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The protected asset allowance is based on the number of parents and the age of the older parent. The older the older parent is, the higher the protected assets. Single parents get less than half the protected assets that 2 parent families have. It changes every year (and very strangely has actually been reduced for the 2011-2012 school year).</p>
<p>A 2 parent family where the older parent is 51 would have the quoted protected asset allowance of $50,000. If the older parent is younger the allowance would be less. For a single parent it would be $17,000. If they are older it would be more (for instance ours is 74,000 because my husband is over 65). </p>
<p>But as other posters have said, your EFC is driven much more by income than it is by assets. To get any federal grant aid your EFC must be very low - about 5200 ish for the current school year. For FAFSA, as income increases the maximum % of income that goes to the EFC is 47%, while the maximum % of assets is only 5.6%.</p>
<p>I suggest you use one of the EFC calculators to determine your EFC so you have an idea what it will be. But keep in mind that not many schools promise to meet full need. Of those that do even fewer promise to meet full need without loans. So your EFC may not be all you will pay.</p>