How to Escape Being a Landlord: 5 Tax Tips for Military Service Members

Military families often build real estate portfolios through VA loans and PCS moves, but managing properties can eventually become impractical or unpleasant. This breakout session with Ian Gates will explore strategies for stepping back while minimizing tax impacts, starting with simple solutions and progressing to more advanced approaches. Ian will discuss the personal residence capital gains exclusion for Military Members under 26 U.S. Code § 121(d)(9) and provide tips on shopping for property managers. He will then explain property exchanges allowed by §1031 of the Internal Revenue Code, highlighting how to enable heirs to benefit from a step-up in basis. Finally, Ian will describe how Delaware Statutory Trusts (DSTs) can provide passive income and diversification, plus allow transitioning into UPREITs to avoid repeated reinvestment requirements.

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Taxes, Investing, and Government Benefits

In this session, we will explore the financial landscape for military retirees, focusing on key areas to enhance their financial well-being. You'll gain insights into how taxes impact both Enlisted and Officer retirees, helping you optimize their tax strategies. Additionally, we will review various options for managing the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) post-military separation, ensuring informed decision-making for retirement savings. Furthermore, we'll cover essential information on Government Benefits, including Servicemembers Group Life Insurance (SGLI) and the Survivors Benefit Plan (SBP), providing a comprehensive understanding of how these benefits can support long-term financial security. This session aims to equip financial advisors with the knowledge needed to guide military retirees confidently in achieving their financial goals.

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Grief to Growth: Building Financial Security for Military Survivors

After the loss of a military member or veteran, surviving family members face a complex landscape of financial decisions intertwined with their grief. This panel, led by professionals who are military widows, financial professionals and experienced counselors, provides compassionate guidance on helping survivors navigate financial challenges with sensitivity and empowerment. Attendees will learn about key financial resources available to military widows and survivors, strategies for building financial stability, and ways to create a sustainable future for themselves and their families. Discussion will cover long-term planning, emotional considerations, and practical steps toward financial independence, while exploring the unique impact of grief on financial decision-making. With a focus on empowerment and resilience, this session offers valuable insights and actionable advice for financial professionals and counselors working with military widows and survivors, equipping them with tools to provide both financial and emotional support through each stage of the journey.

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Mastering the Blended Retirement System (BRS)

Gain valuable insights into the Blended Retirement System (BRS) and its impact on military clients’ financial futures. This session will provide a comprehensive overview of the BRS, including its key components, such as the reduced pension multiplier, Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) contributions, continuation pay, and lump-sum options. Attendees will learn actionable strategies for tailoring financial plans and where to find the resources service members need to maximize benefits through real-life case studies and an interactive Q&A session.

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Military Stigma, Overcoming Harmful Stereotypes and Stigma to Successfully Serve the Miltary and Veteran Community

We are familiar with “wounded” warriors and “homeless” veterans but less so with student-veteran graduation rates, veteran entrepreneur success rates, and the impact of veteran volunteerism. This lens of military and veterans creates misperceptions that lead to adverse outcomes for veterans. First is negative self-perception. When veterans self-identify with negative narratives, they feel disconnected from the workforce, their financial success, and even their communities. Second is the misperception of a veteran as not belonging to the “traditional” veteran community. Veterans may perceive others as having done more, suffering more, or needing more. This disconnect can lead to a lack of service utilization as someone “needs it more.” We need to address these stigmas by altering our language to describe veterans and the services they receive. We also need to frame our services with empathy, recognize veterans' inherent value, encourage benefit utilization, and maximize our service to a unique client population.

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