KateHorrell

Helping Military Families Make The Most of Their Money

The Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) “Payback” Period


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Learning about SBP? You definitely want to read Everything About The Survivor Benefit Plan and 10+ Places To Learn About The Survivor Benefit Plan. One of the common complaints about SBP is that the survivor will never live long enough to get back “all that money” that they’ve paid into the program. The math just doesn’t support that… | Read More…

Life Insurance or SBP? Asking The Right Questions


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!

At least once a day, someone asks me some variation of the same question: “I’m trying to decide whether to get life insurance or take the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP.) What do you think?” And at least once a day, I type out a multi-paragraph answer. And honestly I don’t have that much time every… | Read More…

From The Mailbag: SBP When You Marry After Retirement


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!

Want to chat with other military folks about our financial challenges?  Join the Military Money Questions and Answers Facebook Group The Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) can be an important part of the income strategy for survivors of military retirees, even survivors who came on to the scene after military service was over. In some cases, marriage… | Read More…

10+ Places To Learn About The Survivor Benefit Plan


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 choice whether to purchase the military’s Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) coverage may be the largest financial decision of your life. As I’ve discussed extensively, it is a very individual decision and there is no best answer for every situation. While I’m trying to hit on every possible consideration, it is important that you get… | Read More…

From The Mailbag: Term Life Instead of SBP


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 Survivor Benefit Plan is a very important topic in financial planning for the retired military family, and it’s awfully complicated. There is no single right answer, and even the exact same situation can be viewed from multiple perspectives. While this seems like a question that can be answered simply by math, there is also… | Read More…

Understanding the SBP-DIC Offset


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!

One frequently misunderstood issue about the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) is the way that SBP benefits may be offset by Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) benefits provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA.) Under current law, a survivor may not receive the full amount of both SBP and DIC.  In order to receive DIC, the… | Read More…

Retiring Military: Should You Choose SBP?


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 decision whether to choose Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) coverage is very personal, and very important. Military retirement pay ends with the death of the retiree.  The SBP allows you to purchase an annuity that provides lifetime, inflation-adjusted income to an eligible survivor. This (relatively) irrevocable election occurs at retirement, and requires the agreement of… | 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.