<p>Just got our EFC for dear daughter -- 4122. So close, but no Pell this year. She did get it for 2008-9. We did earn a little more last year (a very little more), and we got a huge tax refund this year thanks to the Hope Credit... but the FA gods giveth and taketh away, I guess.</p>
<p>No Pell means no state opportunity grant. This is a pretty big hit.</p>
<p>Did you make sure to list the hope credit on FAFSA (question 94a). The hope credit amount is deducted from your income by the EFC formula so as not to penalize you for it.</p>
<p>Wow, you are so close, I would double check all your numbers & entries and make certain you made no errors. Run the numbers by hand with the EFC calculator and make sure they match.</p>
<p>Yes, I do recall putting in the information about the HOpe credit into the FAFSA. I'll go back and make sure though. My daughter came in just under the wire to qualify for 2008-9, and our gross income went up about $1800 last year. I guess we were so close to the cut-off EFC that it didn't take much to go over it.</p>
<p>Between the Pell and the state opportunity grant she got for '08-9 it was about $2400 in grant aid. I mean, it's not like she won't be returning to college next fall, so I don't mean to make to big a deal of it... just a disappointment, is all.</p>
<p>Did you take itemized deductions on your tax return. It might be worth dropping a deduction or two and paying a little more in taxes (taxes are deducted from income before calculating the EFC) if it will result in a lower EFC.</p>
<p>good point, swimcat, I agree, double check your return options and see if a small adjustment would allow you to still qualify for the Pell & State grants</p>
<p>I will, swimcat and somemom. I did itemize, but the TaxCut software added it all up and said I'd be better off with the standard deduction. Do you think I might be better off to go with the itemized list?</p>
<p>The unfortunate thing is that I probably put us over whatever income limit. I have been a stay-at-home-mom for years, and then last year I began looking for a part-time job. I haven't found a permanent one yet, but I did get a seasonal job over the holidays working at the call center of a gift basket company. I only made $1500. total... but now I'm thinking that was a mistake. If that's what put us over, then I made quite a bit less money than we'll lose in the Pell and state opportunity grant. Had it been an ongoing job, the additional income would have still been a net gain, but as it is I think it was just a big mistake.</p>
<p>But I'll go back and look at any adjustments I can make on our tax return. I finished it, but haven't sent it in yet.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Do you think I might be better off to go with the itemized list?
[/quote]
It depends really. If itemizing costs you a lot in extra taxes then possibly no. If it make just enough difference to make you eligible for the Pell then possibly. Keep in mind that itemizing would make you ineligible for the simplified needs test which may or may not be a issue for you. You will need to play with the numbers a little.</p>
<p>I chose not to itemize this year just because of the simplified needs test.</p>
<p>The good news is that there is a new deduction for real estate taxes when taking the standard deduction. (500 singles/1000 married).</p>
<p>What I gave up in my income tax refund by not itemizing, I more than make up for in a lower EFC . yes, I realize I'm going to pay more than my EFC, but no reason to pump it up by a couple of thousand because I'll pay more than whatever number it is, so the lower it starts with the better (at least in my delusional mind!)</p>
<p>I went back and looked the FAFSA and I think I figured out what the issue is -- unfortunately not a fixable one.</p>
<p>My brother gave my daughter some money last year to help with her tuition. (It was a substantial amount, close to $2000.) I listed that amount for the question that asks if anyone other than your parents contributed money to help pay bills, etc.</p>
<p>It appears they added that amount to my daughter's net income. So that was probably the problem, since more of her "income" is expected to pay for school. Unfortunately it isn't a continuing income!</p>
<p>Thank you uncle Bob for the loan to help with my tuition. Here is the first $200 in repayment. xoxoox</p>
<p>LOL! That's great.</p>
<p>Don't regret the part time income. There is an offset to income in the EFC formula for working. I figured it out once when I was trying to find full time work. I figured out at that time that I could make around $10,000 without any measurable impact on my EFC. This isn't scientific - just me messing with calculators - though.</p>
<p>After all the wise counsel here to go back and check my numbers on the FAFSA, I did and I saw that I put too high a figure for the amount my D got from my brother. I have, in fact, a record of the actual amount because he transferred it to her bank account. (When I put in the first figure I got it through some bad reckoning rather than just checking the statement.)</p>
<p>So that adjustment (and it wasn't much) was enough to put her in the Pell qualifying zone. Of course, now the SAR has the dreaded asterisk for verification. I have all the paperwork I need to verify it all, so that shouldn't be a problem.</p>
<p>It raises the question though, how would a person who didn't have a bank statement with a transfer amount on it verify how much a relative gave a student? Interesting thought....</p>
<p>By the way, what <em>is</em> required for verification? Last year her FAFSA was asterisk'd too, but the school said it didn't need anything from us afterall and we didn't have to do anything.</p>
<p>When we have been verified (repeatedly) it involved copies of tax returns and proof that the sibliing were actually enrolled in the schools claimed and filling out a verification questionnaire which is basically key FAFSA questions.</p>
<p>I do think that if YOU received the money from your brother instead of your DD you don't have to put it down- SCM- isn't that line on the parents form Xed out?</p>
<p>Also, adding a second parent with a job gives you a bigger protection for one of the tabled amounts, so a small job should not really hurt you dollar for dollar.</p>
<p>Assets are not required to be verified. Different schools have different verification policies, though, and some may ask for assets if they notice that you changed the amount after the initial filing (conflicting info must be verified). They would just ask you to fill out an asset verification form & sign that it is true - some might request actual bank statements, if they think there is a reason to do so.</p>
<p>So, Kelsmom, for verification we will be notified by the school itself? (I didn't know if the verification request was from the federal gov't, the school, or what.) In my daughter's case, she put down two schools (waiting on an admission decision from one), so would the verification request come later once she knows for sure where she'll be in the fall?</p>
<p>to the OP</p>
<p>I'm not sure if you filed your taxes yet, but you may also want to try using the tuition deduction instead of the Hope to see if it reduces your EFC. The tuition deductin is an above the line deduction that will lower your AGI. It's worth a try if it means additional state and federal aid.</p>
<p>Yes, the request for verification info will come from the school itself. You may or may not even get a request ... for example, if you had to submit tax info to the school as part of its financial aid application process - and you have a family situation that is neat enough that all verification requirements can be satisfied right from what you've submitted - you may never be asked for additional info. Other times, schools may be participants in a program that allows them to select their own students for verification & you may not be chosen by them. If you so have to submit info, the school will contact you when they are ready to review the info. For example, we are not ready to receive the info for next year yet. When we are, we will contact students through their school email account (we do not send anything in the mail asking for info). So ... watch for requests online or via mail & respond promptly.</p>
<p>Thank you for the information, Kelsmom. That does clarify the process for me.</p>