FAFSA asset reporting date - 12/31/23 values or current numbers for 2025-26?
Can someone please clarify exactly WHEN asset values should be reported on the FAFSA? I know the income info comes from our 2023 tax return, but I'm confused about assets. Should I be using the values of our savings/investments as of 12/31/2023 or should I use current values? My son's college fund has dropped about 8% since January and I don't want to over-report. Plus we just put a downpayment on a vacation property last month that reduced our savings. Will they verify the asset values against some specific date? Thanks in advance for any help!
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Javier Torres
For the 2025-26 FAFSA, you report asset values as of the date you're completing the application - not as of 12/31/23. So if you're filling it out today, you'd use today's values for your checking/savings accounts, investments, and other assets. This is different from income information, which does come from your 2023 tax return as you mentioned. The fact that your son's college fund dropped would actually work in your favor in terms of aid eligibility. As for the vacation property, that should be reported as an investment asset unless it's your primary residence.
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Natasha Volkova
•Thank you! So it's current values - that's good news about the college fund. For the vacation property - we aren't renting it out, we just use it for our family. Does that still count as an investment asset? Sorry for the basic questions, this whole FAFSA process is so confusing!
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Emma Davis
My daughter's financial aid counselor told us to use "the day you submit" for all asset values. We submitted last week and I literally logged into all our accounts that morning to get the exact amounts. They don't have any way to verify what your accounts were worth on any specific day unless you give them statements.
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CosmicCaptain
•This is actually a smart approach! I've found timing can make a huge difference with FAFSA asset reporting. If you know you'll be making a major purchase or your investments might dip, waiting to submit until after those changes can be worthwhile. The SAI formula counts assets at roughly 5.64% for parents and 20% for students, so lower asset values = better aid offers. Just don't miss any school priority deadlines while waiting for the "perfect" submission date!
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Malik Johnson
SO FRUSTRATED with this system!!!! We reported everything EXACTLY as instructed last year and STILL got selected for verification. Then they made us provide bank statements from THE EXACT DATE we submitted!!!! So YES they CAN check and WILL check if they want to!!! The whole system is designed to catch normal families in "gotcha" moments while rich families hire consultants to game the system. 🤬
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Isabella Ferreira
•omg that happened to my cousin too. they made her send in all these statements and then flagged her for having a $5k difference between what she reported and what was in the account. turns out she had a check that hadnt cleared yet. whole system is rigged
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Ravi Sharma
To clarify about your vacation property - any real estate beyond your primary residence IS considered an investment asset on the FAFSA, even if you don't rent it out. The full net value (market value minus debt on the property) needs to be reported. Also, one tip: if your son's college fund is a 529 plan, it's reported as a parent asset (assessed at up to 5.64%) rather than a student asset (assessed at 20%), which is much more favorable for aid purposes.
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Natasha Volkova
•Oh no, I didn't realize the vacation property counts even if we don't rent it! That's going to increase our assets quite a bit. Yes thankfully the college fund is a 529 with me as the owner. This is all so complicated...I feel like we need an accountant just to complete this form correctly.
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Freya Thomsen
after i submitted my fafsa last year i got so confused i tried calling the student aid people but was on hold for like 2 hours and then got disconnected. tried 3 more times and never got through. ended up just guessing on half the stuff honestly lol. hope they dont audit me or whatever
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CosmicCaptain
•Try using Claimyr next time - it solved this exact problem for me! It holds your place in the FSA phone queue and calls you back when an agent is ready. I was having the same disconnection issues trying to verify my asset reporting, and using Claimyr I got through to an actual human in about 40 minutes instead of waiting on hold all day. They have a demo video at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ and their site is claimyr.com. Seriously makes the whole process less frustrating.
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Isabella Ferreira
i think its dumb they take assets into account at all. like just bc my parents saved money instead of spending it all now we get less aid?? makes no sense. my friend's parents make way more $ than mine but they have a fancy house and cars so they get more aid than me. system is broken
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Ravi Sharma
•The system isn't perfect, but home equity in a primary residence isn't counted on the FAFSA (though it is on the CSS Profile that some private schools use). The federal methodology is primarily income-driven - a family with $250,000 income but few savings will generally receive less aid than a family with $80,000 income and modest savings. But your point about spending vs. saving is valid and creates perverse incentives in some cases.
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CosmicCaptain
Here's a key asset reporting tip: the FAFSA takes a "snapshot" of your assets on the day you submit. If you have any planned major expenses coming up (tuition payments, home repairs, tax payments), consider timing your FAFSA submission for right after those payments clear your accounts. Perfectly legitimate strategy that can significantly impact your SAI calculation. Just make sure you're still submitting before any priority deadlines at your son's target schools.
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Natasha Volkova
•This is super helpful! We have a big property tax payment due next month - sounds like maybe we should wait until after that clears to submit the FAFSA. I'll check with his schools to make sure we wouldn't miss any priority deadlines. Thank you for this strategy tip!
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Emma Davis
Went through this last year with my daughter's application. We just printed out statements for all accounts on the day we submitted and kept them in a folder in case we got selected for verification. Made the process much less stressful knowing we had documentation ready. We didn't end up needing it, but better safe than sorry!
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Javier Torres
•Smart approach! Documentation is key for verification. About 20-25% of FAFSA applicants get selected for verification each year, either randomly or due to certain data points in their application. Having those statements ready saves a lot of stress later.
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Rhett Bowman
As someone new to this process, I'm finding all these responses incredibly helpful! I had no idea about the timing strategy with major expenses - that could save us thousands in aid eligibility. One question though: if we're planning to submit after a large payment clears, should we still gather all our account statements from the actual submission date? And is there a risk that schools might question why we waited to submit if it's well after the FAFSA opened? Want to make sure we're being strategic but also transparent about our approach.
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Ravi Patel
•Great questions! Yes, definitely gather statements from your actual submission date - that's what you'll need if selected for verification. As for timing, schools don't typically question when you submit as long as you meet their deadlines. Many families submit at different times for various reasons (waiting for tax documents, etc.). The key is checking each school's priority deadline - some have early deadlines for maximum aid consideration. If your large payment timing aligns with those deadlines, you're golden. Just document everything and you'll be fine!
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