Top Law Schools

Kohinoor wrote:So... anyone considering defecting to whichever political party would tax them least in 3 years?

I did that last year. >.>

Kohinoor wrote:So... anyone considering defecting to whichever political party would tax them least in 3 years?

Because this is an anonymous board I'll go as far as to say that I'm tempted, but ultimately no.

paratactical wrote:
Thanks! I'm making $40k + OT and I've paid of 3/4 of my UG student loans and I will have enough by the time I get ready to go to LS to put a down payment on a house. (I'm applying in the fall, class of '13)

I bought my first house before I even graduated UG(I worked full-time through UG). I didn't live a typical college lifestyle and was in a good position to do it. No my house isn't 5000 sq. ft. and it didn't cost me 300k. I bought a foreclosure that needs quite a decent amount of restoration, but my mortgage is cheaper than most my friends are paying in rent. I still have UG loans, more than the average person according to statistics. I guess my point that I'm trying to make is...for a first time house...it's definitely not the greatest most fantastic thing in the world but I totally think it was worth buying. Also, I live in a secondary legal market, and I make a lot less than the attorneys who work here do. I can't speak as much for DC or NYC or SF but in the secondary markets, I would definitely think it's possible to buy a house and pay down loans in a relatively short period of time. Maybe not 3 years... but 5 would be doable, and then have a house paid off another 5 or so years after that as well.

In a different thread someone claimed it was possible to pay back in 3 years in LA which I said it pretty impossible. I think 5 years is doable, but how many people actually last 5 years in biglaw...

Kohinoor wrote:So... anyone considering defecting to whichever political party would tax them least in 3 years?

I changed my address on my voter registration today and stayed unaffiliated. Unaffiliated will never raise my taxes.

I'm a young man. As long as the Republicans believe in running enormous deficits, their tax cutting ways won't sway me. I'll still be around when that bill comes due.

Foreign policy is the most important issue every four years. Period. Everything else is ancilliary. And, unfortunately, both parties are equally capable of royally fucking things up, so have to do our homework.

paratactical wrote:

Lxw wrote:

paratactical wrote:Thanks! I'm making $40k + OT and I've paid of 3/4 of my UG student loans and I will have enough by the time I get ready to go to LS to put a down payment on a house. (I'm applying in the fall, class of '13)

*shrug* Growing up pretty darn poor makes you good at managing money? I dunno. I feel spectactularly rich right now the way I'm living. I go out when and where I want. I buy my friends drinks and can take people out to dinner. I took my parents to Luger's when they came to visit. I feel like I live really luxouriously.

+1

I came out with these numbers playing around with different calculators:

Debt
1L $47,500 ($20,500 Stafford, $2,500 Perkins, $24,500 Grad PLUS)
-------1L Summer: $3,000/week for 10 weeks=$30,000-taxes=$18,590-living expenses=$14,600 savings
2L $33,400 ($20,500 Stafford, $2,500 Perkins, $10,400 Grad PLUS)
-------2L Summer: $3,000/week for 10 weeks=$30,000-taxes=$18,590-living expenses=$14,600 savings
3L $43,400 ($20,500 Stafford, $2,500 Perkins, $20,400 Grad PLUS)
Total of $124,300

Salary
$160,000
After Taxes $95,821.56

3 Years
$61,500 @ 6.8 % $1,893.32
$7,500 @ 5.0% $224.78
$55,300 @ 8.5% $1,818.42

Monthly Payment of $3,936.42
Annual Payment of $47,238.24

Disposable Income After Taxes and Loan Payments $48,583.32

Living off of $48,000 is really not that frugal.. Granted, my debt won't be $200,000, but it seems to be perfectly doable.

^^^ You'll want to add on origination fees of 2.5-3% for the GradPlus. And remove your 1L summer earnings.

Aeroplane wrote:^^^ You'll want to add on origination fees of 2.5-3% for the GradPlus. And remove your 1L summer earnings.

Origination fees are taken directly from the loan once it is dispersed.

And I think that I will be able to land a 1L job, and I am only saying this because I am an SEO intern this summer working for a top firm. Typically, interns get asked to come back their 1L summer. If that doesn't pan out, having a top firm on my resume will make it more likely I can land a firm job elsewhere. I'm aware that this situation isn't typical though.

Kohinoor wrote:So... anyone considering defecting to whichever political party would tax them least in 3 years?

Someone in this thread also said:

trojans09 wrote:With this new administration people in BigLaw will likely be taxed at at least 50%.

You guys weren't specific about what you mean, but I just want to make sure we are all on the same page here. The current administration has not yet passed any tax increases. They have passed some one year tax cuts and credits, some of which would affect BigLaw associates (such as the AMT patch).

The Obama administration has proposed letting the Bush tax cuts expire, increasing the top marginal tax rates by about 3%. This would increase taxes for people making more than approximately $200,000 single or $250,000 joint filers. If you are single and earn a nice bonus, it is true that this tax increase could apply to you as BigLaw associate--but make sure you know what "marginal tax rates" are. Your income below the $200,000 would be taxed exactly the same. Only the income above $200,000 would be taxed at the new rate. This means that the tax increase would be pretty negligible for BigLaw associates, though it obviously varies if you get huge bonuses and raises.

The Obama administration has also proposed limiting itemized deductions for the same group, reducing them to the deductions allowed for the 28% bracket.

Now, it is true that a BigLaw associate will pay nearly 50% in taxes. This isn't because of anything the current administration has done, however, just adding in all the kinds of taxes people pay--not only federal income tax, but state and local, sales tax, and social security/medicare.

If you are curious for more details, here is a link from the NY Times about Obama's proposed tax increases.