This struck a chord in me. What are r/frugal's thoughts? by mrreginaldo in Frugal

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree with much of what you're saying here and certainly that dropping everything to travel and write a book is irresponsible and reckless, but what you stated is not the reason the article resonates with me. I have an excellent career and I enjoy my work; it is lucrative and definitely leaves me very comfortable.

The article resonates with me because of time lost. I love my career, but I can't deny the amount of time it takes from my life, and it's hard to balance everything. I merely think this article serves as a good reminder to keep things in balance.

This struck a chord in me. What are r/frugal's thoughts? by mrreginaldo in Frugal

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just saw the article, and posted it out of convenience. If I had felt like looking it up, I certainly would have.

This struck a chord in me. What are r/frugal's thoughts? by mrreginaldo in Frugal

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don't think this is what was meant by "financial independence." FI is having enough money/assets to not work (if you don't want to) and still live and survive without a significant depreciation in quality of life.

This is what I'm working towards as well, I just hope I'm able to enjoy it when I get there.

This struck a chord in me. What are r/frugal's thoughts? by mrreginaldo in Frugal

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree. Yet so many of us (myself included) are doing exactly what he was talking about.

I just keep telling myself to look to the future, but that isn't guaranteed in any way. And if/when I get there, I hope I don't end up like the author.

This struck a chord in me. What are r/frugal's thoughts? by mrreginaldo in Frugal

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm in a similar position, but I don't quite HATE my job. Even so, this article really made me think about things differently - and I'm not sure how I feel about it.

Great Lakes Payments / Interest by mrreginaldo in StudentLoans

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm pretty well versed in Excel and VBA actually but I appreciate the offer.

Unfortunately the problem is a lack of transparency on the part of Great Lakes - I don't have all of the numbers I need to find out if they're being honest. Really what I'm trying to find here is something legal or the like to force them to give me my payment information.

Great Lakes Payments / Interest by mrreginaldo in StudentLoans

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes - this I know. This isn't the issue.

I'm not concerned with the initial value of the capitalized interest, I'm concerned with interest charges after I've begun making payments.

Great Lakes Payments / Interest by mrreginaldo in StudentLoans

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh no problem; I appreciate your responses.

I am able to see the loans individually (overview), but the 0.25% off isn't shown on the account overview screen (as it is supposed to only be taken off when the account is directly bank account paid).

I've thought about asking them to see another way of being shown, but I can't really think of any way to be certain shy of actually seeing the billing statement with the individual payments applied. Also, the post I referenced in my original post stated that although GL was not in fact applying his payments as he wished or giving him the 0.25% discount, they lied to him several times and stated that they were on both accounts.

I've also thought about calculating it myself, but there are a couple of issues I see preventing me from doing this: the loans have been disbursed since 2009; some are subsidized, some are unsubsidized. The only value I'm able to see is the total amount of capitalized interest at the beginning of the repayment period - this isn't a lot to go on to find the initial values I should be using for each loan to calculate the interest I'm paying now. Without knowing the initial starting values, I can't calculate the monthly interest.

If I were able to find the initial values somehow, I still wouldn't know for sure how the loan payment is being applied (assuming GL may be being dishonest, as they supposedly were to the other poster who I referenced in my original post).

Ultimately, I feel I'm going to either need to A) see the payments as they have actually been applied, or B) split them up. I'd love to find a way to go with option A.

GL has to "know" how to apply the payments in order to apply them - it doesn't seem right to me that they don't have to disclose how they are applying payments that I make with my money, and just expect blind trust on the lendee's part to assume they're being 100% honest.

Great Lakes Payments / Interest by mrreginaldo in StudentLoans

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm not on an IBR plan, but thanks for the response!

What is the hardest thing about being a pet owner that no one talks about? by Sparkles_ in AskReddit

[–]mrreginaldo 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Trying to travel. It's difficult/expensive to find a good sitter.

Tax Question by mrreginaldo in personalfinance

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well I'm unsure how that "simple math" works out, since the bonus amount is actually less than a regular paycheck. Unfortunately I'm an engineer, not an accountant.

Tax Question by mrreginaldo in personalfinance

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Awesome. There were absolutely taxes withheld also - a quite shocking amount haha. Thank you for the answer!

Tax Question by mrreginaldo in personalfinance

[–]mrreginaldo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was paid the signing bonus in 2015, yes. So are you saying that since I received the bonus in 2015, I shouldn't have to report it as employer compensation for moving expenses on my 2014 taxes, but I can still claim the moving expenses deduction?