As a parent who just completed the FAFSA for my twin daughters last month, I wanted to add one more practical tip that saved us a lot of headaches! Since you're married filing separately, make sure you know which parent is the "primary" taxpayer for any shared assets or accounts. For example, if you have a joint savings account, only one parent should report it (whichever parent's SSN is listed first on the account). We initially double-reported some assets because we weren't sure, and it inflated our expected contribution significantly! The FAFSA help documentation isn't super clear on this, but our financial aid counselor explained that shared assets should only be counted once, under the appropriate parent. Also, keep screenshots or save a PDF of your completed FAFSA - it makes it so much easier if you need to reference it later for verification or when filling out individual school aid forms.

Just wanted to add another perspective as someone who made this exact mistake! My spouse and I are also married filing separately, and during our first attempt at the FAFSA, I only included my information thinking that since I was the one handling the application, only my income mattered. BIG mistake! We got selected for verification and had to provide a ton of additional documentation to prove our marital status and explain why only one parent's info was initially included. It delayed our daughter's aid package by almost two months. The verification process required us to submit marriage certificates, both tax returns, signed statements explaining our tax filing status, and more. It was honestly more work than just doing it correctly the first time would have been. So definitely take everyone's advice here and include both parents from the start - it'll save you a huge headache later! The FAFSA system has gotten much clearer about this requirement in recent years, but it's still a common source of confusion for married couples who file separately.

I'm new to FAFSA but dealing with a very similar situation! My 18-year-old daughter has a joint savings account with me that has about $6,500, all from her part-time job at Target. Reading through all these responses has been so reassuring - the consistent advice about reporting based on who contributed the funds rather than legal ownership makes perfect sense. I was initially worried about getting it wrong and affecting her aid eligibility, but now I feel confident reporting it as 100% student assets since she earned every penny herself. I'm definitely going to follow the advice about keeping all her pay stubs and bank statements organized in case we get selected for verification. It's amazing how helpful this community is for navigating these confusing FAFSA questions - thank you all for sharing your experiences!

As someone who works as a financial aid counselor at a community college, I wanted to jump in and confirm what many of you have shared - you're all giving excellent advice! The key principle for joint accounts on the FAFSA is indeed contribution and intended use, not legal ownership structure. Since your son earned all $11,600 through his employment, reporting it as 100% student assets is absolutely the correct approach. I see this situation constantly with students whose parents are co-signers on accounts from when they were minors. The documentation everyone mentioned (pay stubs showing direct deposits) is exactly what we look for during verification if selected. One additional tip from our office: when your son does eventually open his own accounts (which I'd recommend for future FAFSA cycles), make sure he understands that student assets above the asset protection allowance are assessed at 20% in the SAI formula, so having some basic financial literacy about managing those funds strategically can be helpful. Great job everyone for helping each other navigate this confusing process!

I'm a newcomer here but this thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm dealing with a very similar situation - my daughter's SAI came back at $25,300 on our family income of $47,500, which seemed completely unrealistic. As a single parent, I was devastated thinking we wouldn't qualify for any financial aid. After reading through everyone's experiences here, I'm now confident I made the same home value mistake. When the FAFSA asked about assets, I included our primary residence (worth about $165k) because I genuinely thought that's what I was supposed to do. The questions really weren't clear about excluding your main home from the calculation. It's such a relief to see how many families have successfully resolved this exact issue and that the financial aid offices are understanding about these errors. I'm going to submit my correction tonight and reach out to her target schools tomorrow to give them a heads up. Thank you all for sharing your stories and practical advice - this community support has been a lifeline during such a stressful time. I'll definitely post an update once we get our corrected SAI back. Fingers crossed we see the same dramatic improvements that others have reported!

