As someone who just went through this process with my daughter last year, I can confirm what others have said - gather ALL bank statements, even for accounts with tiny balances. We learned this the hard way when we initially only submitted our main checking account statement and got a letter requesting documentation for every single account we had listed on our tax returns. One thing that really helped us was creating a simple spreadsheet listing all our accounts, their balances on the day we filed FAFSA, and where we kept the documentation. It made the whole verification process much less stressful when we had everything organized in one place. Also, don't let the anxiety get to you too much - yes, the process can be tedious, but thousands of families go through this successfully every year. Your twins are lucky to have a parent who's being so thorough about getting everything right!

As a newcomer to this process, I'm finding all this information incredibly helpful but also a bit overwhelming! I'm in a similar situation - stay-at-home parent with joint accounts and preparing for my child's FAFSA next year. One thing I'm still confused about: when you all mention getting statements for "all accounts," does that include things like savings accounts for the kids (like their birthday money accounts) or 529 college savings plans? Or are we just talking about the parent accounts here? Also, for those of you who've been through verification - how long did the whole process typically take from start to finish? I want to make sure we submit everything early enough so there's time for any back-and-forth if needed. Thank you all for sharing your experiences - it's making this feel much less scary knowing other families have navigated this successfully!

Great job getting that fixed! Just wanted to add for anyone else reading this thread - if you're in a similar situation, don't panic. This is actually one of the most common FAFSA mistakes, especially with the new system. The key is catching it early like Ethan did. I've helped several families through this exact issue and it's totally fixable. One tip: if you're married filing separately, always double-check the "Contributors" section shows both parents before submitting. The system should auto-prompt for both, but it doesn't always work perfectly. Thanks for sharing your experience - it'll help other parents who run into the same thing!

Welcome to the community, Rhett! You're absolutely right to catch this early - it's so much easier to get it right the first time than to fix it later. Since you and your spouse file separately, here's a quick checklist before you submit: 1) Make sure both parents show up in the Contributors section, 2) Have both of your tax returns handy (you'll need income info from both), and 3) Don't forget that you'll both need to provide asset information too. The new FAFSA interface can be a bit confusing, but take your time with each section. If you run into any issues while filling it out, feel free to post here - this community has been super helpful for navigating these tricky situations!

As a newcomer here, I just wanted to add my experience to this discussion! I was in the same boat as Jessica with our Roth IRA and was so confused by the FAFSA instructions. After reading through all these responses, I feel much more confident about excluding our retirement accounts from the assets section. What really helped me was the distinction everyone made between the account balance (which doesn't count) versus any contributions or conversions that show up on your tax return (which do count as income). I also wanted to mention that I found it helpful to print out the relevant pages from that Federal Student Aid handbook that Noah mentioned - having the official documentation on hand made me feel better about our reporting decisions. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences and making this less stressful for those of us going through it for the first time!

As a newcomer to this community, I wanted to jump in and say thank you for this incredibly thorough discussion! I've been putting off completing my daughter's FAFSA because I was so confused about our Roth IRA situation - we have about $52K in there and I kept going back and forth on whether to include it. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been such a relief. The consensus is clear: Roth IRAs are excluded as retirement assets, which is exactly what I was hoping to hear. I'm especially grateful for the specific reference to page 4-18 of the Federal Student Aid handbook - having that official documentation will give me the confidence to complete our application correctly. It's also really helpful to understand the distinction between the account balance (excluded) and any contributions/conversions that show up as income on tax returns. This community is amazing for helping confused parents like me navigate this overwhelming process!

One thing I'd add is to make sure you have your Social Security cards handy for both you and your daughter when filling out the FAFSA. I made the mistake of relying on memory for my daughter's SSN and got one digit wrong, which caused a huge delay in processing. Also, if you're married and file jointly, you'll need both spouses' information even if only one parent is the biological parent. The whole process is much smoother when you gather all your documents first - 2023 tax return, W-2s, current bank statements, investment account statements, and any records of untaxed income. Taking the time to organize everything upfront will save you from having to stop mid-application to hunt for paperwork!

Just wanted to chime in as someone who works in a college financial aid office - you're absolutely right that it's 2023 tax info for the 2025-2026 FAFSA! One thing I always tell families is to submit your FAFSA as early as possible after October 1st, even if you haven't been accepted to schools yet. You can add schools later, but getting your application in early helps ensure you don't miss any state aid deadlines. Also, don't stress too much about making small errors - most can be corrected online after submission. The key is just getting that initial application submitted with the correct tax year (2023) and current asset information. Your daughter is lucky to have such a thoughtful parent helping with this process!

You're definitely not failing her - navigating college financing is overwhelming for almost every family! One thing that helped us was creating a spreadsheet to map out all four years. We included potential salary increases, the younger sibling starting college (which will lower your SAI significantly), and different loan scenarios. Also, don't forget about tax benefits! The American Opportunity Tax Credit can give you up to $2,500 back per year for qualified education expenses, which effectively reduces your out-of-pocket costs. Since you're waiting on scholarships until June, use this time to research everything mentioned here - the Professional Judgment Request, nursing-specific aid programs, and maybe even reach out to Northeastern's financial aid office to discuss payment plans. Many schools will work with families, especially when the student is in a high-demand field like nursing. You've got options, and it sounds like your daughter chose a program with great career prospects. Take it one step at a time!

I just wanted to add that you should also look into whether Northeastern offers any monthly payment plans! Many schools let you spread that $20k over 10-12 months instead of paying it all at once each semester. This can make it much more manageable from a cash flow perspective. Also, since you mentioned waiting on scholarships until June - don't forget to keep applying for scholarships even after she starts college. There are tons of scholarships specifically for nursing students in their sophomore, junior, and senior years. Some are even easier to get because fewer people know about them or apply. One more tip: if you do end up taking Parent PLUS loans, you can often get a small interest rate discount (usually 0.25%) by setting up automatic payments. Every little bit helps when you're dealing with these amounts over 4 years! You're being such a supportive parent by researching all these options. Your daughter is lucky to have you in her corner figuring this out together.