JCG made me chuckle... Just remember your definition of "need" will not be the same as the college's definition of your need. I told my middle son's school last year they were off by a magnitude of at least 5 in what "extra" grant money they offered ($1K) after I complained their numbers were absurdly low. Their response - well either you choose to figure out a way to pay or drop out. Remember - they are not the coaches and once they have you there - well they've got you...
When you visit - pay attention - are they remodeling? A lot? Does the tour guide talk about all the new facilities and the such? How is that funded? Assume they aren't putting that money towards making sure incoming students get more finaid. Ask to set up a visit with someone in financial aid. When you see your first FAFSA results and the "Expected Family Contribution" (EFC) - you will wonder where *that* will come from and how it can be such a large number. The shock wears off eventually. Some schools will very strictly follow the EFC - it's something you should be able to ask about though.
While ED is "binding" - the only way out is that you cannot make the financial numbers work; however, you find out *way too late*... And by that time your child is really looking forward to going. Going through the process again is painful...
One other factor to consider - the "earlier" you decide the more likely it is you may get "some sort" of aid. Once it runs out, well it's not like they're going back to the first 1000 and lowering their numbers just because you need a bit extra...
If you find a school that also wants a CSS/Profile a/k/a the Colonoscopy of your finances - have fun with that too. Digging out two years of history... For some ED schools this needs to be done within a couple weeks of the ED acceptance.
Yes the CSS profile is Lots of "Fun". I dealt quite a bit with my sons, number 3 choice school and my sons request was escalated up the chain to until I was talking to a financial aid officer higher up the food chain. He really wanted my son to go there. He was a baseball fan and the team really was looking for lefty pitchers. Alas even there best offer was well above our EFC. In talking to the very nice gentleman, he admitted that not many students in my sons, socio-economic class usually attended that school. We made too much to get enough need based aid, and we did not make enough to afford the yearly tuition. In fact only one school offered to meet our EFC.