MilitaryToFinance

Reviving this one after seeing this comic online.

The person I talked to at TMO wasn't even sure I was allowed to do a DITY move for my final separation move so I'm hesitant to trust what they tell me. That's why I was hoping to run some numbers myself before my scheduled appointment.

I see links to a weight estimator but I'm looking for a calculator that will estimate given x,000 lbs of HHG going from A to B how much would I be paid.

Does anybody know of a decent DITY move calculator? Every link I can find via google for either DITY calculator or PPM calculator seems to take me to a dead link. I talked to JPPSO today and our people are idiots so I would like to have an idea on my own of what my payment would be, etc.

I've thought about it. Never done a full DITY, would TMO pay you up front or after the move? I'm going back to graduate school when I move so I won't have the cash to front the moving expenses and then be reimbursed by Big Blue when he gets around to it. I would imagine since I'm separating I'll be low on the totem pole when it comes to payment/processing.

They will take your stuff farther but you have to pay the difference. I went to JPPSO and they were able to check in a matter of minutes what the cost would be moving my stuff to a different location vs my home of record. On a related note, is it possible to do a Partial DITY move for your final PCS? If anybody has done it, how much of a hassle would it be to actually get paid? I did a Partial DITY on my last move and it went pretty easily but after separating I feel like it would be more difficult to file a voucher and claim the reimbursement. Since I'm traveling farther than my HOR it would be nice to offset that cost somewhat with a partial DITY.

Thanks. I entered AD from my Home of Record which was Cincinnati but I will most likely be moving to NYC after I separate. So it looks like I'll be splitting the bill which is kind of what I figured would be the case. That definitely makes me want to do as much of it as a DITY as possible to save the cost.

Which AFI covers information on your PCS when separating from active duty? I'm trying to plan out what I'm going to do in terms of moving my HHG and wasn't sure which reg I should be looking for answers in.

Just because OSU is a real brick and mortar school somewhere doesn't make a degree good. Do you really believe that an essentially free online MBA from a school that is not even ranked in the Top 100 business schools carries any "prestige?" If you want a real MBA the only good online program is UNC, at least they are a Top 20 school although OT is too early to say how employers will view the online program. If you want a quick check-the-box degree get a military history Masters from AMU or something equally worthless. An MBA is basically a career reset switch. Don't waste that opportunity with a bullshit degree. You might decide you want to do something other than flying when you leave the AF and a useless MBA is going to hurt more than help.

I was responding to this specific quote. The statement made is that religious zealots in the US are not violent. Yet we have seen a number of cases of murders, bombings and vandalism by religious zealots in the name of their religion here in this country. So I was providing evidence to directly refute a statement that was made. While it is so much more fun to attack the person than the issue I prefer more rational methods of debating.

I've seen more of the world than most. So killing in the name of Christianity is not comparable to killing in the name of Islam? Why not? My point is that Islam doesn't have the market cornered on crazy, violent nutjobs.

FTFY You sure about that? http://www.history.c...ortion-activist http://www.washingto...ies/florida.htm http://www.washingto...salvi021996.htm http://www.prochoice...james_kopp.html And that's just a sampling of the successful murders, not all the attempted murders or the arson and bombings of buildings. Nor does it include the nutjob women who drowned their children because it was god's will.

I've been trying to research the same thing. It is possible however you will have to pay the tax burden on whatever amount you transfer over from your TSP. I haven't been able to confirm yet the rate at which you are taxed but I believe the entire sum is essentially added as taxable income for the tax year you make the conversion. So it could have a huge impact if you push yourself into the next tax bracket. I'm looking at getting out of the Air Force and going back to school so when I make the conversion it would be in a year with very little income so I'm hoping it would be a small tax burden. Otherwise I'll just roll it into a traditional IRA.

Reviving my own topic here. How hard is it to move a DOS? Reading the reg talks about using an Air Force form to push your DOS out by up to 90 days. What if you want to pull it in instead? Can you set a DOS for 12 months from now and then decide later to get out earlier, say 7 month point? Assuming you are still beyond any ADSC.

Did you search using your AFSC? I'm not a pilot so it might work better for my career field but I'm on the Summer VML and used the requirements search yesterday. It listed all open requirements for my rank and AFSC just like it should. It isn't organized very logically so I copied the results into Excel and that way you can filter based on location.

As one of the few non-pilots on this forum I'll chime in here. I agree that there should be an option for current folks to choose one or the other but I love this proposed plan. I have a 4 year ADSC, when I finish up my first assignment I can get out, PCS and only serve my 2 year additional and get out, a lot more options. Most of us don't incur a 10 year commitment when we go on active duty. I have no intention of staying in 20 years and I'm going to get nothing for it. I contribute to TSP but get no matching, I will never get an annuity or any benefits. I'll serve 4-6 years and get a thank you for your service, don't let the door hit you on the way out and that's it. The current pension system is unsustainable and there is no way anybody can argue that. It's a great deal and I understand the people who are currently serving being pissed if that option is taken away but there is a reason no businesses offer them anymore. People keep throwing up the examples of market fluctuations and what happens if the market crashes when you're at 18 years of service, etc. I hate to sound like a jerk but welcome to the rest of the world folks. This is not some new problem nobody has seen before, this is something all Americans face and is just the reality of any investment.

