Mergath Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Two hours of my life and twenty dollars in fees that Taxslayer charged me, all so the government can take every penny of our money to put toward the student loans we can't afford to pay until dh finds a full-time job. There's just something wrong with having to pay someone so the government can take your money. :glare: I'm not anti-government by any means, but at the moment, I am seriously irked. :mad: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FO4UR Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cindergretta Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 So they garnished your return??? Ugh. :grouphug: That seriously stinks. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 I'm sorry! Student loans were designed for an economy with jobs. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NatashainDFW Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Are you in default? If so have you considered a direct consolidated loan so this doesn't happen again? My husband and I actually completed ours around tax time two years ago so we didn't lose our return plus it helped get us back on track Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caitilin Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 That stinks. So sorry, Mergath.:grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillary in KS Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 You got someone to do your taxes for only $20? That's impressive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted March 19, 2011 Author Share Posted March 19, 2011 Are you in default? If so have you considered a direct consolidated loan so this doesn't happen again? My husband and I actually completed ours around tax time two years ago so we didn't lose our return plus it helped get us back on track I didn't know you could consolidate student loans, since you have to deal with so many companies and government agencies. I'll have to look into that, thanks. Yep, we've been in default for as long as dh has been unemployed. At this point, even twenty dollars a month is impossible for us. We give every penny we have for rent, and even then we're always behind. I've been literally saving my pennies and nickels in a jar to buy homeschool supplies from the thrift store. Would have been nice to get some kind of return. I'm sure our landlord would love to get all the rent on the first at some point. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted March 19, 2011 Author Share Posted March 19, 2011 You got someone to do your taxes for only $20? That's impressive! Oh no, I did them myself. They charged me twenty bucks just for the privilege of efiling them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gooblink Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Since being self-employed I've come to loathe the IRS. We've had money deducted from our account with no explanation. Always some fee, some penalty...sucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted March 19, 2011 Author Share Posted March 19, 2011 So they garnished your return??? Ugh. :grouphug: That seriously stinks. :glare: From what I've seen online, they're doing it to a lot of people this year. Once you're in default, all a company has to do is flag your account, and the government takes every penny. Oh well. At least they've abolished debter's prison. With my stack of student loans, I'd be there for the rest of my natural life, using my well-educated mind to count the bricks in the wall. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted March 19, 2011 Author Share Posted March 19, 2011 Thanks for the warm thoughts, everyone. It's just so frustrating... if we had enough to pay for basic necessities, I would just roll my eyes and get on with my life. But when you're constantly a few dollars away from eviction, it would be nice if they'd let you keep at least a little bit of your return. At least it's finally getting warmer. That'll make it easier when we have to live in a van down by the river. Or rather, my beat-up Focus with the deer imprint in the hood. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joy at Home Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Thanks for the warm thoughts, everyone. It's just so frustrating... if we had enough to pay for basic necessities, I would just roll my eyes and get on with my life. But when you're constantly a few dollars away from eviction, it would be nice if they'd let you keep at least a little bit of your return. At least it's finally getting warmer. That'll make it easier when we have to live in a van down by the river. Or rather, my beat-up Focus with the deer imprint in the hood. :tongue_smilie: :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Rat Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Sounds like it's time to have an "I hate the I R S" party, Mergath. No, really. My friends used to have one every year around this time. It's a potluck because the host can't afford to host the party. :) Makes it a little easier to swallow. Only a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tohru Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Bummer! Have you checked out this site? If the reason you are in default is because your husband is unemployed, could you request a deferment? And the Income-Based-Repayment plans are also new: "The IBR Plan bases your monthly payment on your yearly income and you must have a partial financial hardship to enroll." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silliness7 Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 I didn't know you could consolidate student loans, since you have to deal with so many companies and government agencies. I'll have to look into that, thanks. Yep, we've been in default for as long as dh has been unemployed. At this point, even twenty dollars a month is impossible for us. We give every penny we have for rent, and even then we're always behind. I've been literally saving my pennies and nickels in a jar to buy homeschool supplies from the thrift store. Would have been nice to get some kind of return. I'm sure our landlord would love to get all the rent on the first at some point. :glare: When my dh was unemployed we had our student loan deferred. It did accrue a small amount of interest but it was better than defaulting. Have you looked into deferment? