Financial Intelligence for Those Who Served
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Knowledge Base
VA Disability Pay Rates 2026
The complete 2026 monthly pay table - every rating from 10% to 100%, veteran alone, with the key add-ons.
Read the article →Free · Read nowTSP Contribution Limits 2026
The $24,500 deferral limit, the $8,000 and $11,250 catch-ups, the match, and the Roth-only catch-up rule.
Read the article →Free · Read nowProperty Tax Exemptions for Disabled Veterans
Total exemptions and dollar-tiered discounts by state - with the exact Texas and Florida numbers.
Read the article →Free · Read nowVA Disability Pay Is Not Taxable Income
What tax-free really means for your AGI, your benefits eligibility, and your effective tax rate.
Read the article →Free · Read nowVA Disability COLA by Year: How the Raise Is Set
Every VA pay raise since the law tied it to Social Security - what the 2.8% 2026 COLA did to each rating, and why 90% to 100% is not a 10% raise.
Read the article →Free · Read nowVA Disability Rates 2027: When the New Table Drops and What to Expect
The 2027 VA pay table is not published yet - here is the exact calendar (CPI-W data in July, SSA announcement in October, new rates December 1) and how to read it the day it lands.
Read the article →Free · Read nowVA DIC Rates 2026: What Survivors Actually Receive
Dependency and Indemnity Compensation for surviving spouses: the $1,699.36 base rate, every add-on, and how it differs from the one-time death gratuity.
Read the article →Free · Read nowVA Aid & Attendance in 2026: The Pension Add-On That Pays for Care
Who qualifies for Aid & Attendance, the 2026 maximum pension rates with the add-on (about $2,358/mo veteran-alone), and the net-worth and look-back rules.
Read the article →Free · Read nowMedicaid Spousal Impoverishment 2026: What the At-Home Spouse Keeps
The 2026 federal numbers that decide how much of the couple's income and assets a nursing-home spouse's Medicaid case can touch: CSRA $32,532-$162,660, MMMNA $2,705-$4,066.50.
Read the article →Free · Read nowWhat Assisted Living Actually Costs in 2026
The national medians families pay in 2026 - assisted living $5,419/mo, memory care $6,690/mo, home care $35/hr - and the add-on fees that swing the real bill.
Read the article →Free · Read nowIRS Mileage Rate 2026: Two Rates in One Year
72.5 cents a mile for business January-June, then a rare mid-year jump to 76 cents July 1 - the 2026 table for business, medical, moving, and charitable miles.
Read the article →Free · Read nowHSA Limits 2026: $4,400 Self / $8,750 Family - Plus the Rules That Trip People
The 2026 HSA contribution ceiling, the $1,000 age-55 catch-up, the new Bronze/Catastrophic eligibility, and the family-limit rule married couples get wrong.
Read the article →Run Your Own Numbers
Free Tools — they work right now. Results appear instantly; "Email me this" sends the same numbers to your inbox. Still free, always.
VA Disability Pay Calculator
Official 2026 veterans' compensation rates, effective December 1, 2025 — source: VA.gov compensation-rate tables (verified 2026-10-15; every row regression-tested in this build). At 10–20% a dependent spouse does not increase the rate.
Monthly
$552.47
Per year
$6,629.64
Tax-free for federal income tax. Children, parents, and Aid & Attendance add more — see the KB article.
TSP Max-Out Planner
2026 elective deferral limit $24,500 (IRS). Catch-ups: +$8,000 at 50+, +$11,250 at 60-63.
Catch-up contributions are Roth-only if your prior-year wages exceeded the SECURE 2.0 threshold ($150,000 in 2025 wages for 2026); otherwise they can be traditional.
Military Retirement Estimator
Pension = average of your highest 36 months of base pay × multiplier. Multiplier: 2.5% per year (high-3 legacy system) or 2.0% per year (BRS).
A simple model: it does not apply the statutory multiplier cap or special cases (disability retirement, TERA, CRDP/CRSC), and BRS includes TSP matching this estimate does not model. Figures per militarypay.defense.gov; confirm with your finance office before making decisions.
VA Loan Comparison ($0 down)
VA loans require no down payment and no monthly mortgage insurance. The VA funding fee applies unless you are exempt (e.g., receiving VA disability).
Principal & interest only — excludes taxes, insurance, and (for conventional loans under 20% down) private mortgage insurance, which VA loans never charge. Funding-fee table re-checked live at va.gov on 2026-10-15 (first use, less than 5% down: 2.15%; subsequent use: 3.3%). Confirm all figures at va.gov before acting.
SBP vs. Term Life Modeler
SBP premium is 6.5% of your elected base amount; the survivor annuity is 55% of that base, for life (DFAS).
A mathematical comparison only — SBP pays an inflation-adjusted lifetime annuity and cannot lapse; term insurance pays a one-time benefit and expires. SBP is “paid up” after 30 paid years and age 70. The election at retirement is largely irrevocable — talk with a licensed insurance professional before electing or declining. Figures per DFAS (dfas.mil); confirm current rates there before acting.
Property-Tax Exemption Finder
Texas and Florida checked against the statute text, September 2026; other states point you to the right office.
TOTAL exemption on your residence homestead — you pay $0 property tax on the home (Tax Code 11.131).
How to file: take your VA award letter to your county property appraiser/assessor. Exemptions generally are not retroactive — file the year you qualify.
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