Author Topic: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!  (Read 4850 times)

FIREball567

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$17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« on: September 28, 2018, 05:22:18 PM »
The government just paid off all my remaining student loans ($17,203) after I was approved for Teacher Loan Forgiveness! The total amount when I finished grad school was $24,300 + $6,153 of interest. In total, I paid $13,250 over 5 years.

terran

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #1 on: September 28, 2018, 07:03:11 PM »
Nice! Thanks for your service (as a teacher)! Don't forget to set aside some money to pay the extra tax if this is considered taxable income.

DoNorth

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #2 on: September 29, 2018, 08:07:34 AM »
Nice, I had that for my Veteran's Admin disability; my folks had been paying one of those loans in my name so it was a great surprise for them.

One

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #3 on: September 29, 2018, 10:50:58 AM »
Congratulations! That's great news, nice to see the tax dollars used for something positive.

Antonn Park

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #4 on: September 29, 2018, 01:42:12 PM »
Congrats! That is so awesome.

FIREball567

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #5 on: September 29, 2018, 10:12:17 PM »
Nice! Thanks for your service (as a teacher)! Don't forget to set aside some money to pay the extra tax if this is considered taxable income.

Thanks! That's a good question. I'll make sure to ask my loans provider.

rob/d

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #6 on: September 30, 2018, 07:00:08 AM »
Stop being proud of this, show a bit of humility.
You run up a debt and we  have to pay it off for you.
Want your car loan , c.c , mortgage paid off  as well ?
What if we forgive everyone's debts ?
You get what you've done right ?

MOD NOTE: Even if you had a valid point, which I have no opinion on, it's expressed quite rudely. Leaving this so we stop getting mod reports, but it looks like the other posters, below, handled this nicely. Thanks everyone!
« Last Edit: October 23, 2018, 01:29:12 PM by arebelspy »

terran

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #7 on: September 30, 2018, 08:47:39 AM »
Stop being proud of this, show a bit of humility.
You run up a debt and we  have to pay it off for you.
Want your car loan , c.c , mortgage paid off  as well ?
What if we forgive everyone's debts ?
You get what you've done right ?

I get your point if this was some program that could apply to anyone, but my understanding is that this program was specific to the OP becoming a teacher. There are lots of professions that pay a lot more than $17k over what a teacher is paid. Should the OP have felt bad for taking one of those jobs instead and paying off the loan personally instead of taking the comparatively poorly paid teaching position? Instead they took a job with a fringe benefit of debt repayment after a certain number of years of service, and they completed the agreed years of service. No shame in that.

joonifloofeefloo

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #8 on: September 30, 2018, 09:12:33 AM »
Quote
...they took a job with a fringe benefit of debt repayment after a certain number of years of service, and they completed the agreed years of service.

+1.

Well done, OP!! There are so many programs out there to balance the bizarre inequities in our systems and to balance out lower pay. You did all the steps to save this significant chunk. Excellent!

I-Ranger

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #9 on: September 30, 2018, 09:39:47 AM »







Stop being proud of this, show a bit of humility.
You run up a debt and we  have to pay it off for you.
Want your car loan , c.c , mortgage paid off  as well ?
What if we forgive everyone's debts ?
You get what you've done right ?

Agreed. I'm so sick of those fat cat teachers getting rich off the public teat. I did the math, and the extra taxes I'll have to pay to cover this greedy chalk-jockey's free ride will delay my FIRE date by 0.0000736 nanoseconds. Grrrrrr!!! While the rest of us toil away in the salt mines just to earn our daily cup of gruel, the OP will spend their summer globe-trotting in their gold-plated private jet, all but bathing in Dom and caviar, just like all teachers do. :)

Seriously though, wouldn't anyone be stupid not to take up the gov't on such an offer? I assume you use a 401k or some other tax-sheltered investment account. You entered into an agreement with society to pay your taxes, so in the name of consistency, shouldn't you put all your investments into a taxable account so the rest of us don't have to pay for your early retirement?

In the future, when you want to shame people for participating in a legal program designed to benefit society as a whole, perhaps your scorn would be better received if you chose a target other than a teacher working in a low-income school district.

pressure9pa

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #10 on: September 30, 2018, 06:10:45 PM »
1.  To the OP - most teachers' forgiveness programs are not considered taxable income.  But check it out for your specific situation.

