investing at a young age

I don't plan on using my MGIB. I plan on giving it to my future kids for college.
And I joined the reserves in sept 2011 and went active april 2013.

 

We all took the same class in basic lets not forget that unless theres others who have been in the service for a while

 

Might be a good idea for you to drop by finance and ask them why you are paying for the MGIB if you came in 2011

You can't transfer the MGIB, you will have to elect into the Post 9/11 GI Bill which is a different program. I would look into this ASAP in order to not have any further money taken out of your check for the MGIB.

 

Are you sure about this.

Found this link http://themilitarywallet.com/gi-bill-transfer-rules/

 

Part of the post 9/11 GI Bill was getting rid of the $1200 buy in. It was my understanding at it was briefed during the transfer from the MGIB to the 9/11 program that anyone who came in after 2008 would enroll in the 9/11 program. Us old farts who originally had MGIB could transfer into post 9/11 and to transfer benefits would incur a 3 year additional commitment which has now moved to 4. The 2 programs are vastly different but I know my new airman that came in and opted for the post 9/11 program did not pay the $1200 buy in. Did you get the option in basic which GI Bill you wanted?

 

I came in as a reservist then came active. didn't hear about any option at all. Reserves don't pay in to the MGIB

 

Im going to my finance office in the morning. If any of you can find out the info I need to see if I can transfer my MGIB or not. If so a way to get what I have already put into the MGIB and go with the Post 9/11 gi bill. Thanks anyone with info.

 

Here's more info on the MGIB, looks like you are automatically enrolled unless you opt out, to which you only have 3 days to do so in Basic. Looks like you're out of luck since they already started the $100/mo deduction.

http://www.military.com/education/gi-bill/gi-bill-eligibility-details.html

I have a couple of new Airmen here, and they luckily opted out of the MGIB in Basic, which if they puts them in the post 9/11 program.
http://www.military.com/education/gi-bill/new-post-911-gi-bill-overview.html

I'm guessing they aren't giving you guys good info down in Basic...figures. That or you have to know the GI Bill before hand to make an educated decision. In any regards, both programs have their plus and minuses, but if your overall intent is to transfer your benefit to future dependents, you need to opt into the post 9/11 GI Bill as the MGIB is non tranferable.

Since the VA info page is down to the goevernment shutdown, military.com has a very robust info page to help you make a decision on the GI Bill. Take a look there to help you decide which program is best for you.

http://www.military.com/education/gi-bill

 

You do realize that they can access the internet too, right?

 

Excellent. Wish I had. That being said, start with the TSP as most other service members here have suggested. Then start reading everything you can about investing.

Treat stocks like you're going to Vegas. Even the people who really know what they're doing get burned sometimes, and you don't know what you're doing. You can win big. You can lose it all.

Best of luck.

 

agree! i would just add one other PM and that would be Pb, (I'm serious). there is a lot of info out there and it can get overwhelming.
here are a couple other links:
http://www.jsmineset.com/
http://www.321gold.com/
http://www.zerohedge.com/

and for the real deep and thought provoking:
http://armstrongeconomics.com/

good luck and you are correct, not too many 18 year old think about this, i certainly didn't at that age.

 

So whats your point if they can access the internet or not? That doesn't mean they know there job

 

Very true. Service members need to research their pay and benefits (as well as everything else) and stay on top of their LES. I can't tell you how many times I've seen a Soldiers pay messed up, and the clusterf#*k involved to get it squared away is tedious at best. The pay office may not always be staffed with the best of the best.

 

Spoke to someone in the education office at my base. So I did find out that MGIB cant be transferred but post 9/11 can be. I can see why people would cancel MGIB when you save $1200 and still get 36 months covered for the post 9/11 gi bill.

 

That's what I was told also 3 years for MGIB and 1 year post 9/11 OR Post 9/11 for 3 years with no MGIB.

 

It's not about whether they're proficient at their jobs, it's about whether it's appropriate for you to call them out for it. The fact that your command could bust you for bringing discredit on the service by disparaging them on a public forum might be something to consider. See UCMJ Article 134 - General Article:

Though not specifically mentioned in this chapter, all disorders and neglects to the prejudice of good order and discipline in the armed forces, all conduct of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces, and crimes and offenses not capital, of which persons subject to this chapter may be guilty, shall be taken cognizance of by a general, special or summary court-martial, according to the nature and degree of the offense, and shall be punished at the discretion of that court.

Plus there's an old wisdom that the two people you never mess with are those that handle your food and those that handle your pay. Piss either of them off and you can end up eating a shit sandwich. Your call.

 

Utilizing resources for UCMJ proceedings against a military member for talking shit about a pay office in a truck forum... Sounds legit.

 

I'm 20 and I just starting investing in a roth account. Only have a few grand put into it, and nothing gained yet being as I opened it two months ago. But looking at all the figures as to what you can gain in x amount of years by putting in x dollars was ridiculous.

 

OP, in addition to what some of the others have said about overall diversification strategy (emergency fund, short-term, long-term, and also a Roth for retirement), at your stage you should strongly consider index funds. They've proven again and again to outperform managed funds because of their very low expense rations and very low holding turnover.

Managed funds of any sort nickle-and-dime your earnings to death through fees, and typically they still won't perform any better in the long haul. You'd do well to look at something like and SP 500 index fund (large cap), along with a small or mid cap index, and also an international or foreign index.

Also, just hold on to them. Selling and buying all the time just erodes your earnings, and remember that 8% return under 3% inflation is really on 5% realized return. When you see any of them going down, monitor it, and prepare to have cash on hand to buy more shares when it is down, if you can manage this.

You shoudn't mess with buying individual stocks unless (1) you have a lot of time to research information of not only that stock, but its entire industry sector counterparts, etc. and (2) you can afford to lose it all. And frankly, the speed of professional robo-trading now by the big houses makes it impossible to the average person to play that game.

I've found this site helpful too: http://www.investopedia.com/

Oh yeah, and if your employe has a 401k and matches yoru contributions to any level, take full advatage of that. It is one of the only tax shelters and free money opportunities left. And it is usually automatic from your payroll. You'll never miss it from your paycheck, and it will help you live within your means. In fact, a helpful hint to to aim to live below your means. It is really the only way you can get ahead financially...

 

It's not unheard of for NCIS/CID to get a phone call based on things that are said or done on a forum. Trust me.

In this case tho....Shit talking probably doesn't rise to Art 134 level. maybe a closed door talking to about being more polite and observant...but all in all - there is probably some validiity to the opinion, so there is only so much that can be done.
But the part about not messing with the folks who do your pay and your food...That part is super true.