KateHorrell

Helping Military Families Make The Most of Their Money

When Is The Next Military Payday?


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One way to make this year great is to plan your finances, and that’s easier to do when you know when you’ll get paid. The next regular, active duty payday is Friday, 1 February 2019. When are you going to see that paycheck? Most military members will have their military pay deposited on Friday, 1 February… | Read More…

We Can’t Really Have It All


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“You can’t have it all, all at once. Who – man or woman – has it all, all at once? Over my lifespan, I think I have had it all. But in different periods of time, things were rough. And if you have a caring life partner, you help the other person when that person… | Read More…

Kate Rants: If Your Rental Is Not Making Money, Stop Saying “It’s A Good Investment”


This post may contain affiliate links, from which I may earn revenue to support this free site. All opinions are my own, and I only promote products that I use and love!

As a financial educator, and a military landlord myself, I spend a lot of time talking to military families about their rental houses. In almost all cases, these are houses that the family bought at a duty station, and then rented out when they PCSed away from the area. Maybe that was the plan all… | Read More…

New Law Will Make Tax Time Easier For Military Spouses


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The president has signed the a bill that permits military spouses to choose the legal residence of their service member without having to actually live there and fulfill the other residency requirements. S. 2248 (115th): Veterans Benefits and Transition Act of 2018 has a provision that states: “For any taxable year of the marriage, the spouse… | Read More…

How To (Maybe) Fix A Blended Retirement System Opt-In Mistake


This post may contain affiliate links, from which I may earn revenue to support this free site. All opinions are my own, and I only promote products that I use and love!

You may remember that last January, there was a flurry of concern about folks who had accidentally opted-in to the military’s new Blended Retirement System (BRS) when they were just trying to check their Leave and Earnings Statement (LES). While that particular problem seemed to have decreased as the year went on, there were other… | Read More…

Everything About Dislocation Allowance (DLA) & 2019 Rates


This post may contain affiliate links, from which I may earn revenue to support this free site. All opinions are my own, and I only promote products that I use and love!

Planning a move? Make it a smooth move with Printables to Make Your PCS Move Smooth and Organized. Dislocation Allowance (DLA) is a military allowance designed to partially reimburse service members for some of the costs incurred when relocating a household.  It is authorized for PCS moves, when ordered to move into military housing for the government’s… | Read More…

10 Things To Do During A Government Shutdown


This post may contain affiliate links, from which I may earn revenue to support this free site. All opinions are my own, and I only promote products that I use and love!

For those of you not affected by THIS shutdown, read this article so you’re not in a bind next time it happens: 12 Ways to Prepare For The Next Government Shutdown It’s happened again: Congress has failed to pass a spending bill, and part of the federal government has shut down. Unfortunately, the part that has… | Read More…

Will This 2019 Government Shutdown Affect Military Families?


This post may contain affiliate links, from which I may earn revenue to support this free site. All opinions are my own, and I only promote products that I use and love!

Current situation, 1/17: The Coast Guard did not receive pay on 1/15, and will not be paid until either a) the shutdown ends or b) a bill is passed to pay Congress. Coast Guard Retirees may not be paid on time at the end of January. With a partial government shutdown effective midnight last night,… | Read More…

BRS Interview with Doug Nordman


This post may contain affiliate links, from which I may earn revenue to support this free site. All opinions are my own, and I only promote products that I use and love!

Welp, I’ve (finally) learned how to edit video enough to make a video that starts and ends at the right place. In this video, I talk to Doug Nordman about the military’s new Blended Retirement System (BRS). Doug is the author of The Military Guide to Financial Independence and Early Retirement, the founder of The… | Read More…

BAH Rate Protection (or The Grandfather Clause)


This post may contain affiliate links, from which I may earn revenue to support this free site. All opinions are my own, and I only promote products that I use and love!

As the Department of Defense (DoD) released their 2019 BAH rates, this is a perfect time to review BAH rate protection, or “the grandfather clause.” Each year, the DoD does a thorough study of the actual costs to rent a house in each military housing area. They use that information to adjust BAH, with some… | Read More…

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Disclaimer

Kate does not represent the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs, or any government agency. This blog is strictly for informational and entertainment purposes only. The content on this site should not be considered professional financial or legal advice. I may receive compensation through affiliate or advertising relationships from products mentioned on this site. All reviews on this site represent the personal opinions of the author. All references to third party products, rates, and offers may change without notice.