--- title: Afford a Great-Fit College | College Funding Counselor description: I help parents who earn too much for aid but still feel the sticker price shop for a great-fit college they can actually afford — and retire on time. image: https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/hubfs/cfc_home_share.png --- [![College Funding Counselor logo](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/hubfs/Color%20logo%20-%20no%20background%20-%20horiz.png)](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com) - [HOME](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com) - [TAKE THE FREE SCORECARD](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/scorecard?hsLang=en) - SERVICES - [Smart College Shopper Program](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/program?hsLang=en) - [Financial Aid Forms](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/forms?hsLang=en) - [Financial Aid Appeals](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/appeals?hsLang=en) - [BLOG](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/blog?hsLang=en) - [CONTACT](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/contact-us?hsLang=en) [FREE EBOOK](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/3-numbers-ebook?hsLang=en) # A great-fit college you can actually afford. You've got more options than anyone's told you. I help upper-middle-income parents in the donut hole — earning too much for need-based aid, still feeling every bit of the sticker price — shop for the right school at a price that works. So you retire on time, and your kid starts their career without a debt anchor. [Take the Free Scorecard - 3 Minutes](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/scorecard?hsLang=en) [See how it works](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com#framework) ![Parents and their college-bound teen](https://beehiiv-images-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/asset/file/cb94df20-67fe-4213-acf5-f15408fb0f64/kari-bjorn-photography-uLzEDeyJk44-unsplash.jpg?t=1782501758) Sound familiar? ## Most families land in my inbox stuck in the same three spots. 01 "We're building a college list and we don't know two things — what our kid actually wants, or what we can actually afford." 02 "We make too much for aid, and our kid isn't a 4.0 valedictorian. So financial aid and merit money aren't for families like us. Why bother?" 03 "The award letters are in. Now what? We can't read them, can't compare them, don't know if we can negotiate, and we have no plan for the bill." On #2 and #3? **Right, wrong.** Let me show you why. The Smart College Shopper Framework ## A numbers-first path from where you are now to a college decision you can actually afford. Three steps. Each one solves one of the three spots above — in order, the way it should be done. The Promise Send your kid to a great-fit college you can actually afford — without raiding retirement or co-signing debt. Step 1 · Solves #1 ### The Pre-Flight Check Before you tour a single campus. - Student Self-Assessment - Your College Number - SAI Estimate Step 2 · Solves #2 ### The Generosity Map Find the schools that pay — for your kid. - The Generosity Shortlist - The Four-Year Net Cost Projection - The Merit & Scholarship Profile Step 3 · Solves #3 ### The Closing Playbook Read the awards. Appeal. Pay smart. - The Award Letter Decoder - The Appeal Letter - The Four-Year Cash Flow Plan Why me ## I lived this problem before I sold the solution. Gosh, I wish I'd learned this the easy way. I didn't. My wife and I have three kids — one in 2001, twins in 2004. We didn't plan on twins. FedEx problem. Our financial planner had exactly one move: "save more in the 529." That's not a strategy. The educational consultant we hired was wonderful on essays — but when I asked about the money, she waved her hands: "Oh, I don't get into that part." That gap is the whole reason this business exists. So I went and learned it. Applied it to my own twins. Net savings: over $40,000 across four years. Then I started doing it for other families. Could you do some of this yourself? Honestly — yes. Plenty of families DIY parts of it, and I'll always tell you when something's outside my wheelhouse. But most of the parents I work with decide their time and their retirement are worth more than 40 hours of wading through contradictory advice online. ![Michael Korch with his wife and their three kids](https://beehiiv-images-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/asset/file/7d837ace-b238-415a-b0aa-6a14d81b08d4/korch-clan.JPG?t=1783793553) $27K **→ $55K** One appeal letter I wrote took a family's gift aid — free money — from $27,000 to $55,000. $0 **→ $49,217** One change to how a family filled out their aid forms took them from zero gift aid to $49,217 — in year one alone. In their words ## Families who stopped flying blind. "We appealed the offer and received an additional $6,323 in grant money — bringing the grant to almost $69,000 and leaving us with a net cost of a little over $21,000." "We are thrilled. It's very close to our budget without any loans. Given the disparity of offers we received, it's clear parents need as much information as possible to manage this process. Thanks again for all your help." — Ron K. "Just met with Michael — totally understands my family's situation in split households. Very easy to work with. 10 out of 10!" — Michael C. "Extremely helpful during what can be a stressful time. He'd get 10 stars from me if that were an option here." — M. Kent Why parents trust us ## The bridge between "save more" and "good luck." Financial advisors stop at the 529. Admissions consultants skip the money. We sit in the middle — where the real decisions get made. ### We fill a real void Most advisors only know how to save *for* college. We help you shop for it — max the aid and scholarships, keep the loans small. ### We're fiduciaries No commissions. No hidden fees. A transparent, flat fee schedule. Your family is the only client we answer to. ### We're team players We work right alongside your financial advisor, CPA, and educational consultant. No turf wars. ### No standard script Every family's numbers are different. So is every plan. You get guidance built for your situation. Start here ## Start with your numbers. Before you build a list. Before you tour a campus. Know what colleges *think* you can pay, and what you can *actually* pay — the way you'd pre-qualify before shopping for a house. Fifteen questions, about three minutes, and you'll see where your family really stands — plus the one gap worth closing first. [Take the Free Scorecard — 3 Minutes](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/scorecard?hsLang=en) Free • about 3 minutes • no sales pitch Prefer to read first? Grab the free guide: [The 3 Numbers to Know Before You Build a List](https://www.collegefundingcounselor.com/3-numbers-ebook?hsLang=en). Don't walk this path alone. 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