KateHorrell - Page 3 of 24 - Helping Military Families Make The Most of Their Money

Kate Rants: It’s Not About The Refund or Owing More Taxes

8 March 2019

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!

Oh, my goodness. You spend 2 minutes communicating with anyone lately, whether in person, on the phone, via owl, or on the internet, and the talk turns to income taxes. Everyone has a story this year, and they want to share. It’s not surprising; the sweeping legislation commonly called The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act… | Read More…

Travel Allowances for Military Moves

6 March 2019

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!

The entitlements that come with military Permanent Change of Station (PCS) moves are confusing. In addition to the movement of household goods, Dislocation Allowance (DLA), and Temporary Lodging Expense (TLE) and/or Temporary Lodging Allowance (TLA), most PCS moves are authorized travel allowances to drive from the old duty station to the new duty station. Monetary… | Read More…

Ten Ways To Make Savings Automatic

26 February 2019

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!

We’re back on day 2 of Military Saves Week, and today’s subject is saving automatically. There is no doubt that automatic savings work, but sometimes finding the right automatic savings method can be hard. See if any of these ideas work for you: Skim Off The Top Look at the usual amount of your paychecks,… | Read More…

Ten Steps To Save With A Plan

25 February 2019

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!

Today is the first day of Military Saves Week 2019. If you’re not familiar with Military Saves Week, it is an education and awareness event to encourage military families to save money. It’s part of the larger America Saves program. This week, the first day’s subject is Save With A Plan. Planning makes everything easier!… | Read More…

How Income Taxes Work – Even If You’re Not A Tax Person

23 February 2019

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!

Income taxes can be difficult. There are literally thousands of pages of laws, and hundreds of different forms that some people have to use to file their income tax return. However, the basic system isn’t really that complicated. The Budget Billing Analogy Before I explain the income tax system, let me explain something very similar:… | Read More…

Maintaining All Your Stuff In One State: Why It Matters Now More Than Ever

20 February 2019

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!

Legal offices and financial counselors have been saying it for years: try to be consistent in demonstrating your state of legal residence. And there are always some military service members and family members who insist that it doesn’t matter, that no one has ever challenged them, and that the legal and financial folks are just… | Read More…

Blue Star Family Survey : Spouse Employment Is Important

6 February 2019

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!

While you’re reading this, I’m on my way to the official release of the Blue Star Families annual survey of military families. While I’ve only seen the highlights (more to come!), the one piece that jumped out at me is that 70% of military millennials think that two incomes are vital to a family’s well-being…. | Read More…

What’s Your GI Bill Strategy?

30 January 2019

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Families across the country are knee deep in figuring out the best way to pay for college for their now-seniors, and the GI Bill is part of many of those conversations. Being able to transfer the Post 9/11 GI Bill to a kid is a huge benefit. When you have more than one child (we… | Read More…

2018 Tax Issues For Military Families

25 January 2019

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!

This morning, I had the pleasure of sitting in, via telephone, on a conversation about the biggest tax changes affecting military families and veterans. The primary speaker was LTC David Dulaney, Executive Director of the Armed Forces Tax Council. The Armed Forces Tax Council advises the Department of Defense (DoD) on taxes issues that affect… | Read More…

What Military Moving Expenses are Tax-Deductible?

21 January 2019

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!

PCS moves are expensive. Even with all the allowances, you’ll sometimes have some out-of-pocket expenses, especially if you have pets. Thankfully, unreimbursed moving expenses can be deducted from your income taxes, and they’re a most valuable type of deduction. Disclaimer: I am not a tax professional. Do not make any decisions based solely on the… | Read More…

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