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Debbie, for several years now, Blue Star Families has been
conducting a survey to look at what's going on
with military families.
And this year, with the help of USAA, you guys dug a little
bit deeper into personal finances and what's happening
on the financial front.
We did.
This year, we really asked a lot of
questions about finances.
This is our fourth year doing the survey, and I think this
is the year we've asked the most questions.
There was a lot of great information that came out of
those questions, the first being about 65% of our
military families are saying that they are experiencing
stress related to their financial conditions.
I believe that, because when I go out and talk to groups,
I'll ask them that question--
how many of you are feeling stress around what's going on
with your money?
And typically 90% or more raise their hands.
So I think that's a right on finding.
Yeah. and what we found more specifically was that the
uncertainty in the military lifestyle, spouse employment,
lots of PCS moves, all those things factor into those
stressors, because there's a financial component to all
those things.
And with all the change, the mobility, it can be difficult
to take a little bit of time, sit down and figure out, hey,
here's what our financial goals are, here's what we're
trying to accomplish.
And I think if people have a financial plan that covers
their insurance, their investments, their savings,
all that can really help them feel like they're in charge of
their personal finances.
Yeah.
I think for military families particularly, being proactive
about their finances tends to take away some of that stress
that they feel.
When there is uncertainty, at least they have a plan
financially.
Exactly.
And with that uncertainty, for example, surrounding
retirement, what's going to happen with my benefits, I
think the other answer is build a plan that's not solely
reliant on what's going to come from the government or
the military.
So start your savings program, participate in the TSP.
All those things can make a difference.
Yeah.
I think that way, military families sort of take their
finances into their own hands.
And that makes things a little less stressful when you are
moving, when you are experiencing uncertainty, you
don't know where the next place you're going to live is.
I know as a military spouse myself, I've experienced all
of those things.
And I know having a plan always helps.
That's right.
And there was also really a craving, it sounded like, for
financial education, with about 90% of people saying,
hey, we need to put emphasis on financial education.
And it is out there, right?
Yeah, that's true.
I think military families do want that education.
The problem is they don't always know where
to go to get it.
About 50% of our respondents said they didn't know where to
go to ask questions about financial information.
But each service has a family service center, and it's
specific to each of the service branches.
But that's available to all military servi--
To help folks do a budget or a build a savings plan, pay off
debt, all those things.
Exactly.
They can go directly to their family service center and get
that information.
So we just need to get the word out that that service is
available, because not everybody knows it's there.
Great.
Great survey, and if folks want to find out more, they
can go to the Blue Star Families website and see the
whole survey.
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