I almost missed the announcement. It’s bland corporate text inside a box on my USAA Visa credit-card bill of 2 July. It’s the boilerplate you always ignore while you’re scrolling to find your new balance and checking your payment date: "Effective October 1, 2019, USAA Federal Savings Bank will be eliminating the PCS and Deployment discretionary … [Read more...] about USAA Eliminates PCS And Deployment Discretionary Benefits
Credit, Loans & Debt
“How the FINRA Foundation Military Spouse AFC® Fellowship (and Fate) Found Me”
[This post is brought to you by Alecia D. Blair, M.S., AFC®. If you're interested in contributing at The-Military-Guide.com, please see our posting guidelines.] About six months after having my second child I found myself eager to return to work. It was summer in beautiful Upstate New York. Fort Drum, … [Read more...] about “How the FINRA Foundation Military Spouse AFC® Fellowship (and Fate) Found Me”
USAA Answers Your Insurance And Financial Questions
This was the best conference yet! For those who are just joining us, last month I polled people's questions about USAA's insurance and financial programs. I brought those issues to the Digital Military Experience with USAA's Communications team, other program managers, and several executives. But first, it's time for another … [Read more...] about USAA Answers Your Insurance And Financial Questions
What Questions Should I Ask USAA At Digital MilEx?
[Nords note: if you're finding this post via a search engine, here's the followup post with USAA's responses: USAA Answers Your Insurance And Financial Questions] It's almost that time of year again! The San Antonio summer is cooling off (a little) and on 19-20 September I'll be USAA's guest at Digital Military Experience 2017. But first, … [Read more...] about What Questions Should I Ask USAA At Digital MilEx?
Are You A Service Member In Debt With Bad Credit? A Legitimate Way to Repair Your Credit Score
As a young Staff Sergeant back in 2002, I found myself in an incredibly awkward position. It began harmlessly enough. My foolish attempt at living above my means began to produce a lot of heartache and misery. It started small and then snowballed into an extreme amount of debt. Over time, I began to live paycheck to paycheck. In … [Read more...] about Are You A Service Member In Debt With Bad Credit? A Legitimate Way to Repair Your Credit Score
How to Smartly Use the USAA Career Starter Loan
Did you know that USAA offers newly commissioned officers a low-interest loan to help them start their career? This guest post on the USAA Career Starter Loan was written by Spencer, a company grade officer in the US Air Force. Spencer is documenting his journey to financial independence using his military pay and benefits at the Military Money … [Read more...] about How to Smartly Use the USAA Career Starter Loan
Using USAA’s Financial Readiness Score
It's been eight months since USAA launched their Financial Readiness Score service, and I took the opportunity for a followup interview. Susan Owens, the AVP for Enterprise Advice Implementation, dug up the statistics and shared the insights that USAA will gradually roll into the new versions of the program. USAA has over 10 million members, … [Read more...] about Using USAA’s Financial Readiness Score
13 Credit Card Companies That Provide CASH Refunds to Service Members Under The SCRA
Did you know many credit card companies are going above and beyond their legal obligations under the Service Members Civil Relief Act? Many companies are retroactively lowering interest rates for balances placed AFTER your enlistment! Under the SCRA, 6 percent is the maximum interest rate that can, however, in 2018 many institutions are … [Read more...] about 13 Credit Card Companies That Provide CASH Refunds to Service Members Under The SCRA
How To Build Your Credit Score After Joining The Military
Over 3.3 million high school students graduated this year, and nearly two-thirds of them started college. Another 1.8 million college students are receiving their bachelor's degrees. Nearly 200,000 of all those young adults will join the military. They also have another new life project: building a credit score. A few of these servicemembers are … [Read more...] about How To Build Your Credit Score After Joining The Military
Career Assistance Program – AAFMAA Offers $4000 Loan
Is the Army Air Force Mutual Aid Association (AAFMAA), Career Assistance Program Loan (CAP) worth it? I’m going to have to say YES! Back in the day as a young Staff Sergeant I needed some extra cash during a tough financial period. I was introduced to AAFMAA by a fellow Soldier. He informed me that AAFMAA offered an extremely low-interest-rate … [Read more...] about Career Assistance Program – AAFMAA Offers $4000 Loan
