<p>So I'm a rising high school senior, class of 2014. My mom just told me that when I turn 18 (November) the check she gets for my dads disability will come to me. I am eligble to receive this check until I graduate from high school. She told be that with the check which will be ~$500 I will now be responsible for paying for my own food. I am not worried about this because I'm really good with money and budgeting and honestly I'm better with it than her. With that said I want to make it my goal to save about $100-150 each month until graduation in May. How will this check effect financial aid, if at all? Is there anything I need to know about? Thanks for your help!</p>
<p>Will your mom need any of it to pay household expenses?
Combining food budget with your mom will make it go farther.
If it ends when you graduate, it shouldnt affect finaid, because you wouldnt be getting it while attending college.</p>
<p>Since freshman year FA is based on income and savings from the prior year it will. But isn’t a student allowed to have $6K in savings before it starts affecting the EFC?</p>
<p>Depends on where you go to school. As far as the federal system for calculation goes, you’re fine. Up to $6,400 in earned income per year. SSI isn’t even counted, though it isn’t your SSI, so it might somehow count differently.</p>
<p>Some private institutions count every dollar you received last year and expect half or more of it to go towards your schooling.</p>
<p>Erin’s, no. There is no asset protection for dependent students. </p>
<p>The checks will not raise your efc but 20% of whatever is in your name will go directly towards efc. For example, if you had $1000 on the day you file fafsa, your efc will up 200. However, your parent’s assets are only hit at 5.6%. That same $1000 would only raise your efc 50 if in your mom’s name AND her assets were already over her asset protection amount.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice guys. I don’t live with my mom so sharing groceries wont help. I live with my brother, but I pretty much just take care of myself.</p>
<p>
There must be some amount excluded initially. I had $1,500 when I filed my FAFSA and EFC was still $0.</p>
<p>No, there is no asset allowance for dependent students. Perhaps you had an EFC of 0 because your parents qualified for the auto 0 or simplified means test in which case neither parent nor student’s assets are asked for. That could be the case for the OP too.</p>
<p>VanillaThunder -</p>
<p>Will your brother also be filing the FAFSA this year, or are you the only one doing that? If you are the only one filing the FAFSA, one option would be to open a bank account with your brother and have his name and social security number be listed first on that account. That makes the account his for FAFSA purposes, and you would not need to list any money in that account as yours on the FAFSA forms.</p>
<p>Vulgar, what annoying said. If your parents qualify for auto 0 EFC then neither or income nor assets count.</p>