Comments on: Military and Debt

By: Ryan

Ryan — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:00:26 +0000

Joseph, The military does a thorough background check, and one mark against your credit won’t necessarily prevent you from receiving a security clearance. The military is concerned with people whose finances are in such a poor condition that it is a red flag. For example, people who cannot afford to pay their bills each month might be more likely to sell state secrets so they can meet their bills. Just be truthful when filling out the questionnaire and in any interviews and see where it leads. Best of luck, and thanks for your service!

By: king

king — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:29:19 +0000

when i was younger i got my first bank card when i ran out of money i gave the card to my mother to hold for me until i got another job and could continue to put money in the account. She used my card mistakenly and ran up a few hundred dollars in overdraft fees. My account was subsequently closed out and I never got the oppotunity to pay the bank off before this happened. In total i would say i owe less then a 500 dollars and no collection agencies have ever been in contact with me. The only reason i even found out about this is because when i tryed to add money to the account the atm told my my account had been closed. I then proceeded to talk with the teller who told me i couldn’t reopen my account with there bank even if i were to pay them back for the full amount. Im worried that this will keep me from getting my security clearance for my mos in the army can you please give me your thoughts on the matter. thank you

By: shannon

shannon — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 01:29:05 +0000

My boyfriend , and I have discussed marriage seriously. However this was before now. He just started A school for Nukes, and we weren’t looking into getting married right this moment. We both wanted to finish school first, and every thing, but I’m worried if my debt from doctors bills, might effect his security clearance. I need to pay the debt any way, but should I rush this and ask for help from him and my parents? I mean would this actually kill our chances of getting married? I realize it’s my fault for letting this get as bad as it is, but I don’t want to have him lose out on a good finacialy stable job and life over my mistakes.

By: Ryan

Ryan — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 14:27:18 +0000

Hi SAL, I don’t have a solid answer for you. I highly recommend getting a lawyer to work with you on this case, as it could have major implications on your credit and financial future. Best of luck.

By: SAL

SAL — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 18:29:30 +0000

Several years ago I went through a divorce and the agreement was that the home would go to my ex wife. I am still on the note but it is required that she make two attempts per year to re-finance. Now that she is moving and is having issues with the home she has stated to me that she is just going to let it go. It is going to greatly ruin my credit. The divorce decree does state that she is responsible for payments on the house and everything associated with it as it was awarded to her. Can her 1st Sgt or Commander enforce a garnishment of wages from her? This happened once before with one of the vehicles she was awarded and she refused to make payments and they enforced the payment. If so does anyone have any air force regulations associated with this?

By: Ryan

Ryan — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 17:25:22 +0000

Yazy, It's tough to say whether or not you sister would get kicked out of the military for student loan debt. Debt issues must be extreme for a military member to be kicked out of the service and they are handled on a case by case basis. I cannot recommend cosigning on a loan because doing so also makes you responsible for the loan. Should your sister default on the loan, you would be legally liable for the rest of the loan, and $100,000 in debt would be crushing and could potentially damage your finances for decades (student loans cannot be relieved via bankruptcy). Here are some military student loan forgiveness programs which your sister may or may not be eligible for. She should also look into the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act which could potentially help her lower her interest rates on her student loans, and she should also investigate student loan deferment programs which may help ease the burden right now, though it will not eliminate the loans entirely.

By: Yazy

Yazy — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 05:05:51 +0000

My sister joined the Air Force six months ago and just completed boot camp and now 2 weeks ago she went to her base. She owes $100,000 in student loans. She called Wells Fargo to consolidate and she was told she would need a co-signer.I don’t know what to do, I’m 30 years old and I only make 27,000 a year, I have good credit but I barely get by. The problem is my sister told me if she doesn’t get it consolidated she will get kicked out of the Air force.Is this true?

By: Casey

Casey — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 18:27:04 +0000

Not completely on topic, but kind of…
My son’s father owe’s child support to me (he is currently over $20K in arrears due to not paying until it was court ordered when our son was already 2 years old) and it has been taken directly from his military retirement pay…until this month. I just found out from DFAS that his pay is currently suspended, but they won’t tell me why since we are no longer married. Said it could be due to government debt, being unable to locate him (him never informing them of change of address), or many other things. What can I do? I need the money to pay for my son’s incidentals. There is an established court order requiring him to pay and that is how the deduction from pay began. If they have suspended his pay due to paying back other debts, shouldn’t the primary concern for the government be for the welfare of his child? Who should I contact? What should I do? I am so lost at this point…HELP!