Financial Frontlines®

Are you a person who planned ahead and prepared legal documents such as a durable power of attorney for health care, a living will, and a power of attorney for your other personal/financial affairs? Well, if you have contact with any VA services, you would probably be well served by filling out the VA’s specific legal documents to make things really official.

You see, the VA is federal and your legal documents are based in state law. That can make things confusing depending on where you signed your state documents, what your state of residence was at the time of signature, your state of residence when you are patient, or where your treatment as a patient is administered. We military retirees are a mobile group.

The VA Advanced Directive for Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care and a Living Will is VA form 10-0137. The VA power of attorney forms to appoint a Veteran Service Office or an individual as your representative to handle a VA claim or appeal are VA form 21-22 and VA form 21-22a respectively. All are available on-line, just Google the form numbers or go by your VA office or Veteran Service Office (VSO). Find a local VSO at http://www.va.gov/statedva.htm to ask specific questions.

I’m sitting in a restaurant for lunch and two people at the table next to me start talking about investing and their 401ks. True story.

I’m not good with ages but they were 30ish give or take. Their firm just stopped the company match on their 401ks. Here’s the short version of their discussion:

• Company stopped the matching contributions.
• Their account values are down and they can’t get ahead.
• They are tired of the up and down turns in the markets.
• The economy is in the dumper.
• They would rather put their money somewhere with consistent growth.
• Maybe they should pull their money out of the 401k and use CDs.

As much as I was moved to say something to them, I didn’t. I have no problem minding my own business…really! Besides, to properly address all their issues would have taken the whole lunch time and more.

What eventually struck me was that for their age, they have only known the flat market we’ve been in since March 2000. Check out a stock chart using the DOW Index from Jan 2000 to now. Notice how we have hovered above and below the 11,000 level. No wonder their opinion of investing was sour. The younger investors of today need some perspective.

The flat market over the last dozen years is normal. Flat markets happen; now, 1966-1982, 1946-1950, 1905-1917 and so forth. The flat markets happen after periods of strong growth and they tend to last a while as you see. They provide an opportunity for the economy to cool off, retool and resynchronize as we, the country and world, prepare for the next round of growth. Unfortunately to someone who’s only investment experience is during a flat market, the investment world is flat. Have no fear younger investors, the world is not flat.

Our human brains focus best in today’s world. What’s going on today forms our opinions and how behave with our money. At the end of every day, we are told the DOW is up or down. The evening news talking heads always spin the down days as though we all lost our shirts. On the good days, we’re rich! Then we take action based on information from this very limited perspective–action doomed to fail.

Investors must use a long term strategy. In the short term, the markets are up and down and random. Only speculators try to make money in the volatility of the short term markets. True investors see a bigger picture. The stock market is up 72% of the time over the long haul. Looking at it this way, realize that down markets are temporary and must be exploited before the inevitable climb upward starts again.

Some of you may have decided to use your post 9/11 GI Bill for your children’s education.  Some of you may have also set up a 529 Plan to help pay for their college education.   If you have both in place, you have the possibility to pay for your children’s college at a reduced price and potentially with tax advantaged funds.  BUT…the tax ramifications are not straight forward and you’ll want to think this one through before you “pull the trigger”.

First of all,  Veterans Administration (VA) benefits are always tax-free.  You will not pay taxes on the amount the VA pays for tuition and fees, the monthly Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) or the book allowance.  Ever.  So that part is pretty straight forward.

But using your 529 Plan assets is a little more complicated.  Distributions from a 529 Plan are tax-free IF they are used for qualified educations expenses.  But, qualified education expenses must first be reduced by any tax-free education assistance received.  So, if you use 529 Fund assets for expenses already covered by the GI Bill you may owe taxes and a potential penalty.  Here are some specific examples:

GI Bill covers full tuition and fees (in state) and student has no other qualified expenses.

In this case, since the GI Bill covers full tuition, any withdrawal from a 529 Plan would be subject to tax and penalty.  The tax would be on the amount of the distribution that is classified as “earnings” and the penalty is an additional 10% tax on the earnings.

GI Bill covers a portion of the tuition and fees (out-of-state or private school) and student has no other qualified expenses

In this case, since there is a difference between the tuition paid and the amount covered by the GI Bill, then an amount equal to that difference can be withdrawn tax-free.  Any amount over the excess would be subject to tax and penalty.

GI Bill covers all or a portion of tuition and fees and student has room and board expenses

This situation is a little less clear.  IRS Pub 570 states that you must reduce the total qualified education expenses by tax-free educational assistance received.  This amount is called the adjusted qualified education expenses.  To calculate it the amount of GI Bill received to pay for tuition and fees will be deducted from tuition and fees paid only.  Also, in this case, since room and board are included as qualified expenses then I believe the BAH received should be used to reduce the qualified education expenses which in this case include room and board.  But…the IRS Pub isn’t clear.  Like in situation one and two above, if the amount withdrawn exceeds the adjusted qualified expenses, the excess is subject to tax and penalty.  This is one where you will want to talk to your personal tax advisor and get a determination based upon your specific situation.

So based on these restrictions what happens when you can’t use all the money in the 529 Plan for qualified education expenses.  There are a couple of “outs”  First, you can roll the funds over to another child, grandchild, spouse and certain other qualified people.  Also, again in my interpretation, since you could not use all the funds due to VA benefits, you can withdraw the funds without penalty.  You’ll still owe taxes on the earnings but you won’t pay the 10% penalty.

So there you have it.  529 Plans and the GI Bill do work together, but the tax consequences are a little complicated.