Preparing for retirement

[BMC Mark C. Lewis]

Has anyone had their spouse go to their place of retirement early to set them up, if so if you do not mind I would like to know your thoughts and opinions of how it went, some of the things that went well and what did not go so well?

I plan to retire in late 09 or 10 and my wife and I are thinking about her going there early. We have no children so that will not be an issue.

Any insight will be greatly appreciated.

Mark

[ETC John D Zidek]

What a great Thread.

I am looking at retirement as well. (20 Years comes in July) I would love to be able to sit on the front porch and count cars, but apparantly no one will pay me to do that. I was looking at my retirement pay the other day and I need to find a job making about $15 an hour just to make what I am making now, not count med, dental, and life insurance.

Do any of you old timers have any tips on companies / providers that we should look at or stay away from? Your lessons learned could save us alot of headaches and finacial pains.
Thanks

"Z"

[BMCM Wray Gillette (Ret)]

I think before us "old timers" can help we need to know the area you intend to retire in, and what type of work (if any) you want to do....

Wray.... :cool:

[ETC John D Zidek]

I think we will be staying in VA Yorktown area.

I was looking for info on med, dental, and life insurance. Are there companies out there that we should stay away from and some that you guys have found with great customer service and pricing plans?

"Z"

[BMCS Dennis Endicott ret]

In my less-than-a-year retired experience:

1. Your tricare medical insurance is as good any and better than most. I had the opportunity to pick up Blue Cross or Cigna with my teaching job, and didn't take either. Tricare was better and cheaper.

2. Dental insurance seems to be the same no matter where you go. The amount of service that your dependents get now, is what you can expect in the future.

3. In regards to life insurance, you should take the SGLI at full amount and supplement it with a level term life insurance policy. When deciding which company and how much coverage, visit https://www.insurance.com for some excellent advise, specifically https://www.insurance.com/quotes/Article.aspx/Rating_Your_Life_Insurance_Company/artid/228

Then go to http://www.ambest.com/ to see how the company you are considering is rated.

[BMCM Wray Gillette (Ret)]

Z --> I have 3 kids, and a wife.. We use Tricare Prime.. It is about the best, at least in our area. I also have Delta Dental... http://www.trdp.org/enhanced/enh_overview.htm
I am quite happy with them...

My life insurance is with Navy mutual. I have Whole life, rather than term.. I think it is a better deal... Term insurance is like renting a house, whole life is like buying..

Yorktown is a nice area, but VA is too crazy with their taxes.. Be sure that is what you want before you make your final decision.. I used to live in the Edgehill subdivision right across 17 at the light.. Nice area.. Aslo lived in a subdivision across from Mary Immaculate Hospital.. My wife visits regularly to Hampton (right by Langley).. Says she would never go back to live there... but that is the Hampton area.

Does VA still have that personal property tax? Boy did that suck.

Wray... :cool:

[ETC John D Zidek]

I think they still do but I am exempt cuz I am not officially a resident. I paid like $6 for my county sticker last time, But they got rid of the stickers here in Gloucester. Not sure if they got rid of the tax too or not. I havn't received any letters yet.

Thanks for the info.

[ETCM Joseph Harold]

John,

Have you been to TAP Class yet? It is definitely worth it. I have been through it twice and will most likely do it one more time before I pack it in.

Joe

[BMCM Wray Gillette (Ret)]

John,
I'd look into that.. VA is a highly taxed state.. hence your retirement check doesn't go as far.. It never made sense to me that you paid sales tax when you bought a car, then again every year there-after....

Like I said, I enjoyed my two tours there, and had two kids born there (one in Mary Immaculate & the other at Riverside) I still would never consider retiring in VA.. Guess that is what makes the world go round.... ;)

As Joe said, get in a TAPS class as soon as you can... Lots of good info.

Wray... :cool:

[MSTCS Dave McClintock]

I will share something I didnt know. I am also preparing to retire 1Nov07. Going to TAPS next week. Spoke to a VA rep on the phone about possible disability claims I may have and was told they needed my DD-214 before they could start the process. I also have a buddy who is setting up for retirement and he told me that he spoke to a VA rep at HQ and what I was told was WRONG! I then went and sat down with a VA rep and found out that 180 days before your official retirement date, the VA can issue a "memo rating for civil service" that will assign you a temp disability rating while on Active duty. This rating allows you to apply for Federal postions with any disabilities you are expected to be entitled to. Depending on your situation, this could provide you with a leg up on your career after the CG plus it gets your records into the VA system.

Of course when you actually retire, you will have to go through the actual VA disability process before they pay you.

[BMCM Wray Gillette (Ret)]

I guess I was lucky.. I had a retirement/VA physical all in one.. It was something that was being tried out in Mayport FL.. It worked GREAT... My disability started within a month of my retirement.

As I have said for YEARS on military.com, this is a subject many active duty are ignorant on.. (I was) ... I'd say the CMC's should get the info & pass it along as soon as they can... I'm sure there are several retiring that are missing out on the benefits they have earned.

