More Financial Tidbits for Military Families (from NMFA)

More Financial Tidbits for Military Families, as reported by National Military Family Association (NMFA) citing Donna Miles (American Forces Press Service, 8/15/2008):


The economic downturn that has hit many Americans appears to have had less impact on service members, partly because of the nature of military service and partly due to the vast network of programs and services available to help them. The latest annual Defense Department status of forces survey conducted in April by the Defense Manpower Data Center supports this assessment. The full results of the survey have yet to be published.

There’s no question that service members and their families feel the pinch of spiraling gas, grocery and other prices. However, because service members have secure full-time jobs, commissary and exchange privileges, free to low-cost medical care, and allowances for housing, they are less likely to be as financially stressed as some of their civilian counterparts. In addition, service members on deployments benefit financially from tax-free earnings in combat zones, hazardous duty pay, and if married, family separation pay.

Three-quarters of service members who live off base rent their homes, so they’re not as hard-hit by the depressed housing market. Additionally, as discussed last week in the Government and You E-News, the recent change to the Joint Federal Travel Regulation (JFTR) authorizes the military to pay for local moves when a landlord defaults and the military tenant is forced to relocate to new housing.

One segment of the military population likely to be hardest hit by the housing downturn is the twenty-five percent of service members who own their homes. If individuals are unable to sell their houses for what they owe and can’t get enough rent to cover the mortgage, they’re likely to feel the pinch. This is especially true for service members moving from a high-cost housing area to a lower-cost housing area. Another provision in the JFTR offers a protection for service members. They can elect to leave their family at their old duty stations as they move to a lower-cost area and continue to draw their housing allowance at the higher rate where their family lives. It is not an ideal circumstance, but it could be a lifesaver to some families facing a financial crisis. Each service Secretary may determine the circumstances that authorizes/approves a housing allowance based on either the dependant’s location or the old duty station. This discretion is left to the service Secretary for each branch.

NMFA would like to take this time to remind service members and their families of the myriad of financial services that are available to help at no cost to service members. Personal financial counselors, legal assistance staff and aid societies are available for one-on-one sessions. If you are not comfortable with a personal meeting, take advantage of financial counseling over the telephone through Military OneSource by calling 800-342-9647.

(Source: http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=50833)

Wow, only 25% of service members own their own home? I didn't realize the number was so low. Perhaps, that's actually high. Whatever the case, the above news is a bit daunting. We are due to PCS in the next couple of years and since we own, I'm getting worried. Fortunately, we could always do the GEO thing. I guess we will just play the wait and see game.

Housing Law Provides Protection for Military Families

According to National Military Family Association (NMFA), August 12, 2008:

In late July, President Bush signed “The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008”, H.R. 3221, into law (Public Law 110-289). This legislation is designed to help homeowners keep their existing homes and provide first-time buyers access to affordable housing.

Military families should know that there are several provisions within H.R. 3221 that uniquely impact service members and veterans.

The law will:

Exclude military housing allowances from counting as income when service members try to qualify for low-income housing;

Expand the foreclosure protection for service members returning from deployment. Previously, service members had 90 days of protection from foreclosure, now they have nine months. This temporary protection expires on December 31, 2010;

Provide a temporary increase until the end of the year for the maximum loan guaranteed by the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA). The cap can be as high as $720,750 and as low as $417,000 depending on the median housing prices for the area;

Require the Secretary of Defense to develop a program to provide financial counseling to returning service members, including credit and home mortgage counseling;

Provide a moving benefit to service members who are forced to move out of rental housing if the owner of the housing is foreclosed on;

Increase grants for severally disabled veterans from $50,000 to $60,000;

Make totally disabled service members held on active duty for medical reasons eligible for VA grants for home alternations before their discharge;

Extend grants for specially adapted housing and assistance to veterans with severe burns and veterans residing outside the United States; and

Allow veteran benefits received as a lump sum to be treated as monthly benefits for the purposes of eligibility for Section 8 Housing assistance.

We are especially pleased members of Congress recognize the problems military renters face when their landlords go into foreclosure. NMFA will monitor the implementation of this legislation and provide updates as they become available.

To review the full law, go to: http://thomas.loc.gov/ and type HR 3221 into the search field.

Hooray! Thoughts?