There are two reasons to buy life insurance. The main one is that you want to provide for someone financially in the event that you die. That doesn't seem to be the case here.

The other is that it can help with some niche situations. It can be used for tax deferrals. It can also be used to protect assets from creditors. But it is an expensive way to do those things and is generally only appropriate for very wealthy people.

But the commissions on selling life insurance, especially whole life, are very high and so insurance salespeople will jump through all sorts of hoops to convince you that you need it.

To do well financially as an employee, you have to skills employers are willing to pay for. College is one route. Learning a trade is another. In tech, many people are self-taught.

An alternative is to start your own business.

Why are you filing separately? That only makes sense in fairly uncommon situations. I suspect that is a big part of your problem.

Great answer.

Your total tax bill is your total tax bill. What was withheld during the year was an estimate based on how you filled out your withholding forms. You had too little withheld. You can increase your withholding. It won't lower how much you pay each year in taxes, but it will help you avoid a year-end surprise. Beyond that, you can try to make more money, advocate for lower taxes (and fewer government services as a result), or try to take advantage of more tax incentives.

That's because you have to pay back your loan with interest. Think about it from the perspective of the people that loaned you the money. They need to make a return on the money that you rented from them.