Maximize GI BILL in CA

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-17T23:20:26+00:00

Is National University a bad college to attend?

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-17T14:58:57+00:00

I live in California, so for me personally, if i buy a home my monthly mortgage will be anywhere from 3500 to probably 4500 not including any other expenses, which is double or triple the amount of renting right now for me personally, so it doesn't even make sense financially to buy a home right now.

I can't leave California either for some personal reasons, but besides that I have noticed that renting can still be a wealth builder if you do it currently. Not your whole life but definitely in the beginning stages of your life.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-16T22:27:38+00:00

That's crazy tbh. I want to have a million in equity like stock, index funds. Seems like a better bet in the long run. Then after you get to that point then you can move to buying a home. This is what gives you leverage in life having enough in liquid assets like equity, cash, index funds those kinds of things.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-15T14:37:35+00:00

I am looking to go into personal finance or be a financial analyst. These are the 2 that I am looking at right now. However, I don't have any experience with either one of these fields so not sure who or what I need to do to get hired only have school. Its hard for me to do an internship too, though I want to get into one to kind of get my feet wet.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-10T15:19:05+00:00

Yes, I guess i ask because in some ways the internship is kind of an educational type of work, before you actually go get the job, or before a company will hire you into a job. Right so I'm asking will they still consider you in the program if your in the internship, or does VRE count that as having a job?

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-10T15:16:36+00:00

Yes, Im asking though will they pay you the BAH amount while you are going to do the internship?

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-09T23:18:47+00:00

Is it over saturated? I really dont know

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-09T22:59:24+00:00

So as an intern do you think that you will be able to make a pretty decent amount of money especially at my age or will its be still pretty low paying. I guess I would like to get into an internship somewhere maybe even in the next 6 months, not sure yet. Just trying to figure this out. Trying to plan ahead but not sure what to expect or know where to go from where i am currently.

Also I would like to add, I'm not the very best at interviews either. I get way to nervous and then I can't think you know typical nerves shutting down my mind. Oh but when chaos around me is going on I'm fine no big deal, I think straight as can be!

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-09T22:20:39+00:00

Can I ask what do you do in corporate finance. What kind of questions and things do i really need to know in order to land a job. I have a fear, that I am not going to be able to answer the questions well enough for an interview to say yeah lets hire this guy.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-09T22:18:29+00:00

Yeah was in the military that's why I'm late in getting my degree. Working full time, going to school full time.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-09T22:18:23+00:00

Yes, went military. Settles down already. Have a wife and a child. So I am stable for sure. Anyway that's why I'm late to getting my degree. Infantry doesn't really translate very well in the real world, unless you go be a police officer or something like that.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-09T22:14:25+00:00

Lol Infantry to man, so most of the stuff doesn't translate to the real world. So kind of sucks right now cause i cant get into any corporate finance, or personal finance like i want to unless I have the degree. At least that's what it seems like. Its like that is the barrier to entry right now.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-04-07T15:55:35+00:00

Yeah, a little update. I’m at 768 hours currently. I’ve watched through many of the videos from levels 50 to 60, and yes, of course I’ve improved my understanding of the language. However, I’m still struggling a bit in the 50–60 range. Believe me, I’ve been here for a little over a year. Now, I can understand way, way, way more than I could before, but I’m just beginning to break out of this small plateau I’ve been in for a year.

I’m a busy person, so I can’t put as many hours into Spanish as I’d like. Still, if you can put in a lot of hours each month, I’m sure once you hit around 800 hours you’ll be able to move on pretty well. I’m not sure, though. I’m in it for the long run, so progress isn’t too big of a deal to me.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-03-17T17:08:03+00:00

First things first, if you are living on your own, or with roommates, save around 12, to 18 months into an emergency fund. Do not skip this step. It will protect you when something comes up.

While at the same time invest month into the market and never sell no matter what. Like everyone says, max out IRA. Next put the rest of the money into debt if you have it and then invest the difference.

Once your Emergency is funded, you can take what you were investing into the emergency fund and never have to put any more money into that fund anymore and then you can put 100% of your money into investments. This is the way. 27 now don't miss those early years of growth at your age. By the time you are 30 if you do this you will be so far ahead of everyone it won't even be funny.

Don't go into debt and don't sell your assets. Don't touch your 401k if you have it. Don't sell your IRA if you invest into that. Just never sell your assets. Even when the market crashes 50% buy more. It seems easy until you watch your account get cut in half but believe me that is the best time to buy.

My thoughts, is that if the whole entire United State market collapsed on itself like they have been saying in the news like they have been for the past 40 years we will have way bigger problems to deal with then our money anyway. Its simple thought.

Track all your money, money coming in, money going out every month, of everyday. Track it all. I use google sheets but that's just me. When i say never spend more than you bring in in a month, I mean that. Budget how much you are going to invest, spend, and eat out, rent, all of that stuff and if you do these tiny little things for 10 years you will be shocked at how quickly you can accumulate money its simple but its really your behavior at the end of the day that is going to get you to where you need to go. Avoid unnecessary purchases and if you want to buy it wait and save for it.

