Special Circumstance: Deceased Non-Custodial Parent

In November, I filed the CSS Profile and my husband submitted the NCP for several EA schools. Our marital status was separated. He passed away in December. My marital status on the FAFSA and Profile is now widowed. My EFC on the FAFSA was based on 2014 income which included child support, which will not be received in 2015.
A few weeks ago I called the fin aid offices of two schools that gave my daughter merit scholarships (and received the NCP) but was not prepared for the responses. The first one said that I shouldn’t send any additional information to them until mid-March because they would be processing “normal” applications first. Then, they would get to the special cases. The second school’s rep asked if my daughter would be inheriting anything! I was taken aback.
I’d appreciate suggestions about how to appropriately convey the change to my daughter’s schools and request that they evaluate her aid under the new circumstances.
Thank you.

Will she? Do the new circumstances include an inheritance?

Can’t she also collect monthly SSI Jan-June?

When I did an appeal of FA last year, the school had a form and the reasons were things like loss of employment, special financial circumstances, and loss of a parent. Each category had specific questions and documents that needed to be submitted. For example, for loss of job you had to send in a letter or notice. It did ask how much had been earned in that year (2014) and for proof, and if there was going to be earnings or unemployment payments. I’m sure the loss of a parent section did ask what the earnings lost would be from that parent and maybe if there would be insurance proceeds or payments.

They will deal with this year only, and assume that the ‘situation’ will be adjusted next year when you file FAFSA (this was a FAFSA only school). If you make less in 2015, it will be reflected in the 2016-17 filing.

Sorry to hear about your family’s loss.

I realize that it may have been off-putting to hear the Q about inheritance, but it is a valid Q. However, since you and your H were separated, not divorced, likely all of his assets are now yours? Is that the case? If so, will the assets that you declared change? Was there any life insurance?

While it is certainly valid to indicated that any child support that was figured in will not be forthcoming, the schools will now be considering whether the CP household’s assets will increase. If not, then be sure to let those schools know.

I am sorry that the responses you got were so cold. I have noticed on an anecdotal basis that the fin aid offices tend to be more interested in “bean counting” than in any holistic issues, even death. Some exceptions, yes, but I’ve been shocked at some responses. Their job is to see what additional funds can be found in any situation, rather than responding to the tragedies themselves.

The loss of a parent does not simply negate the financial aid info that was sent in. The first rule of income used, is that it is the calendar year income for the year before, which is not going to change. If circumstances occur that render that info useless, it will be taken into account, however, additional income that might come into the picture are as well. So all of those circumstances have to be taken into account.

This happens when there is a job loss as well. Unemployment benefits, severence payments, access to other funds are all taken into account, and usually there is a period of unemployment and income levels at that time that has to be assessed. I’ve known many who have gotten no increase in aid the year after there is a situation like this. But then there are those who do. So, yes, it all has to be taken into account.

If the schools’ determinations of aid seem to you to not take into account the new financial situation sufficiently, a request for a gap year is something to be considered. That way the impact of the finances of the prior year are diminished greatly.

The SS payments to your D may also come into play, altho those would only be until summer, correct?

You also have son in college as well. Is that correct? If so, how will his aid be affected?

Thank you all for posting. Here’s more information.
We had been separated for many years and it was not cordial. I know he moved assets and changed beneficiaries from me to another family member, not our children. Don’t know what if anything will be passed to my children or myself. His family has not started probate process. I’m letting them take the lead bc it’s very important that the children maintain close relationship with his family and I don’t want to harm that.
I’m unaware of insurance policies that named us. Certain that no insurance was in place to ensure child support obligation would be met. Daughter will qualify for SSI Jan through June. Son is attending school on full tuition scholarship with no fin aid.

So basically keep the schools informed as you learn things. You can only tell them what you know. Is it possible though for you or your daughter to maintain the relationship yet convey to the family that it’s a critical year for your daughter as she’s applying for finaid and the schools want to know the answer to these questions.

Not easy- hugs to you and especially to your children.

It may be worth a one hour consult with a lawyer here- not on the financial aid, but to make sure that your children do not get shafted vis-a-vis the other family members?

I am sorry for your loss - any loss is difficult.

Financial aid offices are not generally equipped to handle special circumstances review requests this early in the financial aid season. FA staffs are stretched thin right now, working hard to award aid for all students … later, they will be able to deal with the special circumstances. Most schools probably do not even have their special circumstances forms ready for 15-16.

When you complete the paperwork, you will include all info you stated here. The school just wants to know what the financial situation actually will be … you are asking to have child support payments removed, so they need to know if there will be income that offsets that loss (such as insurance). It’s a legitimate question. Know, though, that you may very well not receive any additional aid even if the child support payments are removed from the EFC equation. It all depends on whether or not the school meets need and if they do, how much the change affects the EFC.

It’s a terrible time for the kids and his family. Everyone’s suffering from the sudden loss. I’m making every effort to make sure our children keep in touch with their uncle and visit their elderly grandmother. My kids are the only grandchildren so his family really needs to maintain their connection. Also trying to gently re-establish my relationship with them. Then I’ll try to ease into the very critical nature of how any inheritance is handled.

Don’t ask directly about inheritance. Find out who the executor of the estate is, and ask for cooperation in filling for SS survivor’s benefits for his child. If he left her anything, she will get it in time and you can start to mend relationships by not focusing on it now. Tell the schools what you know, when you know it.

