Hey Sean! I'm in almost the exact same boat right now - my FAFSA shows processed with a -1650 SAI but I'm still waiting on my actual aid package. Reading through these responses has been super helpful! I called my school's financial aid office yesterday after seeing all the advice here, and they were actually really understanding about the situation. They immediately put a "pending aid hold" on my account so I could register for my March classes without paying upfront. The whole process took about 10 minutes once I got through to someone. One thing that helped me get connected faster was calling right when they opened (8 AM at my school) - way less wait time than calling in the afternoon. Also, having your student ID and SAI number ready when you call makes the conversation go much smoother. Your negative SAI is definitely a good sign for getting substantial aid. The financial aid person I spoke with said that with my SAI, I should expect to receive close to the maximum Pell Grant amount plus potentially some state aid. Fingers crossed your school processes your package quickly!

I'm new to the FAFSA process too and this thread has been incredibly helpful! Just wanted to add that if you're having trouble getting through to your school's financial aid office by phone, try checking if they have online chat support or a student portal where you can submit questions. Some schools also have specific "FAFSA help" sessions or workshops during busy periods like this - might be worth checking their website or social media for any upcoming sessions. Sometimes these group sessions can be faster than trying to get one-on-one phone time. Your -1500 SAI is definitely promising for getting good aid coverage. Wishing you luck with getting that hold placed and registering for your March classes!

One important point that hasn't been mentioned yet: If your student doesn't need the full loan amount they're offered each year, they should only accept what they actually need! There's no requirement to take the maximum. For example, if they're offered $5,500 in federal loans but only need $3,000 to cover their costs after scholarships and your contribution, they can just accept the $3,000. This will save them money on interest in the long run and preserve more of their lifetime eligibility for later years if costs increase or circumstances change.

Congratulations on this milestone! As someone who just went through this process with my first child last year, I can share a few practical tips that helped us navigate the loan disbursement process: 1. Set up account access early - Make sure both you and your daughter have access to the student portal and understand how to view the financial aid offers and loan acceptance process. 2. Understand the timeline - Loan disbursements typically happen right before each semester starts, so plan your payment schedules accordingly. Our daughter's first disbursement was about a week before classes began. 3. Budget for the gap - There's often a delay between when you pay deposits/housing fees and when loan funds are actually disbursed, so be prepared to cover those initial costs out of pocket temporarily. 4. Keep detailed records - Screenshot everything! Loan acceptance confirmations, disbursement schedules, refund amounts. The financial aid office staff changes frequently and having your own records saved us multiple headaches. The whole process gets much easier after the first year once you understand your school's specific procedures. You've got this! 🎓

Hi everyone! I'm new to this community and currently dealing with a very similar situation. My family owns a small vacant lot adjacent to our home that we purchased primarily as a buffer zone for privacy. Like many of you, we don't generate any income from it - just pay the annual property taxes. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful, especially the detailed explanation from the financial aid professional about the 5.64% assessment rate. I was initially panicking thinking this would completely disqualify us from financial aid, but understanding that a $73,000 asset would only add about $4,100 to the SAI at most really puts it in perspective. It's still frustrating that non-income producing land gets treated the same as actual investments, but I'd rather report it accurately than risk the consequences of misrepresentation. Thank you all for sharing your experiences - it's so reassuring to know that many families are navigating these same confusing asset reporting situations!

Hi everyone! I'm new to this community and dealing with almost the exact same situation. My family owns a small wooded lot behind our house that we bought years ago mainly to keep it from being developed. We don't make any money from it - just pay about $600 in property taxes each year. After reading through all these responses, especially the breakdown from the financial aid professional about the 5.64% assessment rate, I feel so much more confident about handling this on our FAFSA. I was initially terrified that having to report this "asset" would completely eliminate our aid eligibility, but understanding that it would only impact our SAI by a few thousand dollars at most really helps put it in perspective. It's definitely frustrating that land we basically bought for peace of mind gets treated the same as actual income-producing investments, but everyone's advice about being completely accurate rather than risking misrepresentation makes total sense. Thank you all for sharing your experiences - it's such a relief to know so many families are navigating these same confusing property situations!

I went through this exact same situation last year! The driver's license alone definitely won't work - the FSA ID system is really strict about security. I ended up creating a new FSA ID and it was honestly much easier than I expected. A few tips from my experience: - Make sure you use your legal name exactly as it appears on your Social Security card - The verification process took about 2 days for me, so don't panic if it's not instant - Your old FAFSA data will still be there once the new ID is verified - Consider setting up the mobile phone verification this time so you don't get stuck again The whole process took me maybe 10 minutes to set up the new ID, then just had to wait for verification. Way better than sitting on hold for hours with customer service!

I'm in a very similar boat - lost access to my FSA ID from 2020 and have been dreading dealing with this! Reading through all these responses is super helpful. It sounds like creating a new FSA ID is definitely the way to go rather than trying to recover the old one. One question I have - if I create a new FSA ID now, will I be able to see my previous year's tax information that was imported, or will I need to manually enter everything again? I used the IRS Data Retrieval Tool before and it made things so much easier. Also, has anyone had experience with dependent vs independent status changing between applications? I was a dependent in 2020 but I'm independent now - wondering if that complicates the linking process at all. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this thread is way more helpful than the official FAFSA website!

Just wanted to share that our financial situation was similar to yours (similar income, two kids 14 months apart). What really helped us was focusing on schools that offered good merit scholarships rather than obsessing over the FAFSA formula. My daughter is now a sophomore at a private college that gave her a $25k/year merit scholarship just based on her GPA and extracurriculars. Her SAI was actually pretty high, but the merit aid made it affordable. Look for schools where your son would be in the top 25% of applicants - that's where the merit money tends to flow.

As someone who just went through this process with my daughter, I want to echo what others have said about timing being crucial. One strategy that really helped us was accelerating our property tax payments - we paid both 2023 and 2024 property taxes in December 2023, which reduced our assets right before filing FAFSA. Also, if you have any flexible spending accounts (FSA) or health savings accounts (HSA), max those out too since they reduce your adjusted gross income. The HSA is especially valuable because contributions are tax-deductible AND the account isn't counted as an asset on FAFSA. Don't overlook state-specific aid programs either - many states have their own grant programs with different eligibility requirements than federal aid. Good luck navigating this process!