I'm a newcomer to this community but want to thank everyone who has contributed to this incredibly helpful thread! I'm currently dealing with what sounds like the exact same issue - my son's SAI came back at $24,800 on our household income of $46,200, which seemed absolutely impossible for our financial situation. Reading through all these experiences, I'm now almost certain I made the classic mistake of including our primary residence value in the assets section. When filling out the FAFSA, the questions about assets weren't super clear to me about what should be excluded, so I erred on the side of reporting everything we own, including our home worth about $155k. It's honestly both frustrating and reassuring to see how widespread this issue is with the new FAFSA system. Frustrating that the form wasn't clearer about excluding primary residence, but incredibly reassuring to see so many successful corrections and helpful financial aid offices. I'm planning to submit my correction this weekend and reach out to his target schools early next week. Based on everyone's advice here, I'll make sure to save all confirmation pages and be proactive about communicating with the financial aid offices. Thank you all for creating such a supportive environment and sharing practical solutions during what can be an overwhelming process. I'll definitely post an update once we receive our corrected SAI!

I'm so sorry you're going through this! The same exact thing happened to us - our SAI jumped from $8,500 to $25,200 with absolutely no changes to our financial situation. I was convinced I had made some horrible error on the FAFSA and kept checking every single line over and over. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - it's clear that the new 2025-26 formula changes are hitting middle-class families really hard, especially those with small businesses or multiple kids in college. The advice about using Claimyr to get through to FSA sounds promising since I've been stuck on hold for hours with no luck. I'm also going to start gathering documents for a professional judgment review right away based on what everyone's saying about submitting early. It's still terrifying not knowing if this will get resolved, but at least now I understand what's happening and have concrete steps to take. Thank you for posting this - it's connected so many families dealing with the same crisis!

This thread has been such a lifesaver for me! Our SAI jumped from $6,200 to $18,900 with absolutely zero changes to our financial situation - same income, same assets, everything identical. I was literally losing sleep thinking I had somehow destroyed my daughter's chances at college by making some terrible mistake on the FAFSA. But reading everyone's experiences here has shown me it's these new formula changes hitting families across the board, not individual errors. We also have a small business and two kids in college, so sounds like we got hit with multiple formula changes at once. I've been stuck on hold with FSA for hours multiple times with no luck getting through, so I'm definitely going to try that Claimyr service first thing tomorrow. And I'm starting to gather all those professional judgment documents this weekend - from what everyone's saying, getting that submitted early could make all the difference. It's still terrifying not knowing how this will resolve, but at least now I have hope and concrete steps to take instead of just pure panic. Thank you all so much for sharing your stories and advice - knowing we're not alone in this mess and that there are ways to fight back gives me strength to keep pushing forward for my kids!

Your SAI of 12,485 is actually quite reasonable for getting financial aid! As a parent who went through this exact same confusion two years ago, I totally understand the panic when you first see that number. Here's what really helped me understand it: think of your SAI as the minimum amount schools expect your family to contribute each year. So for that $34k school, they'll see you have about $21.5k in demonstrated financial need that could potentially be covered by aid. The key thing I learned is that your SAI stays the same across all schools, but each school will create different aid packages to help meet your need. Some might offer more grants (free money), others more loans, and some might not meet your full demonstrated need at all. One practical tip: when comparing aid offers, create a simple spreadsheet with columns for total cost, grants/scholarships, loans offered, and final out-of-pocket amount. This will help you see which schools are truly the most affordable options. Also don't forget to look into merit scholarships that aren't tied to your FAFSA at all - many schools have automatic merit aid based on GPA/test scores that can stack on top of need-based aid. You're doing great by asking questions early in the process!

Your SAI of 12,485 is actually in a really solid range for receiving financial aid! I know the number can seem scary at first, but you're definitely not out of luck for getting help with college costs. One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet is to make sure you understand the difference between your SAI and what your family will actually pay. Schools use your SAI as a starting point, but many factors can affect your final cost - institutional aid policies, endowment size, whether the school meets full demonstrated need, etc. Also, keep in mind that your SAI can change year to year based on income changes, number of kids in college, and other factors. So even if this year's number feels high, it might be different when you file next year. For that $34k school, having $21.5k in demonstrated need puts you in a good position for substantial aid. Just remember that "aid" can include loans, so pay attention to how much of each package is free money (grants/scholarships) versus borrowed money. You're being smart by asking questions early - the FAFSA process is confusing for everyone the first time through, but you'll be a pro by the time your next kid goes to college!