2.  To the forum, while you're free to disagree with the policy, these programs are specifically designed for teachers in public school systems that are in poorer areas.  Higher income areas have schools that pay higher teachers salaries, so it is difficult for inner-city or rural systems to compete.  These federal programs are designed to try to level the playing field in attracting teachers.  Again, feel free to disagree with the programs, but it's not fair to pass it off as someone free-loading. 

Gyosho

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #11 on: September 30, 2018, 06:47:56 PM »
Congratulations! You earned that and believe anyone who says otherwise.

calimom

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #12 on: September 30, 2018, 09:53:37 PM »







Stop being proud of this, show a bit of humility.
You run up a debt and we  have to pay it off for you.
Want your car loan , c.c , mortgage paid off  as well ?
What if we forgive everyone's debts ?
You get what you've done right ?

Agreed. I'm so sick of those fat cat teachers getting rich off the public teat. I did the math, and the extra taxes I'll have to pay to cover this greedy chalk-jockey's free ride will delay my FIRE date by 0.0000736 nanoseconds. Grrrrrr!!! While the rest of us toil away in the salt mines just to earn our daily cup of gruel, the OP will spend their summer globe-trotting in their gold-plated private jet, all but bathing in Dom and caviar, just like all teachers do. :)

Seriously though, wouldn't anyone be stupid not to take up the gov't on such an offer? I assume you use a 401k or some other tax-sheltered investment account. You entered into an agreement with society to pay your taxes, so in the name of consistency, shouldn't you put all your investments into a taxable account so the rest of us don't have to pay for your early retirement?

In the future, when you want to shame people for participating in a legal program designed to benefit society as a whole, perhaps your scorn would be better received if you chose a target other than a teacher working in a low-income school district.

Best post ever! Thank you for your service, OP. Enjoy your debt free life; you've earned it.

Hedge_87

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #13 on: October 01, 2018, 05:46:01 AM »
congrats! My wife just sent her paperwork off for this too.

Dicey

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #14 on: October 01, 2018, 10:44:43 PM »
Stop being proud of this, show a bit of humility.
You run up a debt and we  have to pay it off for you.
Want your car loan , c.c , mortgage paid off  as well ?
What if we forgive everyone's debts ?
You get what you've done right ?
I remember when student loans were dismissable through bankruptcy.
I knew of doctors who took advantage of this loophole.
(I knew of others as well, certainly not just doctors)
These were people who stood to make gobs of money.
That's why the rules are so stringent now.

Far as I'm concerned, there was a legitimate loophole and @degrom7 fulfilled the requirements necessary to slip through it. Fuckin' A, isn't that what Mustachianism is all about?

Teachers rule!

ninja

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #15 on: October 02, 2018, 09:31:45 AM »
Way to go!

Your post made me look into programs that may exist for me as an Army Vet. Turns out as a disabled vet I might be able to get forgiveness too - just starting the process now!

Way to go! Thanks for the inspiration to look into my own situation.

thesis

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #16 on: October 02, 2018, 03:36:35 PM »
Awesome!

Yeah, don't be too surprised if you get a few haters on here. But I've heard how stressful it can be going into those debt forgiveness plans, getting close to the term end and hoping to keep one's job. Not sure if that was the case here, but I've heard it's no handout.

evanc

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #17 on: October 16, 2018, 01:05:18 PM »
Congratulations, OP!  For clarification, I'm assuming this was a local government loan forgiveness program and not the federal government flop?  You know, the program that promised loan forgiveness to public servants but has so far delivered less than 1/3 of 1% approval rate for applicants.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/27/business/student-loan-forgiveness.html

NV Teacher

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #18 on: October 16, 2018, 03:49:10 PM »
Well done OP.  I had $5000 of my loans forgiven. If I remember correctly to qualify for the $17,000 forgiveness you had work for years as a Special Education teacher working with the neediest students in a low-income school that qualifies for Title 1 funds.  Definitely a challenging job.

HPstache

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #19 on: October 16, 2018, 03:52:02 PM »
Count yourself lucky... I recently read that only 1% of PLF applicants were approved.  Still need to verify this.  Oh yes, and you're welcome.