Wray... :cool:

[ETC Brian Strattard]

Wray,

Were you talking about personal property taxes as in vehicles, boats, etc??? If so they should all be covered in the SSCRA as long as the titles are in the service member's name...any personal property taxes should be exempt from the state you are residing in as long as they are registered in that state and that state is not your state of legal residence and you are active duty stationed there on orders. I've never had to deal with VA but the SSCRA and personal property was decided by the supreme court back in the 50s and is federally mandated so it should apply to all states. Even if that's not what you were talking 'aboot...it's definately good for others to know...

Strat sends...

[BMCM Wray Gillette (Ret)]

Strat.... as I said, I married a VA girl, and have done two tours there.. I am aware active duty military are exempt, if they are a resident of another state.. My point was, once retired, that will stop, and as a retiree, in Virginia, you will pay personal property tax for everything you own.. as long as you own it..

Wray.. :cool:

[ETC Brian Strattard]

Wray,

Gotcha...all of the states seem to deal with it differently anyway...Rhode Island told me that I couldn't get the exemption if I was active duty but I could if I had my DD-214...when I asked they said that the DD-214 stated I was a veteran but being active duty didn't apply??? :confused: Oh well...it's good info for people to see anyway...

Strat sends...

[BMCM Wray Gillette (Ret)]

Strat ---> I'd recommend getting a copy of the Retired Military Almanac and looking through it.. It will tell you and everyone else about the taxes for each state, Veterans Benefits, SBP and much more......

Wray.... :cool:

[ETC Brian Strattard]

I'll give it a good read...are there any pictures :D ???

[BMCM Wray Gillette (Ret)]

I'll give it a good read...are there any pictures :D ???

Only the Boatswain's Mates get the copies with pictures... (good point though.. ;) )

Wray... :cool:

[AMTCM John Long]

I will likely be checking out in Michigan. They do not tax your retirement pay (yet). We already have a house up there in Traverse City. I hope to twilight out there.

For Wray - when I bought my 2002 Protoge in Daytona last year, I was able to get Florida tags and not pay the sales tax. I had to show a copy of my HQ orders and a Maryland mailing address. If I move back to Fl, then I'd have to pay the tax. That was a good deal!! :) My three other vehicles had their tags done just before we left Oregon. They're good for two years.

If/when we retire up to Traverse City, it will likely catch up to us.

John

[ETC John D Zidek]

Thank you all for the info.

I will be looking for the Almanac.

ETCM I will be looking into TAPS Before too long. I will be holding my letter as long as the Detailer lets me continue being the 2M School Chief.

Wray Thanks for the heads up on the taxes.

Strat I agree ETs need picture books too.

[BMC Mark C. Lewis]

I plan on retiring in South Carolina and becoming a teacher. My wife and I are talking about her going there early to get set up. I would like to know if anyone else has done that and if so I did it go. Any insight is greatly appreciated.

Mark

[ETC John D Zidek]

Sorry Mark I didnt mean to hijack your thread.

"Z"

[BMCM Wray Gillette (Ret)]

"When I bought my 2002 Protoge in Daytona last year, I was able to get Florida tags and not pay the sales tax."

Back in '87 I bought a new Buick Park Ave from Casey Buick.. I got out of paying sales tax all together. I told VA I was a FL resident, which I was, and as long as I didn't bring the car into FL for a certain # of years I didn't have to pay them tax either...

"Z" --> Check with the CMC at RTC... They used to get a bunch of them and hand them out to folks if they wanted them....

MArk --> I think it would depend on several things.. What type of time frame you are talking about? have kids? have a house in SC? relatives there? etc.... I see no reason for it not to work, other than those long lonely nights in bed all by yourself.

Wray... :cool:

[PAC Darrell Wilson (Ret)]

This is a good topic and one that I dont think everyone gives enough thought. You need to ask yourself what your goal is for retirement. Do you want your retirement to go a long ways or do you not care because you and/or spouse plan to keep working fulltime? When I decided to retire my wife and I thought long and hard about a lot of stuff, taxes, cost of living, weather, real estate prices, military bases that wont close, public schools, etc......

