The College Planning Institute

Financial aid is becoming a larger piece of the college admissions puzzle, as tuition costs continue to rise. Many students are choosing a college based on where they can afford, so it’s more important than ever for students to understand their options when it comes to where the best financial aid may be available for them.

That’s where the Free Application for Federal Student Aid comes in. Students must fill out the FAFSA to access any kind of assistance, including scholarships and grants, work-study and loans.

Need help with your FAFSA? Contact us today!

The FAFSA can be a complex form that students need to submit every year to qualify for financial aid. By not completing the form or completing it incorrectly, students could be leaving money on the table.

Need help with filling out the FAFSA? Contact us!

UPCOMING COLLEGE PLANNING WORKSHOP!
Our workshop will focus on college-bound high school sophomores, juniors, and last minute seniors. Learn how most families who thought they could never qualify for financial aid based on their high income or high assets can become eligible for aid. Create a plan to pay for college in any economy without relying on 529 plans, expensive private student loans, raiding your retirement accounts or raiding your savings accounts. How to lower your “out-of-pocket” costs and get the maximum amount of financial aid from each school.

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Special tax rules that govern these accounts allow you to pare down your taxable estate, potentially minimizing future federal gift and estate taxes. 529s allow you quite a bit of control, especially if you title the account in your name. You can gift $75,000 per recipient ($150,000 for married couples) as long as you denote your five-year gift on your federal tax return and do not make any more gifts to the same recipient during that 5-year period. Many plans offer you several investment choices, including diversified portfolios allocated among stocks and mutual funds.

Need help with your 529? Contact us today!

Every parent wants their child to get the best education possible, to build a solid foundation for the future. However, decisions about where to send your child to school, be that a public or private institution, are rarely simple and often involve more considerations than just money. Private schools are an investment that not every family may have the liquid cash to afford. Here are some things to. take into consideration:
- Consider the Costs
- More Individualized Curriculum/Smaller Classes
- Know Your Child

Need help? Contact us today!

Dozens of colleges around the country weigh your home equity when figuring out, behind closed doors, what you’ll have to pay for your son or daughter to attend. Homes are many families’ largest asset and the college financial aid formulas essentially expect parents to tap some of that growing asset to pay for tuition. Even if you’re an older parent planning to use your home equity as part of your retirement strategy or a relatively middle-class family who lives in an area with a high cost of living, the results will be the same: having a lot of equity in your home will increase what many colleges expect your family to pay.

So what can you do? Contact one of our advisors today!

The moment your child is ready to go off to college is a big, exciting and also nerve-wracking time in a family’s life. While most families want their children to go to college, parents and kids may come to conflict over different aspects of the process. Here are some if the things you might need to agree on:

- Clarify Budget and Expectations Upfront
- Have Your Child Do a Self-Assessment
- Get Accurate Info

Still needs help? Contact us today!

While the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, might be a complicated form to fill out, it’s something all high school students need to do if they want a chance to qualify for federal Pell grants, state grants and most scholarships. Yes, it can be daunting filling out application forms such as the FAFSA. But for many students, it makes a big difference in the options that are available to them as they plot out their futures.

Need some help? Contact us today!

A recent Money article gave advice for families that are stuck in the middle, earning too much money to qualify for need-based aid but not enough to pay out-of-pocket. These families are encouraged to file a FAFSA even if they feel they will be denied need-based aid. The FAFSA is the only way to access low-cost federal student loans. In addition, to apply for many state and private scholarships that are not need-based, a FAFSA must be filed. A completed FAFSA is also helpful if a family’s situation changes in the midst of an academic year due to job loss, medical expenses, or other sudden hardship.

Need help with the FAFSA? Get in touch with us today!

When it comes to your federal loans, your loan servicing company may assign you to a particular repayment plan. However, in most cases you can choose from among several options. You can switch to a different payment plan later, if it’s a better fit. Federal loan repayment plans include:

- Standard
- Graduated
- Extended:
- Pay As-You-Earn (PAYE)

Want to know what these mean and which option is best for you? Contact us today!

Only about 35% of Americans have heard of 529 plans, according to the College Savings Plans Network. Of those, a mere one in four connect the plans with higher education savings. There are many, many more perks to the college savings programs than simple tax benefits. Here are just a few:

1. You can make qualified withdrawals from a 529 plan for registered apprenticeship programs.

2. Over 400 schools outside the United States and its territories are considered qualified higher education institutions, meaning you can make tax-free withdrawals from a 529 plan for qualifying expenses at those colleges.

3. Normally a non-qualified withdrawal from a 529 plan is subject to tax on earning plus a 10% penalty tax. However, if your beneficiary meets certain criteria it is possible to avoid that 10% penalty, changing the plan from tax-free to tax-deferred.

Want to learn more about planning with a 529? Contact us today!

Developing a college list is a process that often involves significant research and refinement over the course of the search. Experts like the ones we work with recommend that students compile a list with 20 to 30 colleges on it and narrow that list down and applying to no more than 10 to 15 colleges. Here's a couple of things to keep in mind when building a list:

1. Does the college have my intended major?
2. What financial aid is available?
3. What are the net costs after financial aid?

We work with experts that can help with making your list, contact us today!