Dicey

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #20 on: October 16, 2018, 04:16:23 PM »
Count yourself lucky... I recently read that only 1% of PLF applicants were approved.  Still need to verify this.  Oh yes, and you're welcome.
Unless I'm misunderstanding you, this is total, unnecessary snark. I will happily send you the fraction of a cent that is your "share" if that's what you're referring to.

use2betrix

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #21 on: October 16, 2018, 07:21:57 PM »







Stop being proud of this, show a bit of humility.
You run up a debt and we  have to pay it off for you.
Want your car loan , c.c , mortgage paid off  as well ?
What if we forgive everyone's debts ?
You get what you've done right ?

I could not imagine life at 54 years old being so miserable that I am clearly upset by a teacher (typically a severely under paid position) getting $17k in student loans paid off. This is a post by someone who is clearly not where they want to be in life so they take it out on everyone else.

Megma

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #22 on: October 16, 2018, 08:31:54 PM »
Good job OP!

The program exists to help teachers who are imo both under paid and under appreciated. It's not any different than talking advantage of a tax break that, for example, allows you to deduct interest on your home loan and encourage home ownership. This program likewise offers an incentive for people to go into and stay in teaching.

DS

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #23 on: October 17, 2018, 08:01:32 AM »
Count yourself lucky... I recently read that only 1% of PLF applicants were approved.  Still need to verify this.  Oh yes, and you're welcome.
Unless I'm misunderstanding you, this is total, unnecessary snark. I will happily send you the fraction of a cent that is your "share" if that's what you're referring to.

Yeah seriously, an impossible to measure percentage of a cent. v8, do you go around thanking people for your access to roads, etc that they paid for?

FIREball567

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #24 on: October 17, 2018, 08:46:21 PM »
Congratulations, OP!  For clarification, I'm assuming this was a local government loan forgiveness program and not the federal government flop?  You know, the program that promised loan forgiveness to public servants but has so far delivered less than 1/3 of 1% approval rate for applicants.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/27/business/student-loan-forgiveness.html

This was from the federal government. I spent all summer worrying about it being denied but luckily, it got approved.

FIREball567

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #25 on: October 17, 2018, 08:48:04 PM »
Well done OP.  I had $5000 of my loans forgiven. If I remember correctly to qualify for the $17,000 forgiveness you had work for years as a Special Education teacher working with the neediest students in a low-income school that qualifies for Title 1 funds.  Definitely a challenging job.

Yes special ed in a title I school. Congrats on getting $5,000 forgiven. Was this the ESL/gen ed requirement?

mm1970

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #26 on: October 18, 2018, 05:32:22 PM »
Good job OP!

The program exists to help teachers who are imo both under paid and under appreciated. It's not any different than talking advantage of a tax break that, for example, allows you to deduct interest on your home loan and encourage home ownership. This program likewise offers an incentive for people to go into and stay in teaching.


No no no it's TOTALLY different that I got to write off the interest from my mortgage, which in the first few years totaled at least $36,000 a year.  Totally different.  /s

My kids attend an elementary school that is sort of the local "magnet" for disabled students (we take transfers from all of the local school and have 23 staff members that work with the disabled), and we are also a Title I school.  I have an inkling of the difficulty of this job, and it is very much appreciated.

rebel_quietude

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #27 on: October 19, 2018, 08:59:25 AM »
Jumping in to say thank you for your service. I can't think of a role that molds our country's future more than helping young people learn how to interact with the world. Well deserved.

evanc

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #28 on: October 23, 2018, 09:11:36 AM »
Congratulations, OP!  For clarification, I'm assuming this was a local government loan forgiveness program and not the federal government flop?  You know, the program that promised loan forgiveness to public servants but has so far delivered less than 1/3 of 1% approval rate for applicants.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/27/business/student-loan-forgiveness.html

This was from the federal government. I spent all summer worrying about it being denied but luckily, it got approved.

Wow, they do exist!  Good on you. :)

ninja

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Re: $17,207 of student loans forgiven!
« Reply #29 on: November 18, 2018, 08:45:52 AM »
thanks op for the inspiration! I just had 15000 in loans forgiven as a disabled vet!