If he died without a will then she may inherit his estate by operation of law. His executor should tell you if that is the case.
Do tell them it is important to his child to be as close as she can to her paternal relatives.

When you say you are sure he would not have arranged for Child Support, do you mean arrears? They are never dismissed and would be a claim that you would assert against his estate. If you mean ongoing CS, he has no such obligation in death.

There might not be any official executor might not be easy or possible without a professional involved. I know a lot of people who just take over the deceased assets (usually not much there in those cases) and nothing is done officially. In fact, in my circles, family, that’s the way it’s usually done. Who’s there takes the spoils if anything—usually just the bills needed to be paid to clean things up as there usually isn’t any money involved.

That’s generally not how it works. I say generally, because the laws vary by state, but in most states it’s probably similar. If the decedent has a will, it will name a Personal Representative/Executor/Administrator, and possibly an alternate if the named person can’t serve or declines to serve. If necessary the court will appoint a PR. The assets of the estate are distributed according to the will. If the decedent dies without a valid will (dies “intestate”), then, as FCCDAD mentions above, there are usually state laws in place that determine who gets what, typically based on relationship to the decedent, percentages and dollar amounts.

It would be extremely unusual for someone to die with nothing, including personal possessions. The laws are in place to avoid the “taking the spoils” scenario that you describe.

I know of more cases than not that do not go through the channels. The courts, attorneys do not get involved. The family members take care of things themselves. These are cases where there simply are not many assets involved and only expense.

I was just discussing this with our attorney, who said, that it was more so the case, but not the way to go when “substantial” assets are involved and it’s also breaking rules. In such cases the deceased bills simply are not paid and the creditors can just “go fish” as it’s just too much trouble and money to try to collect dispersed assets so long after the fact.

When my father died, many years ago, we just slipped everything into my mother’s name and that was it. No will, no personal rep, executor, attorney, nothing. The only issue that arose was getting the title to my father’s car changed, and that was minor. Would have been easier with the paperwork, however.

Since this couple was never divorced, they were still married, then depending on the state, those assets may go to the wife, no matter what the deceased claimed…if those assets are determined to be marital property. It’s unfortunate that when child support was established that there wasn’t also a req’t that he maintain a life insurance policy for his wife and kids.

I think some assets (certain retirement assets , for example) can’t be changed from the spouse without permission from that spouse. You may have some inheritance coming that you don’t expect… Or he may have ‘fudged’ to change beneficiaries when you I fact did not sign over permission.

??? who files the deceased’s last tax return (unless you die on January 1, which happens to be a Sunday, you will have some income for the year in which you die.) ???

I’m not understanding the scenario of “someone shows up and takes over the dead person’s stuff”. We’re talking about a family with minor children here, and the laws protect children from having some random uncle take the car, another family member cash in the life insurance policy, another family member in charge of ignoring the bills from doctors and hospitals, and yet another family member absconding with a stack of death certificates so he/she can file for veteran’s survivor benefits and wipe out the checking account.

OP- there are laws to protect children when a parent dies, and even if you are estranged from his family, those laws are still valid. Before someone "slips something " into someone else’s name, you need an hour with a lawyer in the state where your H/ex H maintained a residence. You don’t want a tax bill showing up after the other relatives have spent down all the assets; you don’t want to discover that the state has taken over a safe deposit box which was in your husband’s name which has personal property that legitimately belongs to you or your kids but now you have to jump through hoops to prove ownership, etc.

And you don’t know if there was life insurance, what happens to assets in an IRA or retirement plan from work (even a job your H left ten years ago- if he didn’t roll over the account, there could be funds there for your kids).

I think it’s bizarre that there are families that “take over” the deceased’s stuff like some Dickens novel… but this is not a novel, your kids have rights and you need some legal advice to ascertain what those are.

if there is no executor and there’s even 10K in assets kicking around (a car, a few savings bonds in a safe deposit box) a judge will want protection for your children before the assets get frittered away by family members who may not be legally entitled to them.

It doesn’t need to cost tens of thousands of dollars to settle a modest estate legally. I have family members who have done it themselves- but according to the law, not just telling creditors to “go fish”.

Get an attorney who will require payment to look into the matter, if there is a chance of netting out something. That’s not the way it works with most deaths.

I’ve been with a bereavement group and out of the 20 deaths here, only two are going through an official process, myself included here, but that’s because my MIL had substantial assets. My Dh’s aunt is just taking over her husband’s things. No attorney’s involved there. No will either. Risky, yes, as there are a number of kids and anyone of them could claim a slice of the pie, but it’s not going to happen.

The laws for a spouse are different from the laws for a child. Unless you’ve specified otherwise, there is a presumption that a husband and wife own their assets jointly. So your aunt taking over her dead husband’s things in the absence of a will is not at all the same as a sibling taking over a dead brother’s safe deposit box, car, other personal property if there was no will but the deceased had children.

CPT- this is not your situation. These are children who have been orphaned, and it sounds like there could be adults in the picture who do not have their best interests in mind (not talking to you, mom. And kudos to you for keeping your kids interests top of mind). If there is no will and no probate and just siblings and others taking over… yikes. If we’re talking dad’s watch- fine. But without probate how do you know if there is an IRA, mutual fund account, dad had half ownership in a beach cottage with a sibling and now the sibling just burns the title and pretends he owned it in full???

OP- call your local legal aid society and see if they can match you with a volunteer to sketch out for you what the inheritance process looks like in your state. And nobody knows that there was no will in this situation, correct???

Bad enough to be orphaned but now they get screwed too?