Most of us have dealt with living in coastal towns/cities and most of them are expensive, so if you dont mind being land locked, there are lots of choices. We used the cost calculators on the internet and narrowed our choices to rural TX, AZ, NM, KA and OK. Well, I was born and raised in Oklahoma so thats where we chose. I bought 10 rural acres for $7,000 which was considered high. We had a house built for us that was 2,624 sq feet and it cost me $96,200, which was considered a lot of money for this area. My wife had a lot of custom mods added to the house for that price. I am in SW Oklahoma where my E7 retirement is more than the average annual salary. My property taxes for house and land was $90. I can drive 8 miles to a decent husband&wife cafe and feed my family of 4 steak for $25. I am 35 miles from Ft Sill. A large army base that is in no danger of closing. It is one of the few places the army has where they can train and fire their howizter canons. They have basic training and officer schools located there. They have a brand new commisary and exchange, several clubs, a new large hospital and fantastic MWR services. I am one hour from the Oklahoma City airport. A flight to the east coast or west coast is only 4 hours. I am an 8 hour drive to the Gulf of Mexico for salt water enjoyment and 6 hour drive to the Northern New Mexico mountains for sking. There is all kinds of fresh water fishing around me at lakes and farm ponds. I shot one deer and 2 wild pigs since moving here last summer. Several farmers I have met have told me I could hunt on their land. People in this part of the country seem to be very patriotic. The small farm town where my kids are going to school is old fashioned, they are strict and still have corporal punishment. My kids like the school and are both doing much better than previous schools. Gas is $2 a gallon and the groceries here are dirt cheap.

My point in rambling on about all this is to get anyone thinking about retiring to consider all options. Dont be afraid to go some place where they dont know what the Coast Guard is or even how to spell it

People always ask us why we would retire to SW Oklahoma and our favorite saying is that by living here, we can afford to visit any place we want.

[BMCM Wray Gillette (Ret)]

Darrell,
Great post.... people need to be happy where they retire.. I happened to have gone to college here in Daytona.. Loved it then & love it now...

I have been employed, un-employed, employed (part time) and Monday I start a full time position with the VA. (Ahhh another government job).... Not sure how long I will have it, but they are far and few between here in Daytona. Figure I'll wack off a few credit cards (all) before calling it quits and drawing that social security check...

Bottom line.. it's all about being happy... Some like the New England snow.. others prefer the warm sunny days... makes no matter... variety is the spice of life, and there is no one state we could all fit into...

I too think this is a great thread... many times people take off into retirement, perhaps because their kids are juniors/seniors and they don't want to move, even if they are in a state they don't want to be in...

My kids got the stability factor, cause I married a "younger woman".... They too love it here and I am grateful for that..

I will say retirement is a WONDERFUL thing.. I LOVE IT! Time to play here on the internet, the pool , the Vette, Harley, dinner with friends, traveling to see old friends, you name it.... Too bad I can't talk my son into the Coast Guard.. Oh well, not worth the arguement at this time...

Had a great visit with the GOLD ANCIENT MARINER yesterday & today.. Glad Mike (Captain Jett) could come up for a visit... He is quite a guy... (We first met when he was a BMC back in Alexandria VA back in 1978 or so) He brought up 3 palm trees for me (from Miami) and we planted them this morning before he took off.. Friendships are made in the Coast Guard. I have several WONDERFUL friends, and am thankful for all of them.

Wray... :cool:

[FSC Jayare Parker (Ret)]

Darrell,
I am retiring this summer it looks like and I have been trying to figure out where I want to go. I am interested in Oklahoma also and have been looking at the Poteau area. It is only about 40 miles from Ft. Smith Arkansas. My wife has never been there and I have only been to Tulsa for a 2 week bowling school so this is all new to us. We are also looking at NW Alabama but haven't found land and jobs online there that we like. I have 2 sisters that live there in Alabama and I haven't seen them in 12 years so it would be nice to be close to family.

We want to have some land (at least 10 acres) that I can hunt on and it needs to have a stocked pond with catfish in it.:D

Hunting is just one of the things we are considering on where to retire. I am still trying to figure out what I want to do for a job (hopfully part time) and need to be close to a hospital or clinic for the wife to keep working as a nurse/phlabotamest. I need to figure this out quick so I can start making arrangements for the move during the summer so it doesnt interupt the school year. I will still have 2 kids in high school as well as a 3 year old, and we still have one that graduated high school last year living with us untill she figures out what she wants to do with her life.

What am I to do? It's been a while since I've played darts so my aim ain't that good anymore so I wonder where the dart will land on that big ole map of the US.:confused:

Jayare

[ETC Brian Strattard]

Jayare...

Come up to Maine to retire...tourist season is during the entire summer summer and I couldn't find any bag limit on tourists in the fish and wildlife management books anywhere!!!:D

Strat sends...

[PAC Darrell Wilson (Ret)]

Thanks Wray. I agree, there are lots of places out there, do your homework and find something that will work for you. I meant to add in my post that that was $90 dollars taxes for the year.

Jayare, get in touch if you want to and I'll send you some info. That is a low cost area also but no military bases near.

[BMC Mark C. Lewis]

We are looking at 1.5 to 2 years before I retire. We do not have a home there yet, I was stationed there for eight years and we still have friends there but no family. My mother-in-law is going to retire there as well, possibly before I retire. My wife and I do not have any kids.

My wife was offered a job teaching there a couple of years ago and we know that the schools in the area do not have enough teachers.

[FSC Jayare Parker (Ret)]

Where are you looking at retiring to Mark? Where is there?

Jayare

[BMC Mark C. Lewis]

Sorry, it was in an early post Georgetown, SC