It seems the OP is under the following impressions:
a) an RD FA offer will be more generous than an ED FA offer
and/or
b) parents will have a better shot at negotiating a better FA offer when they have other FA offers in hand, in the spring.
There may be a little bit of truth to both, but overall I don’t think it makes substantial difference.
B is correct, at least for some colleges. But again, the likelihood of an ED college allowing an acceptance to be moved to RD for that purpose hovers between slim and none as it defeats the purpose of ED
No, it’s not my impression. Neither A nor B.
I believe selecting the right college involves accepting the reality that the FA is not what one initially hoped for, especially in complicated personal/business situations, when the NPC is not much help. Depending on the ED offer (if it comes, as the place is very selective), it may take a while to come to terms with it.
I posted the thread when a truly awful scenario came to mind - we turn down the ED place offer because we don’t want to spend all the money in 529 on the undergrad education, and then, in the RD round, other offers turn out to be even lower or come from places that are significantly less academically appealing than the ED college.
The responses posted by experienced forum members convinced me that it would be rather outlandish to suggest it to the AO. As @lookingforward put it, “it’s not like a warmer drawer.” Or, as @skieurope put it, “the likelihood of an ED college allowing an acceptance to be moved to RD for that purpose hovers between slim and none as it defeats the purpose of ED.”
It’s a false narrative that if you do the right thing and save for college you are then disadvantaged for FA. Very, very, very few colleges will meet financial need. And even the very few select ones that do, it’s based on their evaluation of your need, not the need you think you have. Besides, even if you have $100k in a 529, it only reduces your FA package by $5,640. You are not penalized for saving. It is NEVER helpful to not save for college.
As for college FA departments allowing you to set aside some of the 529 money . . . they do not consider parents responsible for payment of grad school. That’s a personal choice. Plus, you are coming from a very privileged position if that is your complaint.
This thread went in a strange direction… I posted something that I hoped could be read as “thanks guys, I stand corrected, case closed” and then I see this:
and this:
So many unwarranted assumptions…
First, privilege is such a loaded word. Yes, I feel privileged that I created, for my family and myself, a comfortable place in this adopted country of mine where I came 30 years ago with a few hundred dollars, a high school lit teacher from a formerly Soviet-occupied country.
But if you assume some old money or connections - not true.
As for the “false narrative” - sure, 529 itself could not ruin anybody’s chance for FA. But more generally, prudent management of personal finances leads to a serious disadvantage: a mortgage-free condo + savings equal to 1 year of gross income (very middle-middle-class) + substantial 529 = huge drop in FA.
Finally, I should have explained earlier that we only consider colleges either offering substantial guaranteed scholarship money or meeting 100% demonstrated needs. Plus, there’s always McGill!
@skieurope As far as I am concerned, the question I originally asked has been answered completely. Thank you.
Just a little post scriptum, for the benefit of future readers: at least in our case, the assertion that every 100k in savings lowers your FA by $5,640 turned out shockingly wrong. One of the richest and most selective colleges in the country (well over $1M/student in endowment) sees us as full-pay mostly based on the 529 balance (our income is pretty low these days), and we would have to find about 60k more than the college savings (over the 4 years) to pay for it. No complaining, there are plenty of other options, just a perspective I wish I had beforehand.
This was a great thread.
It sounds like Pomona’s loss was McGill’s gain.
I feel so outed! 
@InterLoki
Now I need to write P.S. 2:
After all that back and forth with FA, and the unavoidable five stages of grief, we did what good middle-class parents of an only child usually do: we folded and went with the overpriced, wonderfully protective LAC, instead of reasonably priced, big and cold foreign U. Pomona '25!
Congratulations! Pomona look really great. Based on Youtube videos, it looks like one of the few elite LACs that actually has a substantial group of musical and artistic students. And getting into Pomona is no easy trick.
I didn’t mean to out you, BTW. I thought you were out already.
A paid off condo and a year’s income of savings is very middle class? I learn so much here about how other people live that never would’ve occurred to me.
@milgymfam It’s not? For someone close to the retirement age? I don’t mean to start a bid debate tinged with politics but to me, it’s been the definition of the middle class.
I think the problem is that (at least in America) there isn’t a standardized definition of what it means to be middle class. No one I know in my real life has any of those three things you listed individually, let alone collectively, and I think most would consider themselves middle class. We’ve always thought we straddle the line between lower class and middle class simply because we’ve never gone hungry… it’s a low, low bar where I came up. The idea of having the things you listed would be an absolute abundance of riches beyond our wildest dreams.
Just curious: How do you know that your full-pay status is “mostly based on the 529 balance”? Someone alluded to the scenario that you also have a year’s-worth of income in savings, and you have full equity in your home. FA decisions are based on the full picture. Besides, if the 529 covers all but $60k over four years, I’d say you’ve done very, very well. Your child can take the federal direct loans, which total $27k over four years – manageable, especially if you or he pays the interest throughout the four years, before it compounds too much. He/she can probably tackle close to half the loan amount just from summer job income. Then you, the parents, have $33k to pay out of pocket over four years ($8.25k/year), which maybe you can tackle partly from current income, partly from savings, and perhaps partly from a HELOC. And don’t forget, there’s some savings from not having him home, so the incremental cost of having him at college instead of home is actually less than $8.25k/year.
I has been promised a conversation with a FA officer soon after 1/1, I hope it will dispel any misconception I may have.
I appreciate your advise. I generally have this old-school approach to finances, and it has served me reasonably well, so loans for a BA degree won’t happen but of course, life is so unpredictable.