<p>If your parents are claiming retirement accounts as assets, they are not filling out the FAFSA properly. The instructions specifically state that retirement accounts are NOT included. If their savings is not in retirement accounts, they do have to claim them … because those are not retirement funds. They are savings. If that’s where they have put retirement money, then yes … the FAFSA will hate you. My advice in that case is to find a state school that is affordable without aid other than loans.</p>