Leah Hadley [00:00:01]:
Welcome to Intentional Divorce Insights. I'm Leah Hadley, certified divorce financial analyst, accredited financial counselor, and the founder of Intentional Divorce Solutions. I'll be your guide through the complexities of divorce, finance, and emotional wellness. Join me as we uncover practical tips and empowering insights to help you navigate your divorce with clarity and intention. Hi there, and welcome back to Intentional Divorce Insights. I am so happy that you're here with us today. I have a fantastic guest who's gonna give us some really good important information about college planning and divorce, which I know comes up with a lot of my clients having questions. So it is my absolute pleasure to introduce Vicky Volllweiler, who is the founder and CEO of College Financial Prep, a leading college planning firm dedicated to helping parents of college bound students save money and reduce stress throughout the college application process.
Leah Hadley [00:00:58]:
With over a decade of experience, Vicki has guided countless families through financial aid applications, scholarships, student loans, and college cost negotiations, ensuring they receive the best possible financial outcome. Specializing in divorce and college planning, Vicki serves as a neutral third party advisor, providing separated and divorced parents with personalized strategies to maximize their financial aid while minimizing the complexities often faced during this challenging time. As an empathetic and knowledgeable consultant, Vicki is passionate about empowering families to navigate the financial side of higher education. Her approach combines expert advice with a deep understanding of each family's unique situation, making the process smoother and less overwhelming. In addition to her one on one services, Vicki offers group coaching, online courses, and digital resources to make her expertise more accessible. Outside of work, Vicki enjoys spending quality time with her daughter, supporting her interests and activities. Vicki values the importance of balancing family life with her dedication to helping others achieve their financial goals for college. Welcome, Vicki.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:02:12]:
Hi, Leah. Thanks for having me today.
Leah Hadley [00:02:15]:
Oh, it really is my pleasure, especially since I think I told you my oldest is headed off to college, in the fall. So I'm right there with all these parents who are having these conversations and thinking about these things. And so I'm really excited to address this topic. Vicki, when should divorcing parents start thinking about planning for college?
Vicki Vollweiler [00:02:38]:
Honestly, I think for parents that are getting divorced, they should start thinking about it when they're putting together their divorce agreement, when they're talking with their mediators and attorneys. Many don't do that. They don't start planning till the child is in high school. But, yeah, I have clients who come to me in those like early years. I mean, the kids can be five years, you know, five years old, three years old, seven years old, and just want to include the basics, in those divorce agreements. Maybe even that both parents are willing to participate in the financial aid process. There were some schools that they'll look for financial aid financial information from one or both households. So it's important that both parents are willing to participate.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:03:25]:
Not say how much they're gonna spend, but at least participate.
Leah Hadley [00:03:29]:
I think that's such a good point because, unfortunately, I do hear stories all the time of one of the, you know, parents just not engaging with the process at all, and that can be really difficult on the child when they are trying to make this transition. So that's a really good point. Now do you only work with parents who are separated or going through a divorce?
Vicki Vollweiler [00:03:50]:
No. I work with all parents, but my business was founded working strictly with separated and divorced families. I'm also divorced. I've I've been through the college process, you know, personally and professionally. So, yeah, this is how I was founded. This is the the bulk of the business. But, yes, I I work with, parents who are widowed, married parents, parents who've never been married, you know, runs the gamut. Everyone has their own own personal financial situation.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:04:23]:
Everybody has different needs, different goals when it comes to college. So I I try to work with the families to to reach their goals.
Leah Hadley [00:04:30]:
And I think that's an important point too because so often, you may have a goal in mind for your child, and it may differ from the other parent's goal that they have in mind for their child and which may differ from the child's goal. Right? Yeah. So having a neutral person who can kind of work through some of these challenges together and figuring out really what are those goals, I see as tremendously beneficial.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:04:57]:
Definitely. So whether it's in my office or whether it's on Zoom, because I, you know, I work with families across the country. We'll be talking about the different colleges that the student may be considering or that the parents are leaning towards and will project costs at each of those colleges. And then the the family, whether it's a parent, a student, you know, there may be an moment like, oh, yeah, maybe we should go in a different direction. So so it's important. I look at my role as one where I'm informing the parents and the students. I'm not going to tell them what the best school is for their child to go to. That's up to them to decide because not only is it a financial decision, it's an emotional decision.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:05:44]:
Where will the child thrive the most? You know, there's so there's lots to consider, but I want them to be fully informed of all of the financial aspects so they are making a well informed decision.
Leah Hadley [00:05:54]:
Yeah. And there's a lot of people like financial advisers like myself who really help people to save and invest for that college goal long term,
Leah Hadley [00:06:04]:
but you really help people save money on college itself. Right? Right. Right. I always say, you know, help people save money for college. I help people save money on the cost of college.
Leah Hadley [00:06:16]:
Yeah. Yeah. That's huge. And can divorced parents save more money than others on the cost of college?
