Car owned by parents

[es888w]

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Hi, I can't afford to pay for a car in PT school. Just got accepted, and will have to move out-of-state. My parents has a spare car they can let me drive. I will be in a different state than my parents. Is this OK? They cannot help me with any finances, I have to get loans on my own. My questions are:
1) Can my parents continue to insure the car and title the car under their name, and let me drive it even though I am a graduate independent student?
2) will it jeopardize my independent student status to drive a car owned by my parents?
3) will insurance companies raise hell if I am driving the car in another state while not being a dependent on my parents' income tax?
4) do I have to disclose to the schools that I have an old car lent to me by my parents? will this affect my financial aid status?

5) Also, how long can I drive a car with out-of-state registration while in PT school? Sorry I have never been out of state before. My college experience has been in-state. Thanks! I would be grateful to have some feedback from medical students that have been down this route.

 

[Bad0 Fish0]

I can't help you with most of these questions, but I can say this (somewhat regarding #5). I'm not sure how this works for every state, and maybe Alabama is more lenient than other states, but I remember something the chair of the PT dept said to us the day we interviewed. He was telling anyone in the group who was from out of state what to do as soon as they find out they're admitted in order to get in-state tuition. The process really only takes about a day. Out of state students were able to get an AL drivers license, a checking account, a library card, a tag, and reapply for instate tuition. For those still on their parents' insurance, it was slightly more complicated to get around keeping their tag.. they started "businesses". It's worth the $50 business license fee in the long run to start up some BS service (people did tutoring, lawn care, etc) for the money you will save getting out of state tuition waved (about half). This may be completely irrelevant for you, but it's something worth looking into in order to try and get in-state tuition and keep your tag at the same time. You may end up having to get a new license and tag, though, for whatever state you move to.. you need to talk to your insurance company. However, I don't see it jeopardizing your independent student status in any way. Hopefully someone can help you more than I can.

 

[es888w]

Once you start the program, in VA, it's almost impossible to become resident, according to several posts in this forum. Some people said they even bought real estate, voted in local elections, registered their car and insure them in the state, etc. The only way is to move to VA first, work for one year then start school. So I am not going to even try (I am moving to VA). Because of this, I just want to use my parents' spare car until I can buy my own.

Does anyone know if I need a car right away within the first year of DPT? I am thinking a car will become necessary when I have to drive to hospitals to do clinical rotation, but the first year, I should have my courses on campus. Am I mistaken?

Thank you for all feedback so far and I really appreciate your input.

 

[SunyFB]

I think your independent status is based on if your family files you as a dependent on their taxes or not..