The important role that military servicemen and women play cannot be overstated. They are essential for protecting the American people. While they are in the service and when they leave, they can face many financial challenges. Fortunately, there are solutions that can help them not only survive the transition to civilian life, but also thrive. Here are some of the challenges they face, along with some solutions that can help them financially when they leave active duty.
Seeking Out Specialized Financial Expertise
There is a stereotype about enlisted servicemembers that they aren’t great with their money. They end up wasting it away on big TVs and fancy cars. They don’t budget the greatest and when they get out of the service, they struggle to get ahead financially to build meaningful wealth. Fortunately, this stereotype is changing thanks to companies like AAFMAA Wealth Management & Trust who help active duty service members, retirees, and veterans with financial planning and investment services.
Since they work with military, veterans, and their families, they are attuned to the stereotypes and can help with financial planning to mitigate the financial challenges many people face in and out of their military careers. They have a fiduciary responsibility to act in the best interests of the military community they serve. Working with a financial advisor can help with everything from setting up retirement accounts to creating generational wealth.
Finding a Civilian Career
In the military, the career paths are very clear, very defined, and in some ways rigid, but in a good way. The clarity of what it looks like to serve in the military makes it easier to walk through the ranks and even get promotions within a job class. There are no questions about what each job offers and what you do in that job because the SOPs are so detailed and specific.
But when retirement or the end of a military career comes, many veterans struggle to translate what they did and learned in the military into a meaningful civilian career. The options are more ambiguous, and aren’t as clearly defined.
Some solutions are to work with recruiters that are skilled at placing veterans into civilian careers, to explore higher educational pathways using the GI bill if applicable, and even working with a life coach who is familiar with military servicemen and women. These options are just a few that can help bring clarity and create a way forward in civilian life.
Learning About the Financial Benefits the Military Offers
The military offers numerous financial benefits to their active duty and retired service men and women. While in service, they have a set pay according to their job and rank which can make budgeting easier. They have access to a housing allowance that helps to pay for the bulk of rent or mortgage payments. And they also get military medical benefits that significantly reduce expenses. This can alleviate the burden on the notoriously lower pay to cover these essential living expenses.
Military people also have access to VA home loans which can make it more affordable to buy a home in the areas where they are stationed. These VA loan benefits follow them out of the service as well when they retire or are no longer active duty. For many service members the transition into civilian life means exploring affordable healthcare options, budgeting for all the housing expenses, and even exploring career options that pay a lot more than they officially made in the military. This
Learning Technology for Finances
Technology is empowering many veterans to take control of their finances in ways never imagined. For those who qualify, many can apply for and track their VA benefits online. They can access medical records, track claims, and even see what their benefits are. For those injured in the military, they can file for disability benefits online as well. This allows them to start the process from the comfort of home which can be helpful when you are navigating illness or injury.
There are also countless financial apps out there from banking apps to track spending, to apps that help you create a budget, to apps that help you make investments and grow your wealth. As men and women enter civilian life, these apps and technology solutions can help them build a great financial future.