Vicki Vollweiler [00:06:22]:
So it is possible. Not not specifically because not necessarily because you're divorced, but I'll I'll give you an example. You can have, it's it's not because of divorce. It's because of the household. So you can have one person who earns $100,000 a year, or you can have two people in the household each earning $50,000 a year, and the total is 100,000. So they're still looking at the household total, but it may be that if you only have one parent in the household, that that household income may be lower than if it's a married household. So in that regard, it is possible that the divorced parent will save because it's now a one parent household. If there's a remarriage, they're gonna consider the new step parent as another adult in the house, and and consider their financials.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:07:17]:
So, you know, talking about this, it really applies if it's a a one person household and, you know, and a one person household. I mean, they can earn, you know, $500,000 a year. It's not a low income household. So it goes by each household. But, yes, I've seen with, some clients who have been divorced and based on their situation, their financial situation, based on the schools that they apply to and based on where the student got in and chose to go, oh my gosh, they've saved hundreds of thousands of dollars on the cost of college. It's been fantastic.
Leah Hadley [00:07:53]:
Yeah. Absolutely. It's interesting because sometimes when we're looking at, you know, working through the negotiation so sometimes I work as a financial neutral, sometimes I work work as a financial advocate, sometimes I'm, you know, mediating the case. But depending on what my role is, sometimes we're having that conversation around taxes, and how do we save the most on taxes. But a lot of times, people can actually save more on financial aid than they could on taxes if they set up kind of the, you know, who's taking more responsibility for the child and that sort of thing. You know, there's there's some tricky ways that you can kind of position yourself well for the best financial aid package possible.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:08:35]:
Yes. And a lot of people will say to me, but but for taxes, we do this. But it doesn't always translate to financial aid. You you can't just assume that because of this, it's gonna equal this with financial aid.
Leah Hadley [00:08:47]:
Right. Right. So tell us about the steps that you, specifically at College Financial Prep, use to save money on the cost of college.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:08:56]:
So the first step, I actually think the most important step, it's generating the right college list. So I actually have on my team a college advisor and an essay specialist, SAT, ACT test prep. But with our college advisor, she generates a college list and she's looking for the right academic and social fit for the child. But I also want there to be the right financial fit for the family. So we're gonna work together to make sure that that college list is ideal for everyone, you know, or, you know, good financially, good for the student, you know, that everybody's going to be happy with it. And that's really the most important step because if you apply or your child applies to, you know, schools that are pushing a hundred thousand dollars a year now, which they are, it's crazy, and some of them don't offer any, merit scholarships, if you will. If they don't offer any discounting, that is not gonna be useful to you. You wanna make sure that there are gonna be financially friendly schools on the list as well.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:10:07]:
Next step comes October 1. That's when the financial aid applications open. So that's FAFSA, depending on the colleges that the students applying to. That could also be the CSS profile. FAFSA is one parent that completes the form or one parent and a step parent if remarried. CSS profile can be both parents, not always, but it can be both parents. And if both parents are remarried, then they're looking at four parents worth of income and assets. So, again, picking the right colleges depending on what information they're gonna be looking for can be very important.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:10:49]:
After filling out those financial aid applications, then want to start filing, I'll call it a request for additional funding, negotiations, filing appeals, certainly in situations of separation, divorce, maybe a downward change in modifications. There there can be, you know, financial situations that impact a household. So it's important to let the colleges, you know, be aware of all of the the financial changes that may not be reflected on a financial aid application. You know, right now for spring, June '20 I'll say spring twenty twenty five high school graduates, we're using 2023 tax returns. How much can have changed in a household since 2023? A lot. So it may be necessary to file appeals. We may also wanna negotiate with the colleges and see who's willing to provide additional funding, who may provide the best. And then we also wanna look for private scholarships.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:11:55]:
So in addition to what the colleges offer, it may be possible to find private funding as well. And then lastly is gonna be student loans. Now, obviously, we wanna minimize student loans. We wanna get as much free money as possible, but student loans will be the last part of the package last part. And you wanna make sure to take out the right student loan so you get the minimal amount of interest that you'll have to pay back and, sorting through that process.
Leah Hadley [00:12:25]:
Yeah. And I really like what you said about filing appeals and really recognizing the fact that we are essentially looking back almost two years. Right? Right. Because by the time, you know, your student is starting in the fall of twenty twenty five, again, you're using those 2023 tax returns. A lot could have changed. And even for those who are already started school, letting the college know, letting the university know, even if your kids are in high schools, letting the schools know that there's been a change in your family circumstance, a lot of times they are willing to work with you. And I think not enough people recognize that because of what a lot of people will do is, well now, since this has happened, now I can't do whatever, you know, whatever I was planning to do. And, I think it's wonderful that you can have somebody like yourself who can really guide them through that appeal process.
Leah Hadley [00:13:27]:
But how often do you see that actually working out for families?
