<p>Hey guys, so (good news) I got accepted EA to Michigan, but I am doubtful whether I can afford to attend Michigan. I'm pretty much relying on my Florida Prepaid Plan to cover most if not all of tuition and room/board (I have the 4 yr tuition and dormitory plan, I'm guessing it should cover at least 15k a year). It is WAY off the price tag that Michigan has of 50k a year, but I live in a poor family so I hope to get financial aid.</p>
<p>Michigan doesn't claim to meet 100% need, so how much should I expect to pay per year if I live with a single mother who only makes less than $15k a year off of a settlement but has like $100,000 saved up in the bank and a $160,000 apartment that is paid off?</p>
<p>According to their website it should be around 30k, but that is still substantially high. According to the flyer I got in the mail today, people with under $20k income pretty much get most of the costs paid off in grants.</p>
<p>Please help- I'm so confused!!!!!!</p>
<p>Michigan IS expensive for out of state students and does not guarantee to meet need for out of state students… Michigan does meet need for in-state students. Did you know that when you applied? Are your parents onboard with the potential costs and your application? Between now and spring you should receive any notification of merit dollars as well as your financial aid statement March or April-ish. Don’t forget to fill out the College Board Profile and the FAFSA as soon as you can and no later than Michigan’s due date.</p>
<p>For me that site listed roughly $10k in loans but ended up being 0 due to what you mention in the flier, so it’s possible their site is just wrong. It probly refers to the M-PACT for IS students and/or Pell Grant though. Whether this happens for OOS I have no idea, but likely that $100k in the bank will be taken into account. Roughly 10% of that will factor into your EFC the first year. Although I agree $30k/yr is unaffordable, it could be what you’d end up owing, or a bit less depending on merit $ or whether Pell Grant survives the fiscal cliff. Sorry, but i don’t think you’ll find a concrete answer till you get the offer.</p>
<p>Thanks for the input guys, I was just really confused. I mean how come in the “sample grants” it lists 43k in actual aid, but in my financial aid calculator it says like 29k at the most? [Office</a> of Financial Aid: Sample Aid Packages](<a href=“http://www.finaid.umich.edu/TopNav/AboutUMFinancialAid/SampleAidPackages.aspx]Office”>http://www.finaid.umich.edu/TopNav/AboutUMFinancialAid/SampleAidPackages.aspx)</p>
<p>^^It will vary because each family circumstance is different. Both FAFSA and Profile look at income AND assets. So any money that is not in a 401K, IRA or similar retirement account is considered a spendable asset. Some colleges that use profile do “count” home equity some do not. This is a question you can certainly e-mail the university and ask if home equity is factored. The $100,000 if in a bank account, money market, CD etc. will be considered available to pay college costs so if you ran the net price calculator and came up with the $43,000 that is the reason why. Typically the colleges who post these diagrams of estimated aid are making general assumptions. Someone with an income of $20,000 generally does NOT have savings or at least savings outside of smallish 401Ks, IRAs, etc. These are the types of things that can impact where kids can apply etc. You are simply probably not going to have a concrete answer to what your cost will be to attend until you get your financial aid form and/or any merit awards.</p>