet 100% of need use the FAFSA need figure. They calculate their own. If you are going to a FAFSA only school, the chance are good that they are not meeting your need and offering the PLUS as a way for your family to pay your education.</p>
<p>As a rule, loans are not financial aid. Student loans are in that quasi category, because few kids can get a loan in their own name and that you can get any at all through Staffords is something that is “given” to you. Subsidized loans such as the subsidized portion of the Staffords and Perkins are aid, because you are getting free use of the money while in school. But the loans themselves are just delaying the payment, not giving you the money.</p>
<p>Depending on how much your mom is having to borrow to help you, you may find a solution to this. Obviously, if she is borrowing more than a comfortable amount to pay back using the payment estimator charts, etc, I would say don’t do it, or try to borrow less. The thing is, after you get out, as you work and earn more, you could repay more of the loan instead of your mom having to. Maybe she starts off because you can’t, but then you take over as she is aging and dealing with less, and you are working and hopefully making more. Doing so may be tough for you, but it is YOUR education that you’ll be paying for! So, if you know you will be paying this money back eventually, do you still think it is worth borrowing? Does it seem doable based on the career you are working toward?</p>
<p>*I hope you don’t think I’m being harsh here…but if your parents are concerned that a Plus loan is not something they want to pay for in their retirement years, you should consider colleges where the costs are such that they will not have to do so. *</p>
<p>This is true.</p>
<p>Also, there’s no obligation to retire in your 60s…some choose to retire later so that they can pay for college. A school isn’t going to give someone more money just so that the parents can retire and do so without debt. </p>
<p>As Thumper has said, you can go to a less expensive school or attend a school where you’d get large merit scholarships.</p>
<p>Thanks for your comments. My Mom may need to retire due to health issues. She took care of my father who was 72 years old until this year when he passed away. She had no savings because of the health care for my father over the last 10 years of his life. She has no savings and a very small 401K. Our home and the limited equity we have in it is what she is hoping to use for retirement. So I was thinking that the equity should be considered exempt like 401K money would be. She wasn’t a spendthrift – she works full time (at a job that requires an average of 50 hours a week) and took care of my Dad when he was really ill over the past 10 years. She works extremely hard and will work as long as she can. I’m rather hurt that you implied she wants to just retire and live an easy life with no debt. But thanks for your comments.</p>
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Home equity (in the primary home - the one you live in) is not a reportable asset for FAFSA. It is a protected asset, just like 401ks and IRAs.</p>
<p>I am sorry to hear about the loss of your father. </p>
<p>You wondered if you could get more aid since it will be hard for your mom to pay back a Plus Loan when she retires. The answer is no because a Plus loan isn’t required.</p>
<p>Nobody is claiming that your mom wants to retire and live the easy life. The point was that many people delay retirement if they want to pay for college…college is expensive. When that’s not possible, students have to choose less expensive college choices.</p>
<p>Since your mom feels that she needs to retire rather soon because of health issues, then you may need to alter your plans and attend a less expensive school…one where a Parent Plus loan isn’t needed.</p>
<p>^ But, home equity IS a consideration at schools that use the CSS Profile. </p>
<p>OP, you’re a rising senior? Are you saying she would take the Plus to meet her EFC?</p>
<p>A lot of this is dependent on your school’s financial aid policies. First of all does your school use FAFSA only? If it does, it is unlikely to meet full need. In terms of federal guaranteed money, a low EFC only guarantees PELL money for those who are truly low income with few assets. No, 401K and primary home equity are not considered. If you are not getting PELL, it is because your family EFC is too high. That means you are only guaranteed the Stafford loans in your own name. If there is need, you will get some of them subsidized. It’s up to you and your family to come up with the rest of the money. PLUS is one way to meet one’s EFC but it also is used when schools do not meet the family’s need.</p>
<p>Based on the OP’s older posts, it seems she’s a student at USC.</p>
<p>Rosieoney, unless your parents’ income drops, it’s unlikely you will be granted any more gift aid. Taking out PLUS loans is a choice, and incurring that much debt is not necessarily a good choice. You may need to go to a more affordable school if your mom doesn’t feel she can afford to borrow as much this year.</p>
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<p>Yes it is. Unfortunately, colleges have to make choices too, just like students do. There is not enough money to pay for everyone, so they make a decision on how much aid they can give, and how much they want you or your parents to borrow. They leave the decision to you and your parents as to if they want to pay for it. That is why parents on this board always emphasize that you need to have a financial safety, a school you could afford. May not be the top name institution, may not be the most prestigious, may not be in a preferred location, but something that you will give you an education.</p>
<p>Given your circumstances, if you are already in USC, you might need to transfer to a state school for example which is cheaper. Not fair, not right, it is what it is and it is preferable than having your mother take out loans. Also, you cannot assume she will get the full amount of loans she wants.</p>
<p>Sorry about your situation. We know nothing about your financial picture beyond what you mentioned here- one parent, low savings, limited home equity, low 401k. We don’t know any details.</p>
<p>I agree that additional aid doesn’t just come because a parent wants/needs to reduce the loan repayments in future years. But, depending on how and when your pictue changed this year, it’s worth a talk with the financial aid folks. We just don’t know enough about your particulars. Good luck.</p>