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I’m Kim Lankford with Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine and I know that deployment can bring a lot of financial opportunities. Your paychecks will be higher when you receive tax-free income and in a combat zone and you have access to extra savings programs that help you stretch your money even further. But it’s also important to take some key steps to protect your money while you’re gone.
Gather key estate planning documents such as your will and medical directive and is also essential to have a power of attorney, which gives your spouse or another trusted family member the authority to make financial decisions on your behalf while you’re gone. The legal-affairs office on base can help you with this paper work.
Automate your bills. If you don’t have a spouse or family member at home to pay your bills, make it as easy as possible to pay them yourself. Sign up to have them pay automatically from your checking account or pay them online.
Contact your service providers. If your family won’t be using your cell phone, cable, internet, phone or online services while you’re gone, be sure to let the service providers know. Many have special rules for deployed service members.
Tell your auto insurance that you’re being deployed too. If you put your car in storage while you’re gone, you generally can’t drop coverage entirely unless you hand in your license plates but you maybe able to cut the premiums in half by lowering your liability coverage to the state minimum and dropping collision coverage.
Build them an extra emergency fund of at least six months worth of expenses and a safe and excisable account such as money marketer savings account and sign up for the Savings Deposit Program. Service members have access to one of the best savings deals when they’re deployed. You can invest up to $10,000.00 in the Saving Deposit Program and earn 10% on your investments guaranteed until three months after you leave the eligible region.
Create a Brain book that includes all the key information that might be needed in your absence. Inventory your personal accounts and how to get access to them plus your online accounts and passwords. Include a copy of your will, power of attorney, medical directive and a letter of intention should anything happen to you. Since this book has such sensitive information only give it to a very trusted family member or friend.
This is Kim Lankford, Personal Finance Columnist and wife of an army doctor. For more information to help military families with their personal finances, go to www.kiplinger.com/links/military.
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