Financial Services

This page provides education about financial resilience, building wealth, and retirement preparation. It is not personalized financial, investment, legal, or tax advice, and it does not guarantee any outcome. Investing can lose value. For your situation, seek appropriate qualified professionals.

1. 1Map your monthly cash flow — income, essential costs, and discretionary spending.
2. 2Make a plan for expensive debt and build emergency and property reserves.
3. 3List every retirement income source you may have and what each one depends on.
4. 4Compare insurance and coverage options for your household and beneficiaries.
5. 5Schedule a periodic plan review with appropriate qualified professionals.

Start by mapping your income against your essential and discretionary costs. Manage expensive debt deliberately, and build the appropriate emergency and property reserves for your household. A clear cash-flow picture is the foundation every other decision rests on.

List the retirement income sources you may have — VA disability compensation, the needs-based VA pension, military retirement pay, Social Security retirement, and personal, workplace, or Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) savings. Each follows its own eligibility and timing rules, and not everyone qualifies for every source. The Thrift Savings Plan is a federal employee retirement savings program, separate from VA benefits and military retirement pay.

Learn about saving, diversification, costs, risk, and a long-term plan with qualified professionals — the free saving and investing basics from Investor.gov are a good starting point. Investing can lose value, and past performance does not guarantee future results. This page does not provide individualized securities advice or recommend specific investments — work with an appropriate professional for your situation.

Compare VA life insurance programs (such as VGLI and VALife) with private coverage for eligibility, premiums, exclusions, and your household’s needs — see the official VA life insurance options. Review your beneficiaries and how much coverage you need. Ask properly licensed professionals about costs, risks, and whether a product suits you — insurance, including products like indexed universal life (IUL), is not a guaranteed investment and is not universally suitable.

Account for ongoing spending, healthcare, inflation, longevity, and changing circumstances. Periodically review the plan with appropriate professionals so it keeps pace with your life. No retirement income is guaranteed by this page.