Financial advice for a young military man.

How to get rich...when showering, shampoo hair, lather, rinse, don't repeat. Small things make a huge impact over time.

 

Brunes may be right about that but you also should look at the long run. My parents have been with them for over 30 years and the rates can't be beat by anyone. So even if it's a couple dollars more at the start you may still save money in the long run.

I only pay $92 a month for my truck. Everywhere else I looked was around $200 a month

 

USAA was way expensive for me car insurance wise. I used them for renters and now a few years later, they we're the most inexpensive option for car insurance.

Save money, build credit. Use a CC for all your bills and expenses and pay it off monthly, in full. Get a rewards card WITH NO ANNUAL FEE. you are "making" money with the money you'd spend either way. Think of it as a rebate. I use my Navy Federal points for NFCU gift cards and use them for gas.

Add money into your Thrift Savings plan, start at like 5% base pay, then as you advance in pay grade/time in service bump up the percentage of your base pay you contribute.

 

Hmm. I dont have hair at all so this should work out nicely for me.

So this was a counter-arguement for Brune's post correct?

If anything, i'll follow up his advice and get some rates around my area and compare them with USAA, by thursday i should have an idea which one will best suit my needs the best.

 

^^ Wow. You're going to be a multi-millionaire.

 

Ehh sorta not really. I completely agree you should shop around before making a final decision. I'm only going with USAA because I get a good discount for having been with them for several years already.

 

Live on the least amount of money as possible. Stash away as much as possible. That will afford you the ability to invest and grow your assets and live a life that most people can only dream of. Join Navy Federal and USAA and they will take care of you for life. Don't buy stupid things that have no meaning. You have the perfect situation. Take advantage of it.

 

Not sure if it was already covered, but this is BS. You do not have to complete infantry (or any specific career field) in order to get the Post 9/11 GI Bill. You must complete 3 years service for the 100% coverage level (coverage kicks in at lower levels at 90 days IIRC), but your time only counts AFTER your commitment incurred for getting your degree (usually 5 years service academy, 4 years ROTC). Once you complete 6 years active duty, you can sign up for 4 more years of service so you can transfer your benefits to dependents (i.e. children & spouse)

For example: commissioned in 2007, owe 5 years service for school, time only counts for GI Bill starting in 2012, hit "full" coverage in 2015. Able to volunteer for 4 more years in 2013 in order to transfer benefits. If taking those 4 years, must stay in until 2017.

It sounds to me like you got fed a recruiter line of BS about infantry. If you don't want to do infantry, don't sign up for it! In my career field they are "critical-short-manned" meaning I cannot get another job type no-matter-what. Consider that infantry officers have the highest attrition rates in the armed forces. In my experience *OPINION* it's always best to apply for the hardest to get into career you qualify for. */OPINION*

What program are you in that you do basic first?

EDIT: I see, the guard eh? Have they talked about whether or not you are eligible to deploy during your college time? Or if your commission will be into the guard or active duty? Worthwhile questions to ask...

 

Depends on where you live too, USAA auto insurance is 1/2-1/3 of the price of all the local competition here in FL (for my situation obviously).

USAA auto loans on the other hand wanted an insane 12%, whereas the next closest I checked with wanted 4.5%... I skipped USAA on that one.

 

sweet huh?

Shop around before i commit to anything, just like anything else in life.

If the future incentives outweigh the initial cost then i'll bite the bullet in that case if my situation is similar to your own.

This bit here is what is tricky.

 

I commission with the guard, that was the agreement with me taking the GFRD(Guaranteed Federal Reserve Duty), Im going to SMP with my Army ROTC program, making me virtually unable to deploy as there will not be enough time between school (~3 month summer break) to actually deploy and come back for school again in the fall, i dont plan on missing a semester of school for any reason, i have to finish my degree first before other stuff come along.

I have to spend 4 years post-college with the guard.

