City of Garland’s Post

It is time that Congress passes the Major Richard Star Act. Quick and easy way to help combat-injured veterans. Use this MOAA link to write lawmakers to ask them to pass the Major Richard Star Act. You can be a veteran or not. You do not have to be a MOAA member, All are welcome and needed. It's easy, it takes only two minutes. Contact your Representative and Senators and urge them to support the Major Richard Star Act, which would authorize combat-injured veterans to receive their full DoD retirement pay earned for years of service and their full VA disability compensation for lifelong injury. Currently, these combat-injured (and often seriously disabled) veterans are subject to a cost-saving offset where their retirement pay is reduced for every dollar of VA disability received. To reduce earned retirement pay because of a combat disability is an injustice; the compensation for these injured veterans is not the place to achieve savings.

Are you a veteran or surviving spouse of a veteran? You might be eligible for the VA Aid and Attendance benefit, which helps supplement the cost of long-term care. Learn more here ⬇️

Today, we're reflecting on the incredible stories of courage and sacrifice that our veteran clients have shared with us. Each one is a unique chapter in the larger narrative of service to our country. From our heartfelt conversations, it's clear that their experiences shape not only their estate plans but also the fabric of our community. On this Veterans Day, we extend our deepest gratitude to these remarkable individuals who've touched our lives with their stories. #VeteransDay #RealPeopleRealStories #neyenslaw #trust #will #peaceofmind #mnestateplanning #woodburyattorney #estateplanninglawyer #planforthefuture #yourlegacy #powerofattorney #healthcaredirective #estateplanninglawfirm #specialneedstrust #retirement #inheritance #livingwill #trusts #assetprotection #estate #charitableplanning #probate #medicalassitance #pettrust

Aim High…again…please - subject to a permanent change of station. - ineligible to extend their service, or to sign up for the Skillbridge job-transition program. - Retirement benefits will seize the day before a retiree reactivates They forgot to include your VA disability payments will cease. That’s a net loss of over $4000 a month if your are 100% disabled. This would be more attractive if; - Duty station of choice (PCS optional) - Salary will be based upon (last base pay in service current VA disability pay (equivalent AND tax free) monthly retirement salary) - Skillbridge optional (you gave the service a chance…again…they should take care of their service members…again). - eligible for service extension In the civilian market if a company has a critical skill gap, it’s the potential candidate/new employee who has the advantage with the ability to negotiate terms, salaries, and bonuses. I don’t see a lot of advantages that this program offers. I would imagine those that are willing to re-enter service based upon intrinsic motivatal factors are few.

Prior to being a financial advisor, I was in the Coast Guard for seven years. I was fortunate enough to make a lot of quality friends and walked away having had one hell of an experience - from being underway in Alaska and hanging with the crew from the Deadliest Catch, to going days without sleep because at times that’s what the job asked of us. I think joining at age 24 helped me connect with the senior members, which was helpful because I’d listen to their experiences as they approach retirement. After my short seven year tenure, I began to wonder what was next for me since I wasn’t planning to retire from service. After listening to my senior peers, I kept hearing a few things: “Went to TAPs, but still not sure what benefits I should elect into.” “Should I or shouldn’t I opt into the Survivor Benefits Plan? Who is this really for? Can I cancel it” <— (it’s this one for me) “Is VGLI worth it? Yeah, it’s affordable early on but later it’s more than a car payment. Is it better to pay more now or later” “Should I leave my TSP alone and just let it grow? Should I roll it over into something?” Now as a professional, one thing that I tell members is: the US military provides some of the best employee benefits of any employer. From the GI Bill and VA benefits to all of the benefits you gained while in service, but that doesn’t mean that each benefit makes sense for every family. After listening to my peers and researching as a professional, I now spend my time working with service members guiding them through their benefits to calculate what does/n’t make sense. If you’re approaching retirement/separation, let’s spend 30 min together so you can walk from service with a clear mind. As my colleague Pat Hanrahan MBA would say: 🦅🇺🇸🫡 #military #retirement #civilianlife

Topics for tonight’s discussion with the families of our new recruits, aside from welcoming them to our fire service family: - Resources available to them as part of our family. - The importance of physical and emotional health. - Helping their recruit avoid debt, fiscal responsibility, and planning now for retirement. - The challenges of having a firefighter in their family, and how they can better support them and relate to them as they experience some of the harder days associated with our profession.

Military Medical Retirements (so called Chapter 61 separations) can be some of the most complex, daunting, and aggerating experiences for Service Members. To get started, let's lay out how Congress categorizes people based on duty status, time in service, and severity of disability. #militarytransition #militaryretirement #vadisability

Part two of our journey - from Marine Corps to multi-family! After realizing the uniform would come off one day, we sat down to plan for the future. Passionate about real estate, I needed more information to create the flexibility we wanted post-retirement. We started with property flips, but that wasn't offering the freedom we craved. What caught our attention was the concept of passive income, particularly in multi-family properties. In 2019, we transitioned to multi-family, closed on 350 units in the Southeast, and are scaling up. Why? Because it's not just about generating income; it's about impacting lives and improving communities. The tax benefits aren't bad either!  Stay tuned as we dig deeper and bring on investors for this win-win journey! #RealEstateInvesting #MilitaryToMultiFamily #HSquaredCapital