Take Care of Your Heirs
A perennial estate planning horror story is the one in which a man dies before revising his will leaving everything to his ex-wife instead of to his current spouse as he intended.  While none of us would allow this to happen, we could have other potential horror stories lurking in our retirement plans.    Beneficiary designations should be reviewed annually and updated whenever there is a significant “life event” such as birth, death or divorce.  That single document is more powerful than you might think because it can override the instructions in your will or trust.  Your plan administrator is responsible for maintaining these instructions but paperwork can get lost and

Heard About the Survivor Benefit Plan-Dependency Indemnity Compensation Court Case Win?
In August, three widows won their court case against the Feds to have both their SBP and DIC paid in full. Before you start to celebrate, you need to hear the rest of the story… This case specifically related to the law that allows widows who remarry after age 57 to keep their DIC benefits. Their case argued that the wording of the law that allows continued DIC after age 57 and remarriage also mandates full payment of both SBP and DIC. This specific provision of the law bars offsets from any “veterans’ benefits.” While the Feds argued that SBP is not a “veterans’ benefit” because SBP is paid by DOD and not the VA, the courts didn’t buy it. So the bottom line

Gold Rushes Don’t Always Pan Out
In nominal terms gold just hit an all-time high and everyone seems focused on the fact that since 1999 gold prices have climbed from roughly $250 an ounce to well over $1,000.  An equally important but overlooked fact is that after trading for the (then) record price of $850 an ounce in 1980, gold prices generally declined over the following 19 years.  In 1980 there was no shortage of “experts” predicting gold prices above $1,000.  Inflation was running at double-digit rates and, as everybody knows, gold is a hedge against inflation so investing at least 15% of your portfolio in gold was considered to be a conservative strategy.    Now you could say that those exp

VA Extends ‘Agent Orange’ Benefits
News from the VA on the latest illnesses attributed to Agent Orange.  If you need help working with the VA on your claim, I recommend you contact your county Veteran Service Officer who works for your state government VA Department.  To find your nearest county service officer refer to this VA site for state VA Departments.  I find the state VSOs to be helpful because they can counsel on both state and federal programs. VA Extends “Agent Orange” Benefits to More Veterans Parkinson’s Disease, Two Other Illnesses Recognized  

Latest News on the Stop-Loss Retro Pay Program
This comes thanks to the Stars and Stripes Newspaper. Looks like 21 Oct will be the start of the program and everyone eligible has until 21 Oct 2010 to apply for payment. Help spread the word to your family, friends and neighbors who may be involved. While this speaks of the Army, so far it seems the Navy and Marines, who have the fewest members due this payment, will probably contact their eligible members personally.  We haven’t heard from the Air Force on their possible game plan.  I’ll post new details as soon as I get them.  Same timelines apply to all Services. Quote: Army says stop-loss back payments are set to begin Sol