FAFSA homeless status eligibility when paying rent but facing eviction from parent's home?

This is actually a complicated question. Financial aid officers have some discretion here. You need to demonstrate that you're both "self-supporting" AND "at risk of being homeless." The fact that you're paying rent helps with the self-supporting part, but you'll need documentation. Do you have receipts or bank transfers showing you pay rent? As for the "at risk" part, you'd need to show your housing situation is precarious - written statements about past evictions or police reports if things got bad might help.

i was in ur EXACT situation last yr!!! fought w my mom constantly and she'd kick me out like every other month. financial aid office said I didn't count as "at risk" bc i always had a place to go back to after we cooled off. they said even if ur kicked out, if u have the OPTION to return then ur not truly at risk of homelessness. so frustrating!!

The determination is made by either: 1. Your high school homeless liaison 2. Director of an emergency shelter program funded by HUD 3. Director of a runaway/homeless youth center 4. Your college financial aid administrator Option 4 is your best bet. Schedule an appointment with your financial aid office and explain your situation. Bring ANY documentation: text messages about eviction threats, witness statements from friends who've seen you kicked out, proof you pay rent, and proof of income showing you support yourself. They have the authority to override dependency requirements in special circumstances. This is called a "Professional Judgment" or "Dependency Override.

I hate to be pessimistic but dependency overrides are REALLY hard to get. Like 99% get rejected. Even if ur parents are completely toxic, unless u can prove abuse (with police reports or restraining orders) or complete abandonment, most schools won't approve it. The system is broken.

Another option to consider: get your homelessness verified by a recognized authority BEFORE submitting your FAFSA. Contact your local homeless youth shelter and explain your situation. Some have outreach counselors who can assess your situation and provide documentation that you're "at risk" even if you're not currently using their services. This documentation carries significant weight with financial aid offices.

When I was trying to reach the Federal Student Aid office about my dependency status last year, I was on hold for HOURS and kept getting disconnected. I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) and got through to a real person in under 15 minutes. They have a video showing how it works here: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ The FSA rep I spoke with was actually super helpful and explained exactly what documentation I needed for my specific situation. Might be worth trying since your case is complicated and you really need to talk to someone who can give official guidance.

One more important thing: if you do go the dependency override route, you should know it's a separate process from answering the homeless question. A dependency override is a case-by-case determination made by your school, while the homeless unaccompanied youth question is a specific FAFSA status. If you get certified as homeless/at-risk by a qualified authority, you answer YES to that question on the FAFSA. If you can't get that certification, you answer NO but then separately pursue a dependency override through your school's financial aid office.

If you end up having to include your father's information, there's still the option to request a "professional judgment" for income adjustment if he doesn't provide financial support despite living with him. This won't make you independent, but could lower your SAI if you can document that you're self-supporting despite living in his house.

btw if you haven't already, GET A COPY OF YOUR RENTAL PAYMENTS FROM VENMO!! they can delete after a certain time, happened to me and i lost that proof 😡 download statements for every month you've paid!

Quick update for anyone following this thread - I just got off the phone with my school's financial aid office (used that Claimyr service someone mentioned and it worked great!). They told me to start documenting EVERYTHING right now - screenshots of threatening texts, dates when I've been kicked out, receipts for rent payments, and any witnesses who can verify my situation. They said my case is borderline but they've approved similar situations before when students had good documentation. Also learned that I need to be careful about the timing - if I get kicked out again, I should contact them immediately while it's happening rather than waiting. Thanks everyone for the advice, this thread has been super helpful!