Hi. I'm looking for some advice ER's, especially those who retired with a military pension. I know that a COLA adjusted pension and access to healthcare is a big help when it comes to ER, but wondering how much we need to save in addition to that. We don't know anyone who has actually retired for good after leaving the military so some advice from people who have actually done that would be helpful.
My husband is currently an active duty officer who is eligible to retire in 13 years at age 44, but plans to stay in longer if possible because he loves his job. However, he also knows that at the 20 year mark he'll only be working for half his pay, so leaving the service will be mighty tempting and I want to be prepared for it. As for me, I'm a computer programmer who made a decent salary the first 3 years of our marriage and then took two years off for graduate school (I wouldn't have bothered but it was free and a great experience). Currently I'm only doing very part time freelance since we are in a remote duty station and jobs are scarce.
Siutation:
-We max out his TSP (401k equivalent) at 9% of base pay + 100% of combat pay.
-Since he is deployed to a combat zone we are also taking advantage of a special
tax free savings account that earns 10% interest on $10K.
-He gets no matching on TSP, but in 2006 the percentage limits are removed from the TSP
and we will have no problem contributing the full $15K/year.
-We currently have only about $50K in Roth IRAs and TSP, but also have no debt of any kind.
-My income will be uncertain for the next 15 years due to moves and the desire to start a family soon.
My biggest concern is that we have not been able to purchase a home due to our frequent moves. Our next duty station will be 3 years overseas, so not much chance of buying property then either. I know that home ownership is not mandatory for ER, but seems like it would be a big help to be mortgage free. My second biggest concern is college expenses for children.
Some portion of our retirement would likely be spent doing the perpetual traveller thing, since we both love foreign cultures and frugally travelling overseas. Retiring abroad is also a possibility, although we would probably want to return to the US and settle down at some point.
Anyway, I'm just wondering if its possible to actually *for real* retire on a military pension? How about while supporting a family? Also, wondering what's a reasonable amount to shoot for in terms of retirement savings. I keep seing numbers of $1 million and up from the major money mags, but this doesn't seem to take into account those who will be retiring with some sort of pension.
Any advice would be appreciated.
My husband is currently an active duty officer who is eligible to retire in 13 years at age 44, but plans to stay in longer if possible because he loves his job. However, he also knows that at the 20 year mark he'll only be working for half his pay, so leaving the service will be mighty tempting and I want to be prepared for it. As for me, I'm a computer programmer who made a decent salary the first 3 years of our marriage and then took two years off for graduate school (I wouldn't have bothered but it was free and a great experience). Currently I'm only doing very part time freelance since we are in a remote duty station and jobs are scarce.
Siutation:
-We max out his TSP (401k equivalent) at 9% of base pay + 100% of combat pay.
-Since he is deployed to a combat zone we are also taking advantage of a special
tax free savings account that earns 10% interest on $10K.
-He gets no matching on TSP, but in 2006 the percentage limits are removed from the TSP
and we will have no problem contributing the full $15K/year.
-We currently have only about $50K in Roth IRAs and TSP, but also have no debt of any kind.
-My income will be uncertain for the next 15 years due to moves and the desire to start a family soon.
My biggest concern is that we have not been able to purchase a home due to our frequent moves. Our next duty station will be 3 years overseas, so not much chance of buying property then either. I know that home ownership is not mandatory for ER, but seems like it would be a big help to be mortgage free. My second biggest concern is college expenses for children.
Some portion of our retirement would likely be spent doing the perpetual traveller thing, since we both love foreign cultures and frugally travelling overseas. Retiring abroad is also a possibility, although we would probably want to return to the US and settle down at some point.
Anyway, I'm just wondering if its possible to actually *for real* retire on a military pension? How about while supporting a family? Also, wondering what's a reasonable amount to shoot for in terms of retirement savings. I keep seing numbers of $1 million and up from the major money mags, but this doesn't seem to take into account those who will be retiring with some sort of pension.
Any advice would be appreciated.