There is no program that required basic, I'm doing it simply to make some more money, gain a new experience for myself, and to get some incentives along the way. The other reason i decided to take up infantry is because even if i decided to do split-ops(basic one summer/AIT the next), i wouldnt have time then to finish the school for the MOS i want(~20 weeks), i have about a 15 week window to get anything done in the summer, i wanted to pick something that could get done within that window and Infantry gave me that. I will change MOS(not a guarantee im sure of this) when i become an officer so the Infantry experience while in college will be nothing but beneficial to me.

 

Same as pretty much everyone else, just tuck money away. Either a private Roth IRA or do the thrift savings plan, traditional or Roth people have opinions for both. I tell every boot at least get 5% in there. I think I did 10% out of boot and went to 15% right before I made E5, slow process but it's something.

College is different though, my first couple months in I was buying a lot of dumb stuff. Stuff I still have and I'm glad I have but we're talking $500+ a month for non-essentials (thank you BAH!) Just keep your head above water. Like everyone else said the mere fact that you are thinking about it is a huge step in the right direction!

 

Awesome! I'd still ask about the deployments, as one of my friends deployed with the guard his junior year, pulling him from class, effectively pushing back his commissioning date a year... I'm sure it all depends on the language in your contract. Also, everything I wrote on GI bill applies to active duty, I'm unsure as to how it applies to guard

 

You know the DoD is going to decided in July if military members will still be able to transfer their GI Bill to their dependants... just something to think about.

 

I wont be able to deploy while in college.
:/ well so much for that nice chunk of change.

Wow... well then, if this goes the direction i dont want it to go in i'll just get the GI bill(100% coverage eventually) and just use that joker to build my investments if i cant transfer it.

EDIT:

Not a bad idea with the rewards card thing. If i'm going to spend that money anyway to live may as well build some credit at the same time.

5% in some type of investment
10% in savings.

Work from there is what i'll do.

 

I wouldnt be able to do that with my particular scholarship so idk, i'll just be working toward it and eventually when i can use it, i'll have to figure out some way of using it efficiently

 

Your on the right track just because you are thinking about it and concerned at such an early stage. As previously mentioned by someone....time is your friend w/ compound interest, even if your only saving away a little you can amass great wealth this way vs waiting till your older and then trying to play catch up.
Becoming financially successful and ensuring a comfortable retirement takes a lot of investigating (google is your friend) and steadfast discipline. It basically boils down to trying to maximize as much money as you can get coming IN and minimize the money you have going OUT. Examples; be the BEST worker you can be, everyday, to get promoted as quick as possible (civilian or military job) because that's more $ coming in. In my case I applied for Combat Related Special Compensation (CRSC), if approved that will be more $ coming in for me. Take a hard look at all outgoing $, many places offer military discounts that they don't always mention up front, so don't be afraid to ask. Verizon offers a gov't employee discount, apple store offers military discount as well as Lowes, home depot, sandals resorts, and countless others. I "bundle" all my insurance needs (homeowners, car, personal property) w/ USAA and it saved me money. State of TN offers disabled vets assistance/waiver on their property taxes by simply going to tax office and submitting an application. I also have a free lifetime TN hunting & fishing license as a disabled vet. INVESTIGATE and talk to other military members in your state to take advantage off all the savings your entitled to!
Ok I'm ending my rant w/ this last thing......there are many personal home finance programs out there you can buy but I came up w/ my own on a excel spreadsheet that I list all my bills(w/ total bal, APR, monthly payment, due date), utilities, and income. I list all paychecks for myself and wife for 2-3 months out w/ what bills/utilities get paid w/ that paycheck. At a quick glance I can see everything going on w/ my money in an easy format that I designed.
Good luck !!

 

So on top of what i've read, i've also got to make a graph to see exactly where my money is going and manipulate it to work in my favor so i know where i want it to go.

Gotcha!

 

not necessarily that you "have to".....I'm just saying that it really helps me best manage MY finances, it is my recommendation but you just have to find what works best for you.

 

Alright. Well it seems i've got alot on my plate to deal with but i'll get it all done, in pieces anyway.