@averageapp1852 "Also important to mention that 2 of these properties are not within the united states so they are not on US tax returns but rather on Irish and EU taxes. "
@averageapp1852
“it is on the US taxes! don’t worry! not committing fraud…”
So which is it??
@Madison85 - The immediate taxes due for income from those properties would be paid according to the tax laws of those countries and reported on any returns in those countries. Then, that information would be reported again on the US tax return. Depending on the income, tax treaties, etc., further taxes might be owed to the US. Often, however, it is just a lot of paperwork, and no money needs to be paid to the US. As the OP’s dad is quoted above, it is indeed “complicated”. I haven’t had to file international income information with my US taxes for nearly 20 years, and the messiness of it still makes me shudder. I certainly wouldn’t expect a high school student to be able to understand, let alone accurately explain, this aspect of the family tax responsibilities.
But the poster first wrote that the properties were not on the U.S. returns, and then posted they are.
As you know…any income derived from these international properties must be reported on the U.S. tax return if the parents are U.S. citizens. That’s not complicated at all.
i have no plans on being an accountant sorry i’m trying my best, all i want is to go to college and not have $100,000 in loans when it is all said and done
The OP might have just been saying what she thought needed to be said to avoid difficult questions. Let’s not forget we’re dealing with a high school student looking for an easy answer to a difficult problem. My children don’t know all the details of my finances, and the OP likely doesn’t know about her parents’ financials in great detail. No need to shine a lamp in her face and jump down her throat.
@averageapp1852 , I don’t know the answer to the question. I will say that having multiple income-producing properties is, in general, a very fortunate situation to be in. Your parents have monthly income and are generating long-term wealth. These properties very much have had a positive effect on your family’s financial situation over the years. It might not be enough to put you in the millionaires club, but it’s better than most.
The best advice I can give is to hope for the best and plan for the worst. Choose your top 3 choices if money was not a factor. It never hurts to dream. However, choose another 10 choices where you know for a fact you can afford financially if you receive no need-based aid. Maybe choose another 5 where you can’t quite afford without need-based aid, but you could afford if you had merit-based aid – merit-based aid that aligns with your merits.
You will not be doing yourself a favor by focusing only on the schools that are so expensive you cannot afford to attend. There are many great options among the affordably-priced universities. You are wise to want avoid 6-figure college debt. You would be wiser to keep that thought in mind as the time nears, the money is not there, and you have to make the real-world adult decision to not go into debt to attend a childhood “dream” school.
@thumper1 The OP is an aspiring college kid. I’d give them a break on not knowing the exact ins and outs of their parents financial structure. This could be due to the parents not sharing or it really could be ‘complicated’.
D is a tax accountant. And even something ‘simple’ like properties in the US are still ‘complicated’. Having had parents who held foreign accounts, trust me, it is NOT simple.
Focusing on the situation of the properties misses the point. It is possible that they are on the returns and taxed by both countries with credit given by one country by tax law. That they are even brought up, implies that they are in the picture.
Fact of the matter is that the OP is looking for $20k or less options. options, that’s what the family is willing and able to pay. I doubt the family is going to be PELL eligible, and it’s not like a bunch of grants are awaiting if Fin aid is loosened up. The PROFILE schools highly unlikely to disregard those properties even if FAFSA does.
@averageapp1852 - Let’s focus on your 20k budget. What is included in that 20k?
Are you a US citizen or legal permanent resident and can file the FAFSA so that you qualify for federal student loans? If so, does the 20k include your own possible earnings and federal loan, or is the 20k what your parents can pay and your earnings and/or loans would be in addition to their 20k?
Do you have a state of residence in the US where you are eligible for in-state costs at the public colleges and universities? If so, according to their websites, what is the reported Cost of Attendance at the public universities that your guidance counselor believes you would be admitted to?
i’m a US citizen and live in massachusetts. umass amherst is ridiculously expensive for instate and is honestly too large of a school for me to be comfortable with so i’ve ruled it out after a visit (even if it’s stupid to do so i can’t force myself into a school that’s uncomfortable). our state universities don’t quite offer the kind of strong science and math i’m looking for although i haven’t visited so i haven’t ruled them out. there’s no state schools i could commute to because i live in the middle of no where. $20,000 is basically the money my parents can provide through their income (they have no college savings for me) plus what i can make in a part time job/ work study, etc. i’m very blessed to have such a good financial situation overall as you guys have mentioned and this thread is not at all pretending that i don’t have privileges.
@averageapp1852
It’s time to be frank with yourself. You know how much you have available for college: $20,000. You can increase that to approximately $25K by taking out student loans in your name each year.
UMass-Dartmouth is less than $28K/yr. With a couple of small merit awards, this would fall within your budget.
Right now is not the time to stubbornly stick to your adolescent dream schools, no matter what. You can apply to them and hope the money magically appears, but the prudent choice would be to also apply to schools that fit your budget.
I recommend applying to UM Amherst, UM Lowell, UM Boston, and UM Dartmouth. You won’t know what smaller merit awards you might get until you are accepted. One school might offer just enough to get under your budget, or offer enough work-study money to make it possible. Or maybe your parents will extend their budget another $2K-$3K to get it done.
The other three schools are significantly smaller than Amherst, and Dartmouth is downright cozy at 8700 enrollment.
Keep searching. Broaden your options. There are good choices out there. It’s up to you to find them.
P.S. - I’m glad to be in NC. Our in-state prices are about 1/4 to 1/3 of MA’s.
that’s true a lot of states have much cheaper schools than massachusetts… what would it take to establish residency in another state and get instate tuition for sophomore year
Great post, @happymomof1! First order of business is coming up with what is affordable ($20k seems to be the number) and what OP is SURE to be able to get beyond that. Like those Direct loans, employment money. Unless definitely eligible for PELL, no guarantee that schools are going to give out aid to make it affordable. Running NPCs for specific schools give an idea what each expects in payment. I think I’ve addressed this OP in another thread. MA has some smaller state schools that can be affordable especially if both student and parents take out reasonable amounts in loans like $5500 each freshman year. The UMass schools might even be affordable with summer and college year work. Definitely Bridgewater, Salem, Fitchburg, Framingham.
Bridgewater, Salem, Fitchburg, Framingham.
Look at these schools. They have the potential to come in at your price point.
Its not easy to establish residency in another state as an undergraduate.
@averageapp1852 , I agree with @jym626 that it is not easy to establish residency in one state while you are enrolled in college in another state.
I don’t know about other states, but NC spells it out clearly under Residency Determination Service: https://ncresidency.cfnc.org/residencyInfo/home
I don’t know how a student could claim to be a new year-long resident in NC if they were also submitting freshman transfer credits from a university in another state.
@EconPop - Did you mean to say its hard to establish residency in the state you are attending college when your “home state” (especially if still a dependent on parents) is elsewhere?
Many states say the student/family has not only to demonstrate proof of living in that new state for at least a year (eg utility bills, voter registration, auto registration, etc) but they have to demonstrate (and I am paraphrasing) an intent to make that state their permanent ongoing domicile (intend to live there ongoing- not just for college).
Yep. That too.
And the following.
I assume somebody somewhere sometime has beaten the system, but states understandably make it difficult for anyone to trick the system.