<p>I must sound cynical. I have saved through a state savings plan for my three kids, but not enough to cover all of their educations. I have been out of work for a year and have had to dip into my investment savings but I still have a significant amount left. I am starting a new business and do not expect decent income for another 4 months or so, so more savings will have to be used. My ex-husband is wealthy. There is no obligation in PA for him to pay college, although he states that he will help. I don't know what he will do because he is unpredictable in his generousity towards the kids. My question is this: I have been trying to skimp by not taking any more out of savings than I have to, while some needed repairs to my house are being delayed, and some aesthetics are suffering and will have to be eventually fixed for my house to not lose value. Not to mention all the daily little things I go without. Now I am thinking that whatever I am not touching now, to be frugal, will just be taken away by the college in one fell swoop when my oldest son starts college in 2012 and then I will have no savings to take care of my house! Should I use the money or keep being frugal? I have heard of other situations where all the savings is used up by the first child and then they get aid for the second. I feel punished for having any savings and I need my savings for my own unpredictable financial situation!!</p>
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. That’s not the way it works. Some assets are not reportable on FAFSA, Mainly your primary home and any retirement savings (like IRAs, 401ks). Other assets must be reported but you will have a certain amount of asset protection under FAFSA, based on your age. After that only up to 5.6% of reportable assets have any affect on your EFC. So if you had say $100,000 in assets the impact on your FAFSA EFC would be 5600. </p>
<p>Remember the majority of schools include loans in their FA packages and most schools do not meet full need even with the loans (student loans are very limited). My kids have very low EFCs and do get some grant aid but also have loans. It is only because of her good merit scholarships that my daughter’s need was met without us having to take out large parent PLUS loans. With or without the assets you will probably have to find some money to pay for school. Having the assets will mean you have options other than loans.</p>
<p>Since you mention PA schools, that sounds like you’re looking at PA publics or other schools that don’t look at the ex’s income. Don’t feel like you’re being punished for saving.</p>
<p>you seem to be under the mistaken impression that those schools would give you more money if you hadn’t saved. In truth, those schools only give lowish income students money. Therefore, if you hadn’t saved, your kids would be badly gapped with no way (no savings) to fill that gap.</p>
<p>You may want your kids to look at schools that give good merit scholarships. Penn State does not give good merit scholarships, not does it give good need-based aid.</p>
<p>need to add…</p>
<p>I would talk to my ex about how much each child can reasonably expect from each year for college. Get some kind of commitment. If he’s one who will exagerate how much he’ll pay, then expect somewhat less than whatever he says. Or ask him to begin contributing to some acct so that he’ll have an idea of how much he realistically can/will pay.</p>
<p>Not sure why people are so offended by paying 5.6% of assets. Sounds like you’re under financial stress, so you have my sympathy. But there is no college fairy that doles out lots of money to those in need.</p>
<p>A relatively small number of students get generous financial aid because they have great stats and can get into one of the few schools with very generous need based or merit aid. The rest go wherever they can afford.</p>
<p>Personally I’m glad we saved. I’d rather have security than big financial aid. And I want to communicate to our kids that education is worth paying for so they do the same for theirs.</p>
<p>As the other posters have said, there is a misconception out there that if you don’t any way of paying for college that someone else (the gov’t, the colleges themselves) will take care of it for you. Yeah, there are a few highly, highly selective colleges that might --Harvard, Princeton, that sort of thing-- but the chance of even top students getting into those schools is slim. On the other end of the spectrum, if a student is very low income the gov’t will probably grant them enough to pay for a community college, assuming they continue living at home and have no additional housing costs.</p>
<p>Outside of those two scenarios, there is no way you are better off with less money than with more. Even then, would you really be better off flat broke while your kid is getting FA to attend college?</p>
<p>Who is offended? I don’t think the OP was aware it was 5.6% as she though her entire savings would be wiped out in one year.</p>
