guide to federal employees benefit milestones

Key Milestones in the Career of a Federal Employee [Updated]

Key Milestones in the Career of a Federal Employee – Updated I’ve seen it many times.  Federal employees who thought they would only spend a few years as a Fed and move on, only to find themselves still a Fed 20+ years down the road.  This unintentional floating along in a Federal job can be

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Unusual things to know about retiring December 31st 2022

Unusual things to know about retiring December 31st December 31st is always a popular retirement date, but this year, 2022, it’s especially popular – because this year December 31st is also the last day of a pay-period, and last day of the month, and the last day of the leave year – a trifecta! What’s

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Should you accelerate payments towards your mortgage (or any other debt)?

Should you accelerate payments towards your mortgage (or any other debt)?

Should you accelerate payments towards your mortgage (or any other debt)? I see people do this all the time, especially in the pre-retirement group. Many people are uncomfortable having any debt, including their mortgage, and they are driven to enter retirement “debt free.” To rid themselves of debt they make additional payments of principle each

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image from retire early in the year and get free money from the FSA

Retire early in the year, and get free money from FSA

Retire early in the year, and get free money from FSA I admit – I get a guilty feeling when I share this one. Health Care FSA has this interesting feature – it reimburses you for your medical expenses even with money that you have not yet funded into your FSA. See here: https://www.fsafeds.com/support/faq/all/1003  “If

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Picture of a a Q&A for the retirement planning article

Q&A – Funding & Replenishing the 10-year bucket

Q&A – Funding & Replenishing the 10-year bucket Question Hi Stephen, I set up the 10-year conservative bucket, as you instructed.  It represents 10-years of investment income.  I love the idea!  I just had some questions:  When do I draw income from the conservative bucket, and do I need to replenish the conservative bucket as some point?  If yes,

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Which retirement account should I take money from?

Q&A – Which retirement account should I take money from?

Q&A – Which retirement account should I take money from? Question Dear Stephen, We have identified a house which isn’t on the market yet but will be soon.  The asking price will probably be 1.5 million and I want to put $650,000 down on it. My question is where/how do I take my money out

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How will my social security impact my CSRS offset pension?

How will my Social Security impact my CSRS Offset Pension? CSRS-offset has got to be one of the more obscure, challenging areas of federal retirement. CSRS-offset retirees have a retirement benefit which combines CSRS and Social Security. The CSRS portion, however, will be reduced by the amount of Social Security earned while employed in CSRS-offset.The

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What is the difference between FSA and HSA?

What is the difference between FSA and HSA? Updated 2020

What is the difference between FSA and HSA? Updated 2020 Both accounts allow you pay for qualified medical expenses with tax-free money (thus avoiding Federal, State, Social Security, and Medicare taxes – usually around a 37.65% tax savings). Here’s how the accounts differ: Contribution Limit: FSA has a maximum contribution limit of $2,750.  HSA limits

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