I have no intention of staying in for 20 years so I would love some kind of contribution matching. That being said, those in the AF already should be allowed to choose to switch to the new system or remain on the current. Changing the rules of the game mid career would not be a smart idea.

The can insurance people are fantastic. I hit some nasty ice during the winter and crashed my 4Runner. Initial estimate said it was repairable but the body shop found some additional damage that upped the repair cost. USAA totaled it without any issue even though they had originally said it was repairable. Looking at Kelly BB and autotrader I could have gotten around $4,000 selling the car and USAA paid me $7,000. So all in all I would say it was a great experience with them.

I know we have quite a few folks here who have separated from the military. When you left did you keep your money in TSP or did you move it out? Either to a new employer's 401k or a traditional IRA.

A Roth IRA isn't an actual fund. It is a category of investment, think of it like an umbrella. Every dollar you put under the umbrella gets to grow tax free. You can invest in anything you want under that umbrella, you could even stick it into a money market account if you really wanted to and get tax free interest. The catch is you can only put $5,000 in each year. To answer your question, look at broad market funds. I really like their mid-cap fund VIMSX. You could also look at VTSMX for a total market fund. People talk about the Dow and S&P all the time but there are literally thousands of other stocks out there that aren't covered on either of those indeces. For some added safety you could look at their Dividend Yield fund, VHDYX.

Well you're being fleeced but it's common practice, not just you. Most actively managed funds charge loads and fees on the order of the percentage you are paying. But you said it yourself just above that you do your own investing in no-load funds and don't pay that 5%. You're taking a big loss up front for no good reason other than the belief your advisor is smarter than you. Also, look at upping your investment amount. I use Vanguard so I can't speak for TRowe Price but I know that once you hit $10,000 they don't charge you an annual maintenance fee anymore.

Vanguard is fantastic. I had my first investments with them when I was still in high school and I currently use them for my Roth IRA. They have a large number of no-load funds(funds that don't charge you a fee just to put your money in) and some great indexing funds to choose from. I would look them up. As a young Lt you've got lots of time ahead of you so don't be afraid to get somewhat aggressive because you have the time to ride out volatility swings. There are some good Mid-cap and Small-Cap funds at Vanguard that I like personally but your risk tolerance may be different than mine.

Square, thanks for the help. I'm getting a head start on this because I'm not entirely sure what path I'm going to take. My ADSC is actually through 1 Sep 2012 and I'm also on the Summer 2012 assignment cycle. The nice thing is I'll be applying to B-school in the fall and should here if I've been accepted before I come up for an assignment. According to AFPC they would match me with a job in Jan-Mar time window. So if I get accepted to a school that starts after 1 Sep I could apply for separation normally and go. However if I get accepted to a school that I couldn't make the start date I would have a debate. I could defer enrollment a year, wait until the last possible moment and use the 7-day option when AFPC gives me a new assignment. If I set my DOS 12 months in the future then I would be getting out between Jan-Mar and have to kill time until August with no job. Or I could set my DOS for 1 Sep and try to attend the earlier semester start date while on terminal leave. I'm not sure how feasible that would be if I'm stationed in Colorado and going to B-school in PA or MA or really anywhere not close to Colorado.

No this is not a VSP question. I have a couple questions after digging through AFI36-3207 on Officer Separations. My ADSC ends on 1 Sep and I'm looking to start a full-time MBA program when I separate. I found this section in the AFI about going to school. If I'm reading that correctly, if the school I get accepted to starts the fall semester on 25 Aug I could separate under this clause and start the semester even though my ADSC isn't complete until 1 Sep. Is that correct? Assuming I'd been enrolled and pay the tuition. If not, my other question is how far out can you request a separation date into the future? Throughout the reg I keep seeing that you must apply with a DOS no earlier than 6 months in the future but nothing about a NLT date. My next PCS would line up with my ADSC completion so I plan to separate no matter what so I don't incur another ADSC. However if I can't start the fall semester I would like to keep working as long as possible obviously before going back to school. If I apply to separate in April the earliest DOS I could have would be Oct (6 months later) but could I put to separate 12 months later and stay in until the following April? We have a person here who's ADSC ended in Dec and is separating next week so he stayed on an additional 3 months without having to PCS. I'm sure there is some length of time where the AF would say I'm cheating the system to avoid a PCS(ie apply to separate in April 11 but ask for a DOS Jul 12). I'm right on that cusp with my ADSC where I might just miss or just make the start of the fall semester so I'm trying to explore my options.

Has anybody used the USAA car buying service (Auto Circle)? Seems like a nice tool and getting a new car at invoice seems to be a better deal than a 2-3 year old car at this point. I'm just curious how it works after you get the quotes from the dealerships. Rough timeline of how long to get the car delivered, etc.