Vicki Vollweiler [00:13:31]:
I've seen it quite often. And it doesn't have to be when the student is in high school. This can be done anytime during the the the child's college career. You know, maybe parents get divorced and the student is already a college sophomore. It's it's possible then to file an appeal. And, yeah, I've had clients where we've appealed and and here, I'm just going to mention one case that, you know, it was a divorce situation and and they were able to save an additional $10,000 per semester. I mean huge. Right.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:14:04]:
Exactly. So a lot of it will depend on, you know, can I promise clients that? No. I can't promise clients that because everybody's individual financial situation is unique, but it is possible. So cert certainly good to, you know, review it and see see what can be done.
Leah Hadley [00:14:22]:
Are there things that you wish people knew when they're negotiating their divorce that you wish that they would bring to the table as it relates to college planning?
Vicki Vollweiler [00:14:32]:
Well, I wish that they would discuss college. A lot I mean, seriously, the the number of people who come to me and college was not included in their divorce agreement. Yeah. So I I'm actually working with clients now, putting together strictly related to college, memorandums of understanding because a lot of people don't have it in their original divorce agreements. And we're gonna, you know, go through everything line by line in terms of, you know, whether it's the the preparing for college, whether it's the college expenses, whether it's the additional add ons. And we're going to talk about all those and, and who's responsible for what and who's responsible for paying what. You know, it would be great if people would speak about it beforehand. I understand, you know, a lot of times, especially if if children are young, when parents divorce, you know, college is far away.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:15:30]:
People don't know what their incomes will be like in, you know, that many years or what they'll be able to save, but at least have the conversation that you're both willing to participate. You you you both wanna do what's gonna be in the best interest of your child, if they decide to go to college. You know, just acknowledge that. You know, at least acknowledge the minimum regarding college.
Leah Hadley [00:15:54]:
Yeah. It's a really important point because you're right. A lot of times when people's kids are young, and even when I'm doing financial planning with couples who have young children, you know, a lot of times I'll ask them about their higher education goals for their kids as we're working on their their full financial plan. And a lot of times that's the first time they've really taken a step back and actually thought about, oh, and sometimes one of the parents is gung ho and wants to pay, you know, for the full amount of, you know, whatever their portion of college expenses will be. And the other one is kind of like, well, I took out student loans and, you know, I'm I'm okay with them having some loans. And so when we're planning, then we kind of have that opportunity to really go through that conversation and work together to come to a joint goal. But it's difficult if you've never had the conversation to begin with, then you go through a divorce and then your kids are getting close to that time of, you know, starting to look at colleges or apply for colleges. You and your former spouse may really be on different pages.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:16:55]:
Let me just say this. You know, you brought up about student loans. And what a lot of parents don't realize is that the students, freshman year, they're only allowed to take out up to $5,500 in student loans, which depending on the college is not going to go very far.
Leah Hadley [00:17:13]:
Right.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:17:14]:
So then then what happens? Typically, it's either going to fall on the parents in terms of a parent plus loan or, you know, paying paying get cash and paying it off. Or the students will need to take out a private loan and have the parents as a cosigner. So, yes, it's very important, as much as possible to be able to save for college beforehand. Don't go and spend all the money on the pool on a pool and think, oh, well, I'll just get more in financial aid. Still better to save the money for college if you can.
Leah Hadley [00:17:47]:
Yeah. It's a really good point. I I do hear a lot from parents who are trying to kind of move assets to, make them more eligible for financial aid. And I think you're exactly right. You're
Vicki Vollweiler [00:18:01]:
It's possible to do that, but it also gonna depend on the colleges that the the students ultimately apply to for whether it will have a full effect.
Leah Hadley [00:18:11]:
Sure. Yeah. Absolutely. So, Vicki, this has been super helpful. I know that there are a lot of people who are in the same same position I am in right now looking at, you know, these, these admissions packages that are coming in the mail and all of that and trying to figure this all out. And so I think this is very timely right now, and I really appreciate you taking the time to talk with me. Where can people learn more about you and your services?
Vicki Vollweiler [00:18:38]:
Everyone can visit, college financial prep online, www.collegefinancialprep.com. And if anybody wants to reach out and send an email, you could send it to [email protected].
Leah Hadley [00:18:54]:
Terrific. And then you actually have a free video on your site, which we're gonna include a link to that is all about how to save money on the cost of college. So that's a fantastic resource that any of you who are thinking about this right now, and I would just reiterate what Vicki said, it's never too early to start thinking about it if it's important to you. Right? And so to take a look at that video because that might be really, really valuable in helping you to plan going forward.
Vicki Vollweiler [00:19:22]:
Fabulous. Thank you so much for sharing.
Leah Hadley [00:19:24]:
Oh, it's been my pleasure. And for our listeners, we'll see you next week. Thank you for joining me on Intentional Divorce Insights. It's a privilege to share this time with you. I hope each episode offers valuable guidance to navigate your journey. If you find our content helpful, please leave a review to help others discover the benefits of intentional decision making in divorce. Until next time, take care and continue to embrace your path with intention.
