If You’re Caught Short

If you have insufficient savings for your child’s education when he or she is close to entering college, there are ways to generate additional funds both now and when your child is about to enter school:

1. You can start saving as much as possible during the remaining years. However, unless your income level is high enough to support an extremely stringent savings plan, you will probably fall short of the amount you need.
2. You can take on a part-time job. However, this will raise your income for purposes of determining whether you are eligible for certain types of student aid. In addition, your child may be able to take on part-time or summer jobs.
3. You can tap your assets by taking out a home equity loan or a personal loan, selling assets or borrowing from a 401(k) plan.
4. You (or your child) can apply for various types of student aid and education loans (discussed below and in Info Sources).

Related Financial Guide: For further information on Equity Loans, please see the Financial Guide: HOME EQUITY LOANS: How To Shop For The One That’s Best For You.

Sources of student aid and education loans should be exhausted before other types of loans are used, since the former make better sense financially. In some cases, however, a home equity loan can be advantageous because of the deductibility of interest.

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Sources Of Financial Aid

Here is a summary of the possible sources of financial aid. The types of aid and tax implications change frequently, so consult your financial advisor for specifics when you’re approaching the time to seek financial aid.

Grants, the best type of financial aid because they do not have to be paid back, are amounts awarded by governments, schools, and other organizations. Some grants are need-based and others are not.

• Federal Pell Grant Program. Pell grants are need-based.

Don’t assume that middle class families are ineligible for needs-based aid or loans. The assessment of whether a family qualifies as “in need” depends on the cost of the college and the size of the family.

• • State education departments may make grants available. Inquiries should be made of the state agency. Employers may provide subsidies.

• • Private organizations may provide scholarships. Inquiries should be made at schools.

• • Most schools provide aid and scholarships, both needs-based and non-needs-based.

• Military scholarships are available to those who enlist in the Reserves, National Guard, or Reserve Officers Training Corps. Inquiries should be made at the branch of service.

Try negotiating with your preferred college for additional financial aid, especially if it offers less than a comparable college.

Loans may be need-based, and others are not. Here is a summary of loans:

• Stafford loans (formerly guaranteed student loans) are federally guaranteed and subsidized low-interest loans made by local lenders and the federal government. They are needs-based for subsidized loans; however, an unsubsidized version is also available.
• Perkins loans are provided by the federal government and administered by schools. They are needs-based. Inquiries should be made at school aid offices.
• Parent loans for undergraduate students (PLUS) and supplemental loans for students are federally guaranteed loans by local lenders to parents, not students. Inquiries should be made at college aid offices or by calling 800-333-4636.
• Schools themselves may provide student loans. Inquiries should be made at the school.

Work-Study Programs. This is a program that is federally funded and based on the family’s financial need. The student works on-campus and receives partly subsidized pay. The receipt of work-study funds does not affect the level of “need” for purposes of need-based grants and loans.

To make a thorough investigation, you should fill out the financial aid application, which you can obtain from the school’s financial aid office. You will have to provide tax returns. The amount you are determined to be eligible for depends on your income, the size of your family, the number of family members currently attending college, and your assets.

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Related Financial Guide: For information on Equity Loans, please see the Financial Guide: HOME EQUITY LOANS: How To Shop For The One That’s Best For You.

How To Increase The Amount Of Financial Aid

Here are some strategies that may increase the amount of aid for which your family is eligible:

1. Try to avoid putting assets in your child’s name. As a general rule, education funds should be kept in the parents’ names, since investments in a child’s name can impact negatively on aid eligibility. For example, the rules for determining financial aid decrease the amount of aid for which a child is eligible by 35 percent of assets the child owns and by 50 percent of the child’s income.

If your child owns $1,000 worth of stock, the amount of aid for which he or she is eligible for is reduced by $350. On the other hand, the amount of aid is reduced by (effectively) only 5.6 percent of your assets and from 22 to 47 percent of your income.

