Buying Back From the Military

Dear Dave,

My husband served four years in the military before becoming a state trooper. He now has the chance to buy back his four years from the military. This would enable him to retire four years sooner. The problem is that the buyback cost is $10,000 a year. Do you think it’s worth it? 

Amy

Dear Amy,

Mathematically it’s a bad idea. You’d be better off investing the money.  Now, if there’s a happiness factor involved – if he hates his job, or something like that – it might warrant some additional consideration. Otherwise, you’re basically pouring money into a pension fund that dies when he dies. Even if there’s a survivor’s benefit for you, it just disappears when both of you are gone. You can’t take it with you! 

There are three things you can do with money. You can spend it, you can save it, and you can give it away. I want you to make smart decisions and live like no one else, so that later you can live like no one else! If the money just disappears, you’ll have no chance to change your family tree or make a huge positive impact on your community through giving.    

- Dave

* For more great financial advice, please visit www.davesays.org.

Popularity: 4%

Burned By the Bonus!

Dear Dave,

My husband always gets a bonus at work around the first of the year. The problem is that his company never takes enough out in taxes, and we get clobbered at tax time. He makes $150,000 a year, and this time his bonus was $105,000. They withheld 18 percent, but that’s not enough. What should we do?

Karen

Dear Karen,

If you guys make $150,000 a year, that puts you in the 33 percent tax bracket – with or without the bonus. That means 33 to 38 percent of his bonus money will end up in Washington. 

If I woke up in your shoes, I wouldn’t leave it up to the government or the company to get it right. I’d put about 22 percent of the bonus amount into a money market account just to be safe. I’d just let it sit there and be ready when tax time rolls around. That way you’ll be fine if you owe money, and you’ll have some extra savings if you don’t!

- Dave

Popularity: 4%

Staying On Top of the Insurance!

Dear Dave,

A tree fell on our house yesterday and did quite a bit of damage. We’re talking with the insurance company now. Is there anything we should watch out for where they are concerned?

Ian

Dear Ian,

For openers, the insurance adjuster is not your pal. He works for a huge company which got that way by paying as little as possible. Read more

Popularity: 5%

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