Save money in the navy?

The most i want to do is 8 yrs in the navy and during that time i want to go to college. What are some of the ways i can save my money. What are the pros and the cons of saving money in the navy. Also detail information would be helpful

Public Comments

1. Live in the barracks, eat in the mess hall, walk or take a bus (not owning a car will save you a lot), keep the partying and unnecessary spending to a minimum.
2. I was in the Navy and while your in they have tons of ways that you can save money and they tell you about all sorts of opportunities that you have to save. If anything you can always talk to your Supervisors or those people down at the Ops office.
3. A friend's son was in the navy and lived on board and was able to save a LOT of money. No rent, no light bill and if you don't spend it all when you are on leave you can do really well for yourself.
4. I can give some simple advice on saving money in the military. One would be eating in the mess, don't go out. Live on base when not on a ship. These two things will save you a lot of money. Not sure how you feel about dating but I would defiantly not get married until you finish school. You will find the navy is very amenable to you going to college while in it.
5. if your american, remember you can get the GI bill for college to. And certain states will pay for 4 years for you to go to a state funded school and you can pocket the GI bill. IL is that way
6. my son saves a % of his pay check....you know the pay your self first theory.....he also has some bonds, that he gets each month as well as the thrift savings accounts.........plus he lives on base and has a LOT of fun and takes a trip every 2 months with the ITT, so its NOT all billy-no-mates sitting alone counting his pennies...........By the time he comes back from this overseas tour he should have enough for a healthy deposit for a house, which he plans to rent out for extra income and tax advantages etc. regards
7. When I got to BECC (Basic Engineering Common Core a.k.a A school) they brought in a financial advisor to help alleviate questions like this. I would suggest you eat at the galley and leave on base establishments alone the best you can, the food in the galley is pretty good (I really like the multi-grain bread, lol) and its free, well mostly free) whewn you graduate boot camp, do not and I mean DO NOT go on a spending spree. You will have a few thousand dollars leaving boot camp and the first thing half of the graduated recruits will do it buy laptops and cell phones. A. You cannot use a cell phone in the middle of the fleet B. Chances are you won't have enough free time in your first year to even use a laptop. In fact if I were you I would steer clear of Gurnee Mills all together. If you don't have a home town bank, you need to open an account preferably NOW, you will need a voided check to get direct deposit and the banks offered to you (Navy Federal and Armed Forces bank dont have branchs in every state, this becomes more of a pain then one might think) Do not invest in TSP unless you plan on staying in, this is pretty much strictly for those who plan on retiring from the millitary and you will pay penalties when you are honorably discharged (because they will cash your TSP out for you) Enroll in the MGI bill, this is simply a no brainer and when they tell you about it in boot camp for god sakes stay awake and pay attention.
8. OK GO OVERSEAS...........you get cola and alot....try guam i lived there for about 11 years....its awsome
9. My son has been in Iraq for a year and has saved $8,000. I, on the other hand was married with 3 kids and a wife (now ex) who spent it before I saw it, so I didn't do too well during my 22 years of service. Depends on your circumstances.
10. When you get to your first duty station take advantage of the budgeting classes that MWR/Fleet and Family Services offer. You can save money as long as you don't go crazy trying to keep up with what every other guy in the BEQ or in your command is buying. Set up a budget that includes your saving priority but also gives you spending money to blow on fun. Paying yourself first is a big help. That means that you treat putting your money into savings or into your preferred investment as a bill that you HAVE to pay each month. Then forget that it's there. Don't treat your savings as a slush fund to buy that cool new phone or rims for the new car. If you're serious about college you can take courses and the Navy will pay for most if not all of the cost. Look into that. Not only will it give you a leg up on your education but it will take up some of your free time so you're not as likely to go out spending.
11. Possibly earn extra money. While saving money at the same time. If you are looking at a long term solution or possibly starting right now to raise money on an ongoing basis, you might consider a lady who has an organization called Together We Can Change the World, Inc. She designed a website to specifically deal with all sorts of fund raising activities for both school, community and Non-Profits. And, in the process of helping others you can earn some really good income for yourself and your family. You may want to take a look at http://www.npfsolution.com