Missing bank balance section on FAFSA? Can't find where to enter assets before son completes his part

The asset questions actually come up in the student section now, not the parent contribution section. Your son will be asked about BOTH his assets AND your (parent) assets when he completes his portion. It's counterintuitive, but that's how they restructured it for the 2024-2025 application and kept it for 2025-2026. You won't get your SAI until both sections are complete and the application is fully processed by Federal Student Aid.

omg the same thing happened to me last month!! i kept looking for where to put my 401k and house value and everything and got so confused. turns out they dont ask for parent assets in the parent section anymore which is SO STUPID

This is actually an intentional change to the FAFSA for 2024-2026. The asset questions are now in the student section for both student AND parent assets. You'll need to sit with your son when he completes his portion so you can provide accurate information about your accounts. Regarding the SAI (Student Aid Index), it typically takes 3-5 business days after final submission to receive it, but during peak filing periods (December-February), it can take up to 2-3 weeks. You'll get an email notification when it's ready.

THE WHOLE FAFSA REDESIGN IS A DISASTER!!! They claim to make it "simplified" but all they did was move everything around and confuse everyone. Now you have to trust your kids with your financial information instead of entering it yourself. My daughter entered our bank accounts WRONG last month and now I'm stuck with an incorrect SAI that's $12,000 higher than it should be!!

I had the exact same issue and wasted so much time calling FSA trying to get through to someone who could explain why I couldn't find the asset questions. Finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to a real person at the Federal Student Aid office without waiting on hold forever. The agent confirmed what others are saying - student enters parent assets now. They also have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ which helped me understand the new process.

My daughter just finished her section last night and I can confirm the parent asset questions appear during HER part of the application not mine. We had to do it together which was awkward because I don't usually share all our financial details with her but whatever I guess thats how it works now lol

As others have mentioned, this is the new design of the FAFSA. Here's specifically what will happen: 1. When your son logs in, he'll complete his demographic information 2. Then he'll be asked about HIS assets (if any) 3. Then he'll be asked about YOUR (parent) assets including: - Cash/savings/checking account balances - Net worth of investments (excluding retirement accounts and your primary home) - Net worth of businesses with over 100 employees After submission, the SAI calculation typically takes 3-7 business days but can take longer during peak periods. You'll both receive email notifications when it's ready.

I'm also filling out for my kid and thought I was going crazy not finding the asset section! When I called FSA, they said this was done to reduce the number of parent contributors who need to create FSA IDs. Since not all families have two parents involved, they decided to have the student enter parent asset info when applicable. Weird choice but that's the explanation they gave me.

Once your application is fully submitted (both your part and your son's part), the Department of Education will calculate your SAI and send it to the schools listed on your FAFSA. This typically takes 3-7 days, but during peak season it can take up to 3 weeks. You'll be able to see your SAI by logging into studentaid.gov and viewing your Student Aid Report (SAR). Remember that your SAI is just one factor schools use to determine financial aid. Each institution has its own methodology for distributing institutional aid beyond federal programs.

I went through the exact same confusion with my daughter's FAFSA this year! It's definitely counterintuitive that they moved parent assets to the student section. One tip that helped us: I created a simple document with all our asset information (account balances, investment values, etc.) beforehand so my daughter could reference it easily during her portion. Also, make sure you're both sitting together when he completes it - some of those asset questions can be tricky to interpret correctly. The whole process feels backwards compared to previous years, but once you know what to expect, it goes smoothly. Good luck getting your SAI!

I'm going through this exact same situation right now! My daughter hasn't completed her section yet and I was getting so frustrated thinking I missed something obvious. It's really reassuring to read all these responses confirming that the asset questions are now in the student portion. I have to say, this seems like a poor design choice - as parents, we're much more familiar with our own financial information and account balances than our kids are. I'm definitely going to prepare a summary sheet with all our asset information before we sit down together to complete her section. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - this thread has been incredibly helpful!