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GWOB Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 :grouphug: I am really sorry you are suffering at this time. That just bites. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k2bdeutmeyer Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 We are on an IBR right now for my student loans and our income put our current payments at......$0!! If after so many years there is a remaining balance, they will just write it off. The only catch is that in that year you have to claim whatever they write off as income. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samiam Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Is any of the income yours? If you made any of the income, then you can file an "injured spouse" form 8379, and then they will give you back your portion of the return (they do some confangled formula to figure out how much of the return is yours and how much is his). It takes 11 weeks for them to process the form but you will get some refund back. YOU are not held responsible for your spouse's student loans. Ask me how I know. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samiam Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Oh, also, in order for anyone to qualify for deferrment or income-based reduced payments, you have to NOT be defaulted. So you have to get out of default, and THEN they will work on deferring it. Again, ask me how I know...;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 I am so sorry. I am hoping better days are ahead for you all. And when they are, you can ask to have the loan rehabilitated and then you can consolidate. We did that process years ago and I am so glad we did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joy at Home Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Bummer! Have you checked out this site? If the reason you are in default is because your husband is unemployed, could you request a deferment? And the Income-Based-Repayment plans are also new: "The IBR Plan bases your monthly payment on your yearly income and you must have a partial financial hardship to enroll." Unfortuntely, I think once you are in default all this is off the table. I've been using deferments this year on my loans, but I think once it's defaulted it can be difficult to have the collector agree to payments, no less deferments. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tohru Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Unfortuntely, I think once you are in default all this is off the table. I've been using deferments this year on my loans, but I think once it's defaulted it can be difficult to have the collector agree to payments, no less deferments. Lisa Yes, however I thought that if she can get them consolidated all through the government website, thus taking them away from the private loaners, than IBR/deferment would work? I watched a documentary about student loans awhile ago and that seemed like it was an option for some of the people that were in serious default. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted March 19, 2011 Author Share Posted March 19, 2011 Yes, since we are in default, all those helpful options are off the table, as someone said. However, we're definitely going to look into consolidation. Then maybe next year we can actually get our return. Thanks for the ideas, everyone! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samiam Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Yes, however I thought that if she can get them consolidated all through the government website, thus taking them away from the private loaners, than IBR/deferment would work? I watched a documentary about student loans awhile ago and that seemed like it was an option for some of the people that were in serious default. We were in similiar situation,DH was default on his loans before we even knew since MIL was supposed to be paying. Once we found out, we could not afford to pay them ourselves. He was default for about two years. Once we were able to put some $$ towards it, we had to contact the collector themselves. The Government programs would not let us deferr, consolidate or anything else until it was out of the collector's hands. We paid $100 to the collector's for 8 months...then they put it back into the Governments hands' and THEN we were able apply for deferment. (Apparently this works a bit different than most "collections" which would have never went back to the original company but remained in collections until you paid it off. I assume because it is a government thing that is why we were able to get it out of collections/default and back into the regular program. I also assume the collections for student loans is also some sort of actual government office, not a private company....I don't remember off hand as this was about 4 years ago we dealt with this). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBasil Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 :grouphug: I am sorry you're dealing with this and I'm sad that they can garnish the entire return of a family who needs it over a student loan. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nestof3 Posted March 19, 2011 Share Posted March 19, 2011 Since being self-employed I've come to loathe the IRS. We've had money deducted from our account with no explanation. Always some fee, some penalty...sucks. Really? We've been self-employed for 18 years and only had excellent correspondence from the govt. Now, I know what you mean about self-employed and taxes, but the communication-side has been wonderful in our experience. My husband used to get bills and notices when he didn't file things on time, but since I took over the paperwork, things have run smoothly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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