<p>If you itemize then the state and local taxes were already subtracted from your AGI.</p>
<p>that said, my state and city wage tax is over 7%. The fafsa calculates 6%. So I agree in principal with you, just pointing out the fact that those taxes may have reduced your AGI already</p>
<p>Actually both the itemized and standard deductions come after the AGI so would not reduce the AGI.</p>
<p>What I find frustrating with FA is that I wish schools would help meet more of need. It's bad enough that the EFC calculations seem unbelievable and very far reaching, but to add to that your FA package is laden with loans and less than optimum grants and scholarships.
Maybe it would help if colleges kept their tuition more attainable.</p>
<p>My bad, duh. I'm thinking taxable income. Oh well at least we that don't itemize get extra $$ to subtract for real estate taxes this year.</p>
<p>There is so much terminology. AGI, FAFSA, CSS...</p>
<p>The acronyms and overall complicated process of just applying for financial aid is annoying. I wish there was just a flat rate for the college, say 10-15% of your adjusted gross income (after taxes) up to $150,000 income, like some Ivy League schools. Then, you make sacrifices appropriately and take out small loans. It'd make the whole process simpler. But I doubt it is realistic for most private institutions.</p>
<p>What I find most annoying are the students and parents who refuse to read everything the school gives them about the financial aid process. I have taken great pains to explain the process at my school, taking the wording to the point where my 11 year old can comprehend the process...yet I still get the ridiculous questions every day. I even get many who have graduated (adult students 30+ yrs old) and called to question why they were getting a bill from a lender for student loans when all they received were Stafford grants. All of our paperwork clearly identified loans as loans and grants as grants...even the business office statements list them as "Pell Grant", "Subsidized Loan", "ACG Grant" etc.</p>
<p>The other thing that annoys the heck out of me is that parents and students scream at us for not providing more loans, federal grant money (why can't I have 10k in Pell Grant, I'm poor), why do I have to do a FAFSA application to get financial aid, why do I need to send in my tax returns when I already sent that information to FAFSA, etc. It isn't the FA Offices who make the rules for federal funding...we don't have a lot of wiggle room...we don't determine the maximum awards for federal aid...we don't decide that people with student visas are eligible for FA...we don't decide that males must have registered with Selective Service to receive federal aid.</p>
<p>I know that some of my pet-peeves can be determine for institutional aid, but my students ought to be thankful that we refuse to become a Profile school. We don't look at anything outside of the FAFSA information. We don't reduce your institutional aid when you get outside scholarships unless the institutional aid is the only thing left in your school-issued award package.</p>
<p>Life in the FAO would be soooo much better if parents and students learned to READ and had a little bit of compassion when the Counselor explains that federal regulations prohibit the school from making xyz modification.</p>
<p>Discovering the "marriage penalty" for FAFSA.</p>
<p>If a student's custodial parent(s) are:
--2 biological parents (married), then report the income of BOTH husband and wife
--2 biological parents (never married, but living together), then report ONLY the income of the higher paid parent (except for the few recognized common law marriages in the 14 states+ DC that have ever recognized CLM, for which both incomes would be reported)
--1 biological parent (never married, not living with a partner), then report ONLY the income of the custodial biological parent
--1 biological parent (never married, living with a partner), then report ONLY the income of the custodial biological parent
--1 biological parent (divorced and remarried), then report the income of BOTH biological parent and step-parent
--1 biological parent (divorced, not living with a partner), then report ONLY the income of the custodial biological parent
--1 biological parent (divorced, living with a partner), then report ONLY the income of the custodial biological parent</p>
<p>
[quote]
Discovering the "marriage penalty" for FAFSA.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>OMG didn't know this.</p>
<p>But you married folk get a bigger asset protection and income protection allowance :-)</p>
<p>Sue, LOL...</p>
<p>the most frustrating part of the financial aid process for me is the Business and farm supplement...impossible for me to do , so I am forced to have my accountant prepare it for me. So basically, I have to shell out money in the hopes of getting aid for my one daughter.
I can handle FAFSA, CSS and any institutional forms I have encountered, but the BFS is a @#$%^</p>
<p>FAFSA is released January 1. If we are doing estimates in January anyway, why not have it by Dec. 15 so we can work on it over the holidays.</p>
<p>Applying logic a government formula or process will only cause grief.</p>
<p>Do not attempt. I work for them, I know.</p>
<p>I second NiikkiL's post #26!!</p>
<p>AND ... I really, really wish students would not wait until the VERY ... LAST ... MINUTE to take care of their financial aid requirements ... and even more, I wish that when they do wait until the very last minute, they would NOT expect me to take care of them "right now."</p>
<p>That is the other thing most annoying on the FAO side....students and parents who think they are your only "customers".</p>
<p>
[quote]
If a student's custodial parent(s) are:
-2 biological parents (never married, but living together), then report ONLY the income of the higher paid parent (except for the few recognized common law marriages in the 14 states+ DC that have ever recognized CLM, for which both incomes would be reported)
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Isn't that second person's income supposed to be reported on Worksheet B?</p>
<p>We are in a very difficult economy. I find the arrogance of some of the Finaid college personnel hear appalling. They should be happy they have jobs instead of deriding parents and student.s</p>
<p>kayf, it's not arrogance. The government makes the rules. We follow them. It's that simple. If we make our own rules, our schools will pay millions of dollars in fines. </p>
<p>For the record, I am quite grateful to have a job. Many here <em>know</em> me and are well aware of that fact. It doesn't change the facts.</p>
<p>And yes, we are in a difficult economy. This makes it all the more important that people pay attention to the rules - aid WILL be held up if requirements are not fulfilled. That's the law. </p>
<p>And on the topic of the difficult economy, please understand that the money students/parents want to be given for school has to come from somewhere. If more people need help, yet the economy is worse ... that creates quite a dilemma. Yes, everyone needs money. But if it's not available, we can't pass it out.</p>
<p>bluebayou, the income reported on worksheet B is only for the parent whose financial info is required to be reported. If the mom isn't custodial, her info is not reported anywhere on the FAFSA (or the Profile itself - only on the noncustodial parent form). If child support is paid, that is reported as income for the custodial parent.</p>
<p>Kels,</p>
<p>When finaid people complain about parents and students not reading material, please remember we all have our own jobs too. That is what I mean by arrogance.</p>