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Pajaro

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Pajaro last won the day on February 28 2014

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  1. I'm a pretty conservative guy, but just listened to this Joe Rogan episode with Robert Kennedy Jr and was blown away. It's mostly about vaccines, so now I need to read The Real Anthony Fauci. It's a fantastic conversation. Here's the link: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3DQfcTY4viyXsIXQ89NXvg?si=rX2hS2ONSFO8o0jLJVv9vg
  2. Nunya answered this, but note that short term capital gains are taxed at the same rate as normal W-2 income. I will be selling index funds I bought as a lieutenant 2 decades ago. I could also reduce my taxable income by another $29,500 if I invest that much in traditional IRA and traditional TSP next year. I thought about it, but it would save me only $4,500 in taxes (15% of $29,500). I figured that the tax free growth of the ROTH IRA and ROTH TSP would pretty easily outweigh the $4,500 in tax savings.
  3. Deployed finance was a bit confused when I asked, but eventually figured it out. It seems to be tied to CZTE being processed, which then allows you to go above, but like you said only for traditional. I had timed my contributions to stay below 19k until a month into my deployment, and contributed above 19k after ctze started Folks, this is the exact gouge I was looking for! Thanks for the help. The rest of my plan is to sell some funds to generate capital gains. With the new 2020 standard deduction for Married Filing Jointly ($24,800) and $37,500 in traditional TSP, my taxable income will be about $62,000. Next year's new upper income limit to pay 0% capital gains tax is $80,000, so I can have $18,000 in capital gains without paying tax. Thanks again, Pajaro
  4. BLUF: What is the actual mechanism for investing the full $57,000 in TSP while deployed to a tax free combat zone? I haven't gone on a long deployment in a while, but am deploying on a 365 to Iraq this summer and will get the combat zone tax exclusion up to the max enlisted pay each month ($7,700). That's $46,200 for the final 6 months of the year. However, the TSP site says I can contribute $57,000 to TSP while deployed, which would enable me to go past the cap. It specifies I could do $19,500 in ROTH TSP, but the remainder would have to be Traditional TSP. So, what's the actual mechanism to be able to invest more than $19,500 in Traditional TSP? Normally if you try to invest more than $19,500 it won't deduct from your LES. Are DFAS and MyPay smart enough to know and let me do it? Or is this something I have to organize with the deployed finance folks? Thanks, Pajaro
  5. Thanks. Congrats on 20 yourself. No, there's no calculator (that I know of anyway). I just have a big spreadsheet that I update with a new row every month. It has a column for each type of pay. It also has a column for how much I invested/saved that month, so I have a good visual of investments vs income over time. I started the spreadsheet about 10 years ago, so the first day of building it was tedious. Doing the monthly input since then takes about a minute. Its also a good way to double check the LES. I find that my LES is wrong at least 4 months a year, mainly due to changes in language pay.
  6. I'm basically 48% of base pay or 32% of base pay and allowances. Spending lots of time overseas is a huge benefit to saving money due to the COLA and utility allowance. OHA is use/lose, but the utility allowance is flat rate, so you can save a lot.
  7. I'm a European FAO (we are called that now instead of RAS), so I get paid for any European language. I'm primarily Spanish, but I can fake my way through reading other Romance languages, so I get paid for them as well. Max of $1000 per month. That gravy train is about to end because the French, Italian, and Portuguese DLPTs just got harder.
  8. I hit 20 years last month, all as an officer and all promoted on time. I thought you might be interested in some gee whiz numbers from my 20-year career earning totals: Base Pay: $1,254,900 BAH/OHA: $411,531 BAS: $47,787 Language Pay: $80,573 OCONUS COLA: $120,740 Total: $1,915,530 The BAS really surprised me. That $250/month added up over 20 years. I also never got flight pay. My net worth is now $1,370,779. I’ve never had a 2nd job, my wife has never worked outside the home, I’ve never owned a house, and I didn’t inherit anything. That’s all from investing my military income, basically in S&P 500 index funds. Here are my totals: TSP: $380K Taxable index funds: $558K IRAs: $296K Cash, bonds, CDs: $137K I’ll add that I haven’t sold any investments since 2008, and that was only $4K of stock to fund a honeymoon. Everything else has been buy & hold for my entire career.
  9. Back in 2002 the CSRB for 33S (what 17Ds used to be) was $10K a year for 4 years. I think that lasted all of 2 months or so. If you actually get it, $15K a year is more buying power in today's dollars according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI Inflation Calculator (it says $13.4K is the equivalent). So, I took the money and put it all in TSP tax free. In 2005, just 3 weeks after getting the 4th and final installment, VSB came out and offered me $114K to walk away from the USAF. I stayed in, but couldn't help thinking that these programs aren't thought out very well.
  10. Not there yet, but Zabel and Higby grew up in Cyber and have the right mindset. My money's on Higby as the 1st Cyber 4 star http://www.af.mil/AboutUs/Biographies/Display/tabid/225/Article/467026/brig-gen-patrick-c-higby.aspx http://www.af.mil/AboutUs/Biographies/Display/tabid/225/Article/108886/brigadier-general-sarah-e-zabel.aspx
  11. Sorry, I just now see that TurboTax Deluxe Federal does not include Schedule D. Looks like I'll change to H&R this year.
  12. TurboTax Deluxe Federal is free from USAA ( https://www.usaa.com/inet/pages/advice_tax_center_main?akredirect=true ): USAA active-duty military and reservists can get TurboTax Deluxe Online Federal at no charge. I've used them the last few years and have been happy, but I have reasonably simple taxes.
  13. The loophole is still open, but hard to find. The "old" Amex Blue still exists: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/manufactured-spending/1535970-old-amex-blue.html It gives unlimited 5% cash back at grocery stores, gas stations, and major pharmacies. There are reports that Amex will shut you down after spending $50K, but I'm still going strong past that for my anniversary year. As far as fees, I pay $5.95 to activate a $500 Visa gift card. Walmart charges $.70 for a $1000 money order. So, for $1000 of gift cards at a grocery store, I'm making $38 in profit after fees. It's more if I need gift cards for Amazon, Home Depot, etc that don't charge activation fees.
  14. I make $400 to $500 per month on credit card cash back. I have the "old" Amex blue card that gives 5% cash back on groceries (including the Commissary). I buy about $1000 per week of Visa gift cards at my local grocery store, then use the gift cards to buy money orders at Wal-Mart. I deposit the money orders in my bank, pay Amex, and wait for the cash back to arrive. I also buy all non-groceries exclusively in Visa gift cards. That gives me about 3.8% cash back on things that aren't groceries. It seems pretty elaborate, but I have it down to a process that fits with my daily life.
  15. I've often heard the rumor that large MTFs will do breast augmentation for dependents if the implants themselves are paid for by the member, so it's no cost to the government. Anyone able to confirm?
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