How does selling property right before FAFSA filing impact SAI for adopted grandson?

The simplified FAFSA doesn't directly ask about property sales, but the proceeds will show up in your AGI on your tax return, which is what the FAFSA pulls from. The system looks at your prior-prior year taxes, so this sale would impact the 2027-2028 FAFSA, not the upcoming one. For 2025-2026 FAFSA, they'll use your 2023 tax info, which wouldn't include this sale. You should be fine for now.

my daughter got way more than we thought with new fafsa.. we make like 120k and still got some grants. the new formula is weird, definitely apply!

THE WHOLE FAFSA SYSTEM IS COMPLETELY RIGGED AGAINST MIDDLE-CLASS FAMILIES!!!! We make decent money but live in a high cost area and they act like we're RICH. My son got ZERO aid last year even though we're drowning in mortgage payments. Doesn't matter what property you sell - they'll find some way to count it against you!!! The Beta testers who got more probably just got lucky or had some special circumstances that normal families don't have.

To directly answer your question: The 2025-2026 FAFSA doesn't specifically ask "Did you sell property?" but capital gains from property sales are reported on your taxes and will be captured in your AGI. However, since you're selling in November 2023, this will show up on your 2023 tax return, which is exactly what the 2025-2026 FAFSA will use (they look at taxes from two years prior). Here's where things get interesting for your adopted grandson: The state adoption benefit covering tuition is excellent, but you might qualify for more help with room and board than you expect. The new FAFSA has different calculations for families with adopted children in some circumstances. Make sure you accurately reflect his legal status on the application. Also, since you mentioned retirement accounts - if you're putting the property sale proceeds directly into qualified retirement accounts (like an IRA rollover), some of that might not impact your FAFSA as significantly, depending on how it's recorded on your taxes.

we had similar situation last yr with my niece we adopted. you need to mark YES on the question about whether the student is an adopted child (its somewhere in the new fafsa) and you should also have documentation ready if they do verification. most schools wanted proof of the adoption and the state tuition waiver for us

Have you tried calling Federal Student Aid directly? They can answer specific questions about your situation better than anyone here. I used to spend HOURS trying to get through to them until I found Claimyr.com. It keeps your place in line and calls you back when an agent is available. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ that shows how it works. Saved me so much time when I had questions about my daughter's unusual financial situation last semester.

One important thing to understand is the difference between reportable assets on the FAFSA. After your property sale, how you handle those funds matters: 1) Money in qualified retirement accounts (401k, IRA, etc.) is NOT reported on the FAFSA 2) Money in regular investment accounts IS reported 3) Home equity in your primary residence is NOT reported 4) Cash in checking/savings IS reported If the proceeds are genuinely going into retirement accounts (not just investment accounts), they won't impact your FAFSA calculations as assets. However, if selling the property creates significant capital gains that appear on your tax return, that WILL impact your AGI, which affects the FAFSA calculation. Since your grandson has the state adoption benefit for tuition, I recommend you also explore outside scholarships specifically for adopted students to help with room and board expenses. Many are available but not widely advertised.

i think your missing something important here - if you've legally adopted your grandson then YOU are his parents now, not his grandparents! the FAFSA doesn't care about biological relationship, only LEGAL relationship. so he's your SON for FAFSA purposes!!! this might change how things work so make sure your filling it out correctly!!

Since your income is already $160k, and the property sale would be on top of that, you might want to focus on schools that meet 100% of demonstrated need or those with good merit scholarships that aren't need-based. The property sale might push you further into the 'no need' category for federal aid, but plenty of schools offer scholarships based on academics rather than financial need.

As a newcomer to this community, I wanted to share that I'm in a similar situation with property sales and FAFSA concerns. Reading through these responses has been incredibly helpful! I had no idea about the prior-prior year rule or how retirement account contributions are treated differently. The clarification about legal vs. biological relationships for adoption is also crucial information I hadn't considered. Thank you all for sharing your experiences - it's reassuring to know there are knowledgeable people here willing to help navigate these complex financial aid questions. I'll definitely be applying regardless of income level based on what I've learned here about the new FAFSA calculations potentially being more favorable.