1. Reduce your income. Income for financial aid purposes is generally determined based upon your previous year’s income tax situation. Therefore, in the years immediately prior to and during college, try to reduce your taxable income. Some ways to do this include:
2. • Defer capital gains.
   • Sell losing investments.
   • Reduce the income from your business. If you are the owner of your own business, you may be able to reduce your taxable income by taking a lower salary, deferring bonuses, etc.
   • Avoid distributions from retirement plans or IRAs in these years.
   • Pay your federal and state taxes during the year in the form of estimated payments rather than waiting until April 15 of the following year.
   • Since a portion of discretionary assets is included in the family’s expected contribution from income, reduce discretionary assets by paying off credit cards and other consumer loans.
   • Take advantage of vehicles which defer income, such as 401(k) plans, other retirement plans or annuities.
3. Detail your financial hardships. If you have any financial hardships, let the deciding authorities know (via the statement of financial need) exactly what they are, if they are not clear on the application. The financial aid officer may be able to assist you in explaining hardships.
4. Have your child become independent (if feasible). In this case, your income is not considered in determining how much aid your child will be eligible for. Students are considered independent if they:
5. • Are at least 24 years old by the end of the year for which they are applying for aid,
   • Are veterans,
   • Have dependents other than their spouse,
   • Are wards of the court or both parents are deceased,
   • Are graduate or professional students or
   • Are married and are not claimed as dependents on their parents’ returns.

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How To Reduce Taxes

As noted above, education funds should generally be kept in the parents’ names because of financial-aid considerations. However, in specific cases, it may be better to keep the investments in your child’s name since the tax rate on the income will be less than if they are held in your name. Professional advice should be sought in making this decision.

In the past, parents would invest in the child’s name in order to shift income to the lower-bracket child. However, the addition of the “kiddie tax” mostly put an end to that strategy. Now, investment income over $2,200 for 2020 (same as 2019) of children under the age of 19 (or 24 if a full-time student) is taxed at the parents’ rate. Once the child reaches age 19, however, all income is taxed at the child’s rate. Of this $2,200, one-half probably won’t be taxed due to the availability of the standard deduction while the other half would be taxed at the child’s rate.

These rules apply to unearned income. If a child has earned income, this amount is always taxed at the child’s rate. If you decide to invest in your child’s name, here are some tax strategies to consider:

1. You can shift just enough assets to create $2,200 in taxable income to an under-19 child.
2. You can buy U.S. Savings Bonds (in the child’s name) scheduled to mature after your child reaches age 19.
3. You can invest in equities that pay small dividends but have a lot of potential for appreciation. The income earned when your child is under the age of 19 will be minimal, and the growth in the stocks will occur over the long term.
4. If you own a family business, you can employ your child in the business. Earned income is not subject to the “kiddie tax,” and is deductible by the business if the child is performing a legitimate function. Additionally, if your business is a sole proprietorship and your child is under the age of 19, then he or she will not pay social security taxes on the income.

The Kiddie Tax does not apply if the earned income of a student over age 18 exceeds half of the child’s living expenses. Living expenses include food, housing, clothing, medical, dental, education and other necessary costs of support. Students over 18 are considered independent from their parents if they provide more than 50 percent of their own support.

There are also a number of tax incentives that you might be able to take advantage of. Please see the Financial Guide: HIGHER EDUCATION COSTS: How To Get The Best Tax Treatment.

Reporting the kiddie tax on the child’s return using the required Form 8615 calls for showing the parents’ taxable income. A parent reluctant to show that item to a teenager may instead report the child’s investment income of the parent’s return, on Form 8814. But this is not allowed, and the Form 8615 route must be followed, where the child has taxable earned income, as many teenagers would.

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Government and Non-Profit Agencies

• U.S. Department of Education (for information on financial aid): 1-800-USA-LEARN (1-800-872-5327)

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