It's been a tough financial aid season for college students and their families. The FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) was redesigned and simplified for the 2024-25 school year, in what was supposed to benefit families completing the application. But a late rollout and the subsequent discovery of form calculation errors have led to processing delays and, by extension, delays for...
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Financial Resources & News
College Financial Aid: FAFSA Changes Coming Soon
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is a financial aid form administered by the Department of Education that helps students qualify for loans and financial aid. The FAFSA window typically opens every year on October 1 for high school seniors planning to attend college in the following year and for returning college students. However, due to an extensive redesign of the FAFSA,...
College Financial Aid: FAFSA Changes Coming Soon
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is a financial aid form administered by the Department of Education that helps students qualify for loans and financial aid. The FAFSA window typically opens every year on October 1 for high school seniors planning to attend college in the following year and for returning college students. However, due to an extensive redesign of the...
What’s Happening in the World of Higher Education?
A 2023 survey revealed a notable shift in public opinion over the past decade about the value of a college degree: 56% of Americans think a four-year college degree isn't worth the cost due to students graduating with significant debt and a lack of specific job skills vs. 42% who believe college is worth it. The survey numbers have almost reversed from ten years ago, while college enrollment has...
New SAVE Income-Driven Repayment Plan
The Department of Education recently launched the most generous federal student loan income-driven repayment (IDR) plan to date — the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan. The SAVE Plan comes after the U.S. Supreme Court blocked federal student loan cancellation in June and before payments are set to restart in October after more than three years of payment pauses. The SAVE Plan will be...
Watch Out for Student Loan Repayment Scams
This past June, the Supreme Court struck down President Biden's plan to cancel up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt for qualified borrowers. As a result, millions of student loan borrowers are scheduled to start paying back their loans in October after a three-and-a-half-year reprieve. Fraudsters and scam artists have already begun to prey on vulnerable borrowers by posing as legitimate...
New FAFSA Rules Around Grandparent Owned 529 Plans
By: Henry VanBuskirk, CFP®, Wealth Manager One of the biggest decisions that a person about to graduate from high school can make in life is whether or not they choose to go to college. That’s also why it’s no coincidence that when toymaker Milton Bradley was designing the board game, The Game of Life®, one of the first things you do in the game is to decide whether or not your character will go...
CalKids and 529 Planning
By: Henry VanBuskirk, CFP®, Wealth Manager If you are a new parent, your mind is probably swirling with a myriad of thoughts about your child’s future. Your head is likely ringing with questions that you need answers to like: Do I have enough life insurance coverage? What changes to my budget do I have to make to maintain our lifestyle? How do I save for my child’s future education needs? While...
College Cost Data for 2022-2023 School Year
Every year, the College Board releases new college cost data and trends in its annual report. The figures published are average cost figures based on a survey of approximately 4,000 colleges across the country. Over the past 20 years, the average price for tuition, fees, and room and board has increased 46% at public colleges and 30% at private colleges over and above increases in the Consumer...
Student Loan Repayment Delayed Again to Future Date in 2023
The Biden administration has announced another extension for repayment of federal student loans to an unspecified date in 2023 due to legal challenges that have blocked implementation of the student loan debt relief program. The previous payment moratorium was set to expire on December 31, 2022. Under the new extension, student loan payments will resume 60 days after the student loan debt relief...
October is the Kickoff Month for Financial Aid
October is the kickoff month for financial aid. That's when incoming and returning college students can start filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the next academic year. The FAFSA is a prerequisite for federal student loans, grants, and work-study, and may be required by colleges before they distribute their own institutional aid to students. How do I submit the...
Help is on the way for parents and students: Education-related tax benefits
For parents and students trying to manage college bills and student loan payments, the federal government offers education-related tax benefits. The requirements for each are different, so here's what you need to know. American Opportunity Credit The American Opportunity Credit (formerly the Hope credit) is a tax credit available for the first four years of a student's undergraduate education,...
Lower the Amount of Taxes You’ll Pay for Life
This white paper discusses tax planning from a federal estate and gift tax perspective for 2022 and many of the techniques discussed could reduce your overall income tax burden. * In the white paper we discuss: Making gifts to children and grandchildren while incurring little or no gift tax;Avoiding gift tax reporting by making direct tuition payments for any individual;Excluding from gift taxes...
New FAFSA Rules: Build an Educational Legacy for your Grandchildren
Withdrawals from 529 educational accounts owned by grandparents and others outside the nuclear family will soon have no impact whatsoever on federal financial aid eligibility due to new changes to the forthcoming simplified Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Previously, those withdrawals had to be reported two years later on the FAFSA as student income. Read here for more...
October 1 is the Kickoff Season for College Financial Aid (FAFSA)
October is the kickoff season for financial aid. That's when incoming and returning college students can start filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, for the next academic year. The FAFSA is a prerequisite for federal student loans, grants, and work-study, and may be required by colleges before they distribute their own institutional aid to students. How do I submit the...
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