Tonight I am writing you from one of our popular college funding workshops at the Howard Miller Community Center in Zeeland, MI. Our featured speaker is Mr. Robert Barr, and let me tell you this. If you ever have the opportunity to go to a college funding workshop, he really makes it fun and informational. The biggest topic he is going to cover tonight is how you need to have a blueprint to pay for college. There is a balance you have to make between paying for college and retirement. There is the old saying, "you can borrow for college, but you can't borrow for retirement." That is absolutely true and you should take it to heart.
A well thought out college blueprint will include financial aid strategies, college admissions strategies, tax strategies, and innovative funding strategies.
I can't write too much tonight because of where I am, but if you have a college bound high school student, then it is in your best interest to attend one of these workshops. To find one in your area, just go to www.myacfa.com and find one near you.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
Look For College Funding
Here is where you should find out how much money you'll need to pay. You'll then have to find out how you're going to pay. That is a whole other ball game.
Very few families, even the top earners, have the kind of cash flow that allows them to pay an extra five, ten, or twenty thousand dollars a year without blinking an eye. Almost everyone will have to find other sources of cash. Fortunately, there are plenty out there and we can show you how to find them.
For those of you who have not taken advanted of our FREE Diagnostic Evaluation, don't wait another minute! We will explain how to find all the money you need and how to pay for your child's education. To book a FREE Diagnostic Evaluation, just call my office at (866) 949-7935 and we will be happy to help you! Or sign up for one of our FREE College Funding Workshops, to locate one nearest you, visit our website proedserv.com and click on the Workshops Tab.
Very few families, even the top earners, have the kind of cash flow that allows them to pay an extra five, ten, or twenty thousand dollars a year without blinking an eye. Almost everyone will have to find other sources of cash. Fortunately, there are plenty out there and we can show you how to find them.
For those of you who have not taken advanted of our FREE Diagnostic Evaluation, don't wait another minute! We will explain how to find all the money you need and how to pay for your child's education. To book a FREE Diagnostic Evaluation, just call my office at (866) 949-7935 and we will be happy to help you! Or sign up for one of our FREE College Funding Workshops, to locate one nearest you, visit our website proedserv.com and click on the Workshops Tab.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Private Schools
The FAFSA is the financial aid application form for public schools. If your child is applying to certain private schools, you should also have completed a CSS/PROFILE. This form will list all of the schools where your child is applying. It's the job of the College Scholarship Service (CSS) to send copies of the profile to every school on the list.
About a month later, you should begin receiving acknowledgement forms from each of the schools confirming that they have received your information. The number crunchers at these schools will now be producing their own version of an EFC. If there are any more schools that your child is considering attending, this is the time to review the list and make the additions. You still have time.
If you have any questions be sure to check out our website at http://www.proedserv.com
About a month later, you should begin receiving acknowledgement forms from each of the schools confirming that they have received your information. The number crunchers at these schools will now be producing their own version of an EFC. If there are any more schools that your child is considering attending, this is the time to review the list and make the additions. You still have time.
If you have any questions be sure to check out our website at http://www.proedserv.com
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Would You Like To Save Money For College?
When you do your taxes every year, don't you try to pay as little in taxes as possible? So why wouldn't you want to position yourself to be able to pay a little as possible for a college education? A certified college consultant can save you thousands of dollars off the college bill, but you have to get started right away! Colleges look back to your child's Junior year of high school to find out how much you can afford to pay for college. Being proactive and positioning yourself in a way to save thousands can be the difference between paying for your child's college bill and retiring when you want to. Give us a call at the office 866-949-7935, or visit our website www.proedserv.com, to attend one of our free college funding seminars to know if you have taken the right steps to pay the college bill. For more daily updates, follow us on Twitter or friend us on Facebook, just look at the bottom of our website, www.proedserv.com, and click on the links!