<p>* My ex-husband is wealthy. There is no obligation in PA for him to pay college, although he states that he will help. I don’t know what he will do because he is unpredictable in his generousity towards the kids. *</p>
<p>I misread your first post. I thought you were talking about PA schools, but I think what you’re saying is that the state of PA doesn’t require NCPs to pay for college.</p>
<p>Few states/situations do.</p>
<p>Anyway…since you have a situation where you’re not certain how much your wealthy ex will pay, your children need to proceed with caution.</p>
<p>If your ex agrees to pay (but later won’t cooperate), that can have devastating results if they end up at a school that needs his money to cover costs.</p>
<p>And, if your kids end up at a top school that looks at the NCP’s income, your kids won’t qualify for any aid at all - regardless of your savings situation.</p>
<p>maybe you aren’t aware of this, but many top schools (like ivies and others) that give a lot of financial aid are going to look at a wealthly non-custodial parent’s income/assets and determine that your child doesnt’ warrant aid. it doesn’t matter that he’s not legally obligated to pay.</p>
<p>OK. I am relieved that they count only 5.6% of my savings. I do have retirement savings, own my home, and have saved about $80k for all three kids combined. I am truly afraid that their father’s situation will make financial aid unlikely and then he will balk at paying. He is extremely unpredictable. I have not been able to have a mature conversation with him in over 5 years. So I still have a lot of uncertainty. But at least I know all my savings won’t be wiped out immediately!</p>
<p>If your kids are going to schools that only require FAFSA then only the custodial parent’s financial information will be required. So your ex’s income will not affect their eligibility for aid. But if they go to schools that also require CSS, non custodial parent info may be required, in which case it will affect the aid they are eligible for. Important to keep this in mind when applying for schools, especially of you cannot rely upon him to contribute.</p>
<p>
It can add up. With 2 kids and a 2 year over-lap, equaling 6 years, that comes to 33.6% of the assets. And if one has to actually BORROW the money against the assets, that could end up taking 15-20 years to pay for…</p>
<p>Also, Greyhoundlover, a school may have its own financial aid application that you fill out in addition to the FAFSA. If this form asks about home equity, ages of other children etc, those are CSS Profile type questions & this school may ask for the Non-Custodial Parent’s income & assets. One of my children attends a school with its own FA application that asks these questions. Instead of filing out a CSS Profile, the school’s own form uses same questions from the Profile!</p>
<p>At the risk of inciting a riot, what the heck are you saving for??? I absolutely understand saving for retirement, but why is it not acceptable that you be expected to save for/part with savings for education? I just don’t get it. People save for a down payment on a house, save for a downpayment on a car, save for retirement … but not for their kids’ education? If you have saved enough that you are over the asset protection cap, you can afford school somewhere for your kid without breaking the bank.</p>
<p>At the risk of inciting a riot, what the heck are you saving for???</p>
<p>LOL…reminds me of the story of the 90-year-old man who wouldn’t spend any money…he said he was saving for his old age.</p>
<p>^greyhoundlover</p>
<p>I sympathize as I find myself in a strikingly similar situation. Except that my D has decided to graduate a year early (2011 rather than 2012), which has sped up that process. Also, the college savings are in my ex-husband’s name and he has not indicated whether or not he will allow her access to those funds, or even the value of the account. He is a difficult person generally but I have no control over that.</p>
<p>I have found it necessary to limit the majority of her applications to colleges which offer at least moderate merit aid (she has very good but not perfect stats) AND which are either FAFSA-only or do not require the CSS/Profile NCP form. It is unfortunate when we’re dealt an unfavorable hand or when other individuals’ choices impact us negatively, but that’s life, right? I would be far worse off had I not saved at all.</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>Hmmm…there seems to be a few people in the same boat. Ex-husbands in control of college savings accts. It seems like these become power games…“I have control over this money and I’m not going to tell you what I’m going to do with it.” Or “I have control over this money and it you make me mad (or won’t do what I want), the kid doesn’t get the money.”</p>
<p>Why aren’t these things handled at the time of the divorce? Why aren’t the attorneys who represent the spouses who don’t have the control insisting that some kind of stipulation be made to ensure that that money goes to the kids college costs??? Why is this stuff happening?</p>