Can my financial aid pay for an apartment??

Question

I am going away to college in the fall. I filled out the fafsa in feb. i put that i was living on campus. my efc was 6343. my estimated cost of attendance for the school is 14500. so i got back almost 8500 from the school with 1 3500 loan included. can i just pay tuition, books and use the rest for rent for an off campus apartment? would my refund check basically be money left in my student account after i pay for what i need? i havent made my housing deposit for the school yet b/c i think i want an apartment instead. should i make it first, then turn it down if i can get my room and board money back?

Answer 1

After the school has deducted the cost of tuition and fees, the balance will be yours to spend for living expenses - housing, food, books,  transportation, etc. If you put the deposit on your housing at the school and cancel, you will probably not given your money back. It usually is a nonrefundable. Also remember that you have taken out a student loan. You will have to repay this back someday. Please budget your expenses for your sake. The money that you are to receive will be divided between the two semesters. You will receive only half of the funds in August/September and the other half in December/January. You should also go back and update your FAFSA for the change in you housing option from on campus housing to office campus housing. I am not sure if this will effect the dollar amount,  but if you are not forthright in your application, you could effect whether you receive financial aid in the future.