The Military Money Manual Podcast College Finances for Military Families | Kate Horrell's New Book #192
Is the wrong strategy for your GI Bill costing you over $100,000?!
Today's guest is Kate Horrell, author of the new book "College Finances for Military Families," reveals why the "fair share" approach to education benefits might be the most expensive mistake military families make, GI Bill basics, and all the things to know about college for your military kids.
Key Topics:GI Bill Transfer Strategy
- Why transferring your GI Bill at exactly 6 years of service is important
- The one-time 4-year service obligation that trips up many service members
- How to add dependents and redistribute benefits after initial transfer
- Documentation tips to protect your family's benefits
Beyond Equal Distribution
- Real case study: How strategic planning saved one family $110,000
- Why thinking "flexibly" about family resources beats rigid equal splits
- When to give one child the entire GI Bill and another child all the 529 funds
529 Plans and Military Families
- State residency confusion solved for military families
- Qualified expenses include K-12 private school, technology, and more
- How grandparents can contribute while maximizing tax advantages
- Why "it's too late to start" thinking costs families money
Yellow Ribbon Program Essentials
- The motorcycle and sidecar analogy that clarifies everything (Yellow Ribbon always goes along with the GI Bill- can't be separate)
- How "full Yellow Ribbon" schools eliminate out-of-pocket tuition costs
Maximizing Benefits for Veterans
- Why veterans aren't optimizing their benefits like military families do
- Strategic timing for undergraduate vs. graduate school usage
- Location arbitrage opportunities with Military Housing Allowance
Links mentioned today:
- Kate's website: katehorrell.com
- Kate's book: "College Finances for Military Families" (available on https://www.katehorrell.com/books/ or Amazon)
- Kate's amazing resources include:
- Military Family Confidently Prepared Life Binder katehorrell.com/confidently-prepared-life-binder/
- Military Separation Checklist katehorrell.com/military-separation-checklist/
- Military Retirement Checklist katehorrell.com/military-retirement-checklist/
- Kate's LinkedIn linkedin.com/in/katehorrell
- Kate's Facebook facebook.com/KateHorrellFinanceExpert/
- Kate's Instagram: instagram.com/realkatehorrell/
- Kate's coaching services and free consultations at katehorrell.com/work-with-kate/
Bottom Line: Stop thinking about education benefits as individual entitlements and start thinking about them as family resources to be strategically deployed. The difference could save your family tens of thousands of dollars.
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