I’m helping yet another family in my community with FAFSA completion.
Parents Divorced-- mom abandoned the scene a decade ago.
Dad is NOT on LT Disability but is mentality unable to work.
Student and Dad reside with grandmother who pays for all their expenses - including providing a roof on over their head.
Grandmother DOES NOT claim student(grandson) or her on son (student’s dad) as dependents on her tax return.
Student and Parent do not file tax returns.
They do NOT reside with the grandparent.
Student is on full scholarship at local prep school. Bright.
Sadly- school missed the boat to have them apply to Questbridge as a Jnr.
Student’s is Hispanic US Citizen
What part of FAFSA or CSS Profile should we includes some reasonable estimate of the value of their financial support from the grandmother?
Any other guidance greatly appreciated.
Student applied to several larger state institutions throughout the country - Michigan, Ohio, Cali systems
Private institutions were of much less competitive level.
The outcome is not going to be a good one.
The amount of “expenses by grandmother” that needs to be reported shouldn’t be capped at a point where it might raise the EFC. That’s not how it works. The FAFSA and Profile instructions need to be followed, regardless of whether or not accurate reporting results in a higher EFC.
FAFSA question 45.j, Profile questions PI-230 and SI-160.
You have to report THE TRUTH, not some fake amount to get a desired EFC…jeez!!!
The grandma should know how much she’s supplying…maybe $20k per year? If so, that shouldn’t hurt EFC. It’s unearned untaxed income for the dad, so it will have a harsher calculation, but $20k is probably under the amount that would increase EFC
The money goes to dad, not the child.
A certain amount of cash from granny may be considered “gift” and I don’t think will count. @BelknapPoint would that be true?
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Grandmother DOES NOT claim student(grandson) or her on son (student's dad) as dependents on her tax return.
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Strange! Why not? It might free up more money for her to help with college costs.
Student needs to make sure that he has a financial and academic safety This will most likely be in Florida. Op may be eligible for bright futures to help offset some of the costs.
FAFSA student question 45.j, which asks about “money received, or paid on your behalf (e.g., bills), not reported elsewhere on this form,” does not have a corresponding question in the parent section, so I do not know how the father will report financial assistance he receives from the grandmother, if at all. The student would report any cash gifts he received, as well as any bills paid on the student’s behalf, in question 45.j.
If the grandmother pays bills in their name, like rent, utilities, she would know how much that is a month.
If they don’t live with her, she might still be able to claim them as dependents on her taxes, as qualifying relative. @Madison85, is that correct?
Does the student have good grades/scores? Yes, I agree they should apply to some Florida schools where they might be able to pay the costs with Bright Futures, Pell, and student loan, maybe some merit as well.
If there is no place for dad to put that grandma pays the bills, there is a great chance that they are going to be flagged for verification. School will want to know how they keep a roof over their heads and how they are eating everyday. They will have to disclose how much support they are receiving.
If student is receiving free or reduced lunch they should definitely check it off. Is family receiving snap benefits or public assistance
Verification resulting in disclosure is a real possibility, but where on FAFSA would any support that the father receives directly from the grandmother be included? If it’s going to impact FAFSA EFC, it needs to be included in the FAFSA formula somewhere, right? Or can any financial aid officer apply professional judgment and adjust the FAFSA EFC, independent of the EFC formula, because of the support that the father receives? If so, what are the standards for such an adjustment?
Are they living in a home owned by the granny? Or is she paying rent?
I would find out if some/most of the money she’s giving her adult son (father of student) is considered a gift.
Once the dad receives the “gift” then when he pays for things for his child, then the money is coming from DAD, not granny (the money has been washed), and wouldn’t go in the student section at all as bills paid on student’s behalf because those are being paid by parent (via gift money).
I don’t know what the max gift amount is anymore for one parent to give their child. Is it $14k? If so, then that amount wouldn’t get counted on FAFSA… And anything above that might be counted on FAFSA. That’s my guess.
There is no “max gift amount” for a parent (or anyone else) to give to a child (or anyone else). Bill Gates could give away his entire fortune in one transaction to Joe the plumber. And the annual gift tax exclusion amount (which is currently $14k) has nothing at all to do with anything that needs to be reported on FAFSA.
$14k is the current annual gift tax exclusion amount. It has nothing to do with FAFSA, and it’s certainly not a “max gift amount,” which is the language that was used. Gift tax, if any is actually owed, is paid by the gift giver, not the recipient.
Life 45 would still be zero-- as the money is going from grandma directly to the father . He isn’t receiving any money.
I don’t want to open up a pandora’s box that the colleges give him nothing thinking grandma is also going to pay for his education (that she cannot afford)
The student doesn’t received that money. Grandma pays their rrent, room and board in a separate residence.
I clearly know that verification is coming- I’m trying to figure out how to put this on the FAFSA honestly - but there isn’t a place for the parent’s income.
Sadly -he’s not on free lunch- he has a full ride to a local prep school. He applied to not one - not one Florida school.
Someone who is a mutual friend sent him my way last week and I said I would meet with them this week to assist.
I already suggested he add Florida schools - he would be accepted to UF or FSU- great grades. Misguided GC- told him to apply to abunch of public institutions out of state-- crazy!
The only Privates left on his list are Temple and Syracuse. Temple is an acceptable school but he can do better. SU may meet the EFC - we shall see.
So again- the support has to be reported somewhere or we can draft an explanation when the colleges request verification.
We also have to sign an attestation since mom is gone-. Does’t even reside in US. They haven’t heard from her for years.