<p>Also keep in mind that depending on what schools your daughter chooses, you may also need to fille out the PROFILE, whcih is a more detailed financial form that takes into account more things than the FAFSA, such as equity in your home, retirement savings, if the parents are divorced the PROFILE asks for financial information on both parents not just the one with primary custody, etc. It’s simple to determine whether the school will require PROFILE in addition to FAFSA, just look at their admissions website under financial aid. </p>
<p>I agree that you should be leery of any service that touts itself as teaching you the tricks to lower your EFC. You’d probably be better off saving whatever that will cost you and spending the savings on your kid’s education. Definitely head to your local bookstore or library and start looking over the wealth of resources there. And the Financial Aid forum here at CC, which is very helpful.</p>