As someone new to this community, I'm really grateful for all the detailed information shared here! I'm dealing with a similar situation where we're selling investment property and worried about FAFSA impacts. The explanation about the prior-prior year rule was eye-opening - I had no idea that a sale this year wouldn't affect aid applications until two years later. The distinction between how retirement account contributions vs. regular investments are treated on the FAFSA is also incredibly valuable information. It's reassuring to see people sharing real experiences about the new FAFSA calculations potentially being more generous than expected. This discussion has definitely convinced me to apply regardless of our income level. Thank you all for creating such a helpful and supportive space for navigating these complex financial aid questions!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm finding this discussion incredibly valuable! I'm also dealing with timing concerns around asset changes and FAFSA applications. The clarification about the prior-prior year rule has been a huge relief - I was panicking about some financial changes we made recently, not realizing they won't impact aid for a couple years. What really stands out to me is how supportive everyone is here in sharing real experiences rather than just theoretical advice. The detailed breakdown of how different types of assets are treated (retirement accounts vs. regular investments vs. cash) is exactly the kind of practical information that's hard to find elsewhere. I'm also encouraged by the comments about the new FAFSA potentially being more generous - it sounds like it's worth applying even if you think your income might be too high. Thank you all for creating such a helpful resource for families navigating these complex financial aid waters!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm finding this thread incredibly informative! I'm also facing a similar situation with property sales and FAFSA concerns. The explanation about the prior-prior year rule completely changed my understanding - I had no idea that financial changes happening now won't affect aid applications until two years later. That's such a relief! I'm also really appreciative of the detailed breakdown about how different assets are treated (retirement accounts vs. regular investments vs. cash) - this is exactly the kind of practical information that's so hard to find clearly explained elsewhere. The discussion about adoption status and legal vs. biological relationships for FAFSA purposes is also eye-opening. What strikes me most is how supportive and knowledgeable everyone is here, sharing real experiences rather than just theoretical advice. The encouragement about the new FAFSA calculations potentially being more generous has convinced me to apply regardless of our income level. Thank you all for creating such a valuable resource for families navigating these complex financial aid questions!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm so grateful to have found this discussion! I'm in a very similar situation - we're considering selling some investment property and I've been absolutely stressed about how it might affect my daughter's financial aid prospects. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly enlightening, especially learning about the prior-prior year rule. I had no idea that property sales this year wouldn't impact FAFSA applications until 2027-2028! The detailed explanations about how different assets are treated (retirement accounts vs. regular investments) and the clarification about legal relationships for adopted children have been invaluable. What really stands out to me is how supportive and knowledgeable everyone is here - sharing real experiences and practical advice rather than just pointing to confusing government websites. The encouragement about applying regardless of income level because of the new FAFSA calculations being potentially more generous has given me hope. Thank you all for creating such a helpful resource for families trying to navigate these complex financial aid waters!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm incredibly grateful to have found this discussion! I'm facing a similar situation with property sales and FAFSA concerns, and this thread has been absolutely enlightening. The explanation about the prior-prior year rule was a complete game-changer for me - I had no idea that financial changes happening now won't impact aid applications until two years later. That's such a relief! I'm also really appreciative of the detailed breakdown about how different types of assets are treated on the FAFSA (retirement accounts vs. regular investments vs. cash holdings) - this is exactly the kind of practical information that's so difficult to find clearly explained elsewhere. The clarification about legal vs. biological relationships for adopted children was also eye-opening. What strikes me most is how supportive and knowledgeable everyone is in this community, sharing real experiences and practical advice rather than just theoretical information. The encouragement about the new FAFSA calculations potentially being more generous than expected has convinced me to apply regardless of income level. Thank you all for creating such a valuable resource for families navigating these complex financial aid questions!

As a newcomer to this community, I'm so thankful to have found this discussion! I'm dealing with a very similar situation where we're planning to sell rental property and I've been worried sick about FAFSA implications for my son's college applications. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - especially learning about the prior-prior year rule! I had absolutely no idea that property sales happening now wouldn't affect financial aid until two years down the road. That changes everything for our timing! The detailed explanations about how retirement account contributions are treated differently from regular investments on the FAFSA have also been eye-opening. I'm taking notes on all the practical advice here, from the asset treatment breakdown to the importance of having adoption documentation ready if applicable. What really impresses me about this community is how everyone shares real experiences and actionable advice rather than just pointing to confusing government resources. The stories about the new FAFSA calculations being more generous than expected have given me hope that it's worth applying regardless of income level. Thank you all for creating such a supportive space for families trying to navigate these complex financial aid waters!