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Your EFC statement
The most important part of the Student Aid Report is at the top of the page. This is where you'll find an estimate of your Expected Family Contribution (EFC), the amount of money that the government calculates you should pay for your child's education.
Now, when you have completed the FAFSA, you were asked a ton of personal questions. Not one of those questions asked how much you think you can afford to pay. It's a shame because that question you could have answered easily. Chances are, the financial aid administration will get it wrong; the amount they think you can afford will usually be much, much higher than the amount you think you can afford.
If you've already received your SAR, your Student Aid Report, or if you're still waiting for it, you should keep that in mind before you open the envelope. You're not likely to see a big fat zero there. It rarely happens.
The vast majority of parents take one look at the EFC figure and wonder how and where are they going to find that kind of money. That's the next stage of the college process.
In the first stage of applying for financial aid, you gathered the information and completed the forms. In the second stage, you have to find the money. This is as much a part of going to college as taking ACT's and choosing a major. There's a whole range of specialized loans and grants that you can apply for, including some with very low interest rates and payments deferred until after your child graduates. Many, if not most college students use them, and they are a great way of raising the extra cash.
Grants and loans aren't the only method you can use though. Another method that makes paying for college far easier than you might imagine is a special mortgage technique that gives you the money you need on a tax-favored basis. This method doesn't work for everyone but if it does work for you, you should be able to kiss your EFC headache goodbye. If you'd like to know more about this technique- and find out if it will work for you or if you'd just like to learn more about all the other grants and loans available for college students and their families, just give our office a call at (866) 949-7935 or visit our website at http://www.proedserv.com
Now, when you have completed the FAFSA, you were asked a ton of personal questions. Not one of those questions asked how much you think you can afford to pay. It's a shame because that question you could have answered easily. Chances are, the financial aid administration will get it wrong; the amount they think you can afford will usually be much, much higher than the amount you think you can afford.
If you've already received your SAR, your Student Aid Report, or if you're still waiting for it, you should keep that in mind before you open the envelope. You're not likely to see a big fat zero there. It rarely happens.
The vast majority of parents take one look at the EFC figure and wonder how and where are they going to find that kind of money. That's the next stage of the college process.
In the first stage of applying for financial aid, you gathered the information and completed the forms. In the second stage, you have to find the money. This is as much a part of going to college as taking ACT's and choosing a major. There's a whole range of specialized loans and grants that you can apply for, including some with very low interest rates and payments deferred until after your child graduates. Many, if not most college students use them, and they are a great way of raising the extra cash.
Grants and loans aren't the only method you can use though. Another method that makes paying for college far easier than you might imagine is a special mortgage technique that gives you the money you need on a tax-favored basis. This method doesn't work for everyone but if it does work for you, you should be able to kiss your EFC headache goodbye. If you'd like to know more about this technique- and find out if it will work for you or if you'd just like to learn more about all the other grants and loans available for college students and their families, just give our office a call at (866) 949-7935 or visit our website at http://www.proedserv.com
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
The Pell Grant
The FAFSA contains an application for the Pell Grant, the government's biggest financial aid program. Each year, the government gives out $29 billion to around five million students to help them pay for college tuition using Pell Grants, and the bulk of that cash goes to families who earn less than $30,000 per year. The Pell Grant isn't intended to help everyone pay for college; only students from families with low incomes. In fact, even qualified applicants only receive about $2,600, which doesn't go very far in filling the college tuition gap.
So if you find that you don't qualify for a Pell Grant, don't sweat it. There's a basket-full of other methods that you can use to find the money you need-and as a Certified College Funding Representative, we'll help you find them.
If you have any more questions, or are interested in our services, check out our website at http://www.proedserv.com
So if you find that you don't qualify for a Pell Grant, don't sweat it. There's a basket-full of other methods that you can use to find the money you need-and as a Certified College Funding Representative, we'll help you find them.
If you have any more questions, or are interested in our services, check out our website at http://www.proedserv.com
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