Good Financial Reads: For Members of the Military

Following along with the blogs of financial advisors is a great way to access valuable, educational information about finance — and it doesn’t cost you a thing! Our financial planners love to share their knowledge and help everyone regardless of age or assets.

Catch up on the latest posts with this week's roundup:

5 Financial Mistakes Service Members Make When Deploying

by John Cooney, Green and Gold Financial Planning

While part of the job when you serve in the military, deployments can be incredibly stressful.  They are stressful on the person deploying and stressful on those family members staying stateside.  Just as service members train when they are at their home base to be successful in their mission when they deploy, there are also steps they can take from a financial standpoint to prepare for deployments and to take advantage of some of the benefits only available to them when deployed.  We discuss five common financial mistakes we see from deploying or deployed service members and how you can avoid making them. 

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The Big Transition

by Patrick Ortman, Ortman Financial Planning

The most important element of your financial plan is your career. When should you leave the military and transition to civilian life? Obviously the answer is different for everyone, but here I offer some pros and cons at the three most common transition points for officers.

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Getting to know your TSP Investment Options

by John Cooney, Green and Gold Financial Planning

Hopefully, as a member of the military or an employee of the Federal government you are electing to contribute a percentage of your salary into a 401K plan.  If you aren’t, now is a great time to start.  The TSP’s low fees make it an attractive investment option, and as a bonus, if you are a FERS employee, the government also contributes a matching percentage to your account.  For members of the military, matching contributions are a component of the new Blended Retirement System going into effect in 2018.

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What the Changing Military Retirement System Means to You

by John Cooney, Green and Gold Financial Planning

I wanted to go a little more in detail on the new Blended Retirement System that the Military will be phasing in in 2018.  In Part 1, we talked about what the major differences are between the legacy “High 3” system and the BRS.  In Part 2, we will discuss who is affected by the change, the timeline for the rollout, and what decisions need to be made.

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