Retired Pay World

CSRS — The Background and Nitty-gritty

I’m continuing today with an excellent summary of the CSRS (Civil Service Retirement System) that was put together by the OPM (Office of Personnel Management, the successor to the old Civil Service Commission).  Some might ask, perhaps, why are you just republishing large blocks of information here … it’s already on line?  Well, you’re right, [...]

NPV (Net Present Value) Basics

We also field a lot of questions on NPV … what it is, why a participant in a divorce should care about it, and how one can calculate it.  here’s an article about student loans that has a better explanation of NPV than any of the mumbo-jumbo I have seen from experts in the pension [...]

Just What is the TSP?

We field a lot of questions on the TSP — Thrift Savings Plan.  Here’s a good capsule description and a deep resource of links useful for those who need to drill down to the details:

The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) is a retirement savings and investment plan for Federal employees.  Congress established the TSP in the [...]

FERS, the Background and Nitty Gritty

Here’s a very well put together site, courtesy of your and my tax dollar that helps explain the intricacies of FERS. It’s not an easy program to fully comprehend or to evaluate, but little by little we’ll cut it down to size:
The Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) became effective in 1987, and almost all [...]

Happy 4th — How To Protect Those Rights

Well we’re all celebrating the Fourth of July here in the US of A.  And a Happy Fourth it is for all I hope.
But let’s not remember that the reason those patriots declared our freedom from tyranny had a serious purpose.  Today I see, again and again, law enforcement and other government [...]

CSRS – FERS — What’s The Difference

I promised I’d post more articles here to try to “de-geek” some of these subjects. I already have pages of arcane detail about CSRS and FERS, but darn little that compares the two in a manner an non-geek might understand. Here’s a neat article from an expert that gives a good start:
According to [...]

When The 62nd Birthday Blows Up In Your Face

By Brian Friel
bfriel@govexec.com
Some military veterans who went on to civilian careers in government are getting a nasty surprise when they turn 62. Their pensions are being cut.
The Catch-62, as veterans call it, affects people who served in the military after 1956 and then were hired as civilian employees under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) [...]

Me and Bill, Where It All Began

I’ve been neglecting this blog for too long.  My June Resolution is, make something happen here.
One thing that might help is if I told you all a little about myself.  I’m a retiree from the Federal Civil Service (CSRS) and also a retiree from the USAF Reserve Forces.  I had a 31 year marriage, that [...]

Earning An Income From Photography

There are many ways in which photography can greatly enrich your life. It all starts with simple enjoyment which quickly leads to passion and a desire to make money doing what you love. Whether you are a novice still learning how to create and develop amazing pictures or are an experienced photographer with years of knowledge, there are ways to take this passion and turn it into a money-making venture.

Does Your Blog Need a Newsletter?

A lot of questions I get often involve news letters.  Are they  valuable, should I have one, etc. Here are some words of wisdom from an expert:
Friday, September 18, 2009
Your Newsletter
Publishing a newsletter is simple and inexpensive, and is an important part of your overall Web marketing strategy.  This issue explains why a newsletter is [...]

Values often Neglected – Part 2, Sick Leave

If you have a client retiring under the CSRS (Civil Service Retirement System) with unused sick leave … or you have a client whose employed soon to be ex-spouse is employed under CSRS, there may be many thousands of dollars on the table that you haven’t thought about.
Typically, even a professional actuary-based [...]

Values Often Neglected – Part 1, Annual Leave

As with all the information I provide here on this site, as a public service, remember that I am neither a lawyer nor an accountant or actuary. The purpose of this information is to bring things to your attention that may require attention when considering actions during a divorce. If you are reading this, it’s [...]

Why Electronic Book Readers Can Make Life Easier For Students

With the introduction of the electronic book reader and the advanced technology it brings, many wonder if this could perhaps be the end of the written word as we know it. On the contrary however, ebook readers have taken the reading experience into a whole new level, and in the case of students for instance, the use of ebook reading devices can make students’ lives easier. If they have all their books conveniently stored as ebooks in their devices, they need not lug around heavy books all the time and can instead, focus on the business of learning. College students especially, can have the most benefit from using electronic book readers.

Proper valuation of pension plans

This is the first in our ten (or so) part series on mistakes made in divorce of Federal employee’s.  To set a ground rule, I’m going to always refer to the employee and the non-employee.  It’s up to the reader to translate these terms into the husband or wife and/or the petitioner or respondent.  In [...]

Types of Retirement — Our Roadmap

I’ve just brought this site back from obscurity and into the blog format, and the page views and advertising responses have been gratifying. Since we so far seem to be doing something right, I’ve decided to outline where we intend to go over the next few weeks:

All of Your Tax Relief Options Reviewed by Preferred Tax Relief

Do not ever think that the IRS is out to get you. Making sure your filling correctly should decrease the chance of dealing with the IRS. Even though it should be easy it doesn’t always get done properly. Sometimes you make mistakes in calculating your tax liabilities or you just didnt know that your spouse is doing some miscalculations in your joint tax accounts. The best way to prevent a stressful tax situation is to act on any tax debt immediately. It could really help if you consult a tax relief attorney at Preferred Tax Relief. There are other types of tax relief help you can look at.