Make 2020 Your Best Financial Year Yet: 8 Steps to Financial Freedom
Happy 2020! This year, military pay rose 1.3% and BAH rose for many. In total my pay will jump about $6000 from Jan 1 2016 to Jan 1 2017, mostly …
5 Tax Considerations When Selling Your Home in the Military
In the military, there are many reasons for selling your home. You can sell for any of the following reasons: relocation buying a bigger home downsizing retirement/separation because it makes …
Back to Basics – Compounding Interest
I was talking with Ryan Guina, from the Military Wallet and Cash Money Life, and asked him for advice on writing Military in Transition. He told me, “Forrest, you have a lot of detailed articles, but some folks need to know more about the basics of finance. You should write some posts on things like compounding interest, and other basic financial principles.” With that, Back to Basics was born (thanks Ryan!). Every once in a while, I will try to write an article that speaks to a basic concept in financial planning. So, with that said, below is my first piece on compounding interest (thanks again Ryan!)
My First $3000 Invested with Betterment
Ever since paying off all my student loans and auto loan in October, I’ve had an additional $1200 per month un-allocated in my budget that I’ve been meaning to start investing. …
Survivor Benefit Plan – What Does it Mean to Me?
The Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) is a fundamental part of post-military retirement planning, and there is a lot of information out there to educate people about it. Unfortunately, since it’s …
Debt Free Before 30: How We Paid Off $120,000 in 5 Years
When I started this site in April 2012, I also started tracking my net worth in a Google spreadsheet. Now I use Personal Capital to track my 6 investment accounts (spread …
How to Get $106k into Your TSP in One Year
The following is a recent email I received from a fellow Air Force captain. If you have a military related personal finance, investing, or other financial question, shoot me an …
Deployment: The Most Financially Beneficial Event of Your Life
In 2013 I deployed for the first time with my squadron to a location in Southwest Asia. It was quite an adventure. I had a lot to learn about accomplishing our …
Married Naval Officer 3 Years to Retirement Wants to Make it Count
Below is an email I received from a prior enlisted naval officer deployed somewhere in the Middle East. He’s nearing retirement and looking to see how to maximize his investments …
Army LT Buying a House with USAA Cadet Loan
I received the email below from a prior-enlisted active duty Army officer who wants to use his USAA Career Starter Loan to buy a house. Way back in 2008 I …