Do I need to report a vacant lot as parent asset on FAFSA if we don't earn income from it?

Yes, you absolutely need to report that vacant lot. The FAFSA considers all real estate other than your primary residence as an investment asset, regardless of whether it generates income. The fact that you have an assessment showing $73,000 in value makes it even clearer - that's the figure you should report. Remember, FAFSA is looking at your assets, not just your income.

my cousins family had same thing but with farm land they inherited. they reported it and still got decent aid package. dont stress 2 much

FAFSA IS A COMPLETE JOKE when it comes to assessing REAL assets vs paper assets!!!! We own 2 acres of completely UNUSABLE wetlands that we can't build on, sell, or do ANYTHING with but pay taxes, and they counted it as $125K against us!!! Meanwhile, people with fancy retirement accounts get all kinds of sheltering. The whole system is RIGGED against middle class families who happen to own land instead of stocks!!!

Financial aid professional here. Yes, you must report the vacant lot as a parent investment asset on the FAFSA. The key distinction is that it's not your primary residence. The Federal Student Aid definition for investment assets includes "real estate (other than the home you live in)." But here's what might help - parent assets are assessed at a maximum rate of 5.64% in the SAI formula. So a $73,000 asset would only increase your SAI by approximately $4,117 at most. Depending on your overall financial situation, this may not dramatically impact your student's aid eligibility, especially if your income is the dominant factor in your calculation.

When I was filling out FAFSA last year I spent TWO WEEKS trying to get through to someone at Federal Student Aid to ask about our lake property that we only use for family gatherings. Kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. Finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual FSA representative in less than 30 minutes. The rep confirmed that yes, we had to report it, but explained exactly how to do it correctly. They have a video demo on how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ. Saved me so much frustration trying to interpret the instructions on my own.

Just wondering - could you potentially look into legally separating the lot from your primary residence somehow? I know someone who had their property rezoned or something and it helped with their FAFSA situation. Not saying it would work in your case but might be worth looking into if it's going to significantly impact your aid?

my dad always said just sell stuff before filing fafsa lol

One thing I learned going through this process is to make sure your borough assessment is accurate. In some areas, tax assessments can be significantly lower than market value, while in others they might be inflated. You might want to compare the assessment with comparable vacant lots in your area. If the assessment seems high, you could potentially appeal it, which would not only reduce your property taxes but also lower the value reported on FAFSA.

I went through this exact same situation last year! We have a small vacant lot that we bought years ago thinking we might build on someday but never did. I was so confused about whether to report it too. After reading through all the FAFSA guidance and talking to our school's financial aid office, I can confirm what others have said - yes, you do need to report it as an investment asset. The good news is that based on what the financial aid professional explained about the 5.64% assessment rate, it shouldn't completely destroy your aid eligibility. My advice is to be completely honest and accurate - the potential consequences of not reporting it far outweigh the impact on your SAI calculation. Good luck with your FAFSA!