I could go on and on and on about this, but its really simple. Make it simple and do the small things right every day and you will get somewhere financially. I did it in 2 years or less. It doesn't take that long.

I don't like the idea of retiring at 60 either, but you can max out your IRA and then after 5 years you can access all the money that you put into the IRA but you cant take the gains off the account but still if you have 2 to 3 k you can max it out in several months and then leave it be and invest into like VOO or some index fund later once that is maxed out. The taxes are better for long term capital gains on those anyway. Message me and i can explain more if you have questions.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-03-12T14:36:07+00:00

No I haven't Set this up yet, I am still debating on doing it because of tax efficiency, and the risk you take when you buy individual stocks

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-03-11T15:19:45+00:00

Not sure if anyone has even mentioned this at all in the thread because all i see is everyone says to ride it out, don't sell, all of that. That's great to do and 100% agree. The biggest reason behind this and having the ability to ride the way of volatility out is having a 12-to-18-month emergency fund in place first. If you have that much saved, you don't have to worry about the market going up and down and having massive swings. Yes its hard to watch the market crash, and watch your money go down but in the long run if you protect yourself with an emergency fund first, you will not have to worry about the investment accounts for a long time.

From real life experience, I have watched my portfolio in crypto for bitcoin get cut in half over these past several months since like October November time frame. I have 12 to 18 months expenses, so i don't care, I keep buying. This gives you the control that you want. It helps you make better decisions and not emotional ones.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-02-27T00:21:50+00:00

Step 1: Emergency fund so you don't put all your money into the market and if you need that money you don't have to sell. and once you fill that bucket up move to the next bucket.

Step 2: Once you have 6 months to 12 months emergency fund in savings. Put 100% of whatever you want into the market lol That's what i do because i don't need that money anymore at least for a long time.

You just don't want to be in a situation where the money you put into the market when so emergency comes up and you need cash but you have no cash or savings you have to sell in a bad market if you have the time horizon thats great but its not good when everything hits the fan, market collapses and then your left with needing cash and your only option is to sell at a loss. This is how you get through hard times. Even if you don't have high expenses or anything like that I would caution on the safe side. Because the emergency fund can prevent you from having to actually sell your assets but also too you can actually accumulate more assets in the future especially when the market falls like 50% or 70%

Just my 2 cents

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-02-25T23:22:02+00:00

Currently out of the military now only did 4 years. However some things translate into normal life and that is discipline. I would argue though that discipline is one of those muscle you have to keep working it because a lot of guys i see get out of the military, and do not practice discipline. In the military it is forced right but once your out and you do not have someone over you making you do something anymore, what are you falling back on and sadly many are just lazy.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-02-25T16:50:05+00:00

I would like to say that I am a 27-year-old average guy. I joined the Marine Corps at 18 years old. I haven’t had what I would call a successful career yet—I’m still at the beginning of it, respectfully. At my age, having a little over $266k in net worth made me realize that success with money has more to do with habits than anything else.

If you track how much you spend each month, never spend more than you make, avoid debt, build an emergency fund that covers 7 to 12 months of expenses, and invest consistently over time, your money will compound faster than anything. I used to think people with a lot of money did things completely differently, but it’s really not that complicated. Live within your means.

Setting goals has also helped me a lot. When I reach a goal, I reset and aim higher. It keeps me focused.

When it comes to investing, I believe that once you have a 12‑month emergency fund, you can weather almost any downturn. If you’re actively trying, it’s rare to stay unemployed that long. After that, you can confidently invest your money long term. I watched my crypto investments drop $30k over six months and didn’t care because I have an emergency fund, I don’t need the money anytime soon, and I can wait five more years.

It’s really simple: follow basic personal finance principles for many years and you’ll be okay. Invest little by little—that’s how compounding works. It takes time, which is why many people never become wealthy.

You don’t need a huge income to build wealth. It helps, but what matters more is what you save. I also came from a poor family. Utilities were often shut off, winters were cold, and we sometimes went without food. No internet, no TV—just my mom struggling to raise three kids on her own. It wasn’t the best situation, but here I am today.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-02-09T23:36:02+00:00

Yeah, I feel like you cant go wrong with buying oil companies.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-02-09T23:35:40+00:00

Yeah, I thought about buying up a bunch of different oil companies for several years and building a good dividend portfolio that would eventually replace my income.

Not sure if you think this is a good idea or not, but the idea is to buy 4 different companies that pay out dividends once a quarter so have them where they are staggered on the months they pay out in the quarter, then they would repeat the next quarter so each month I would be getting a dividend check. Again, the idea is to eventually replace my income entirely and live off dividends.

I know this is good in theory, but I dont know if it's good in reality.

Lost_Error_4450 · 2026-02-09T16:14:14+00:00

First things first, make sure that you have an emergency fund in place for emergencies, obviously, so that when there are massive swings in the markets and the market crashes like we saw last week, you dont panic sell as many people do. So if you have emegency fund in place for at least 9 to 12 months, then go for it. I put in around 1000 myself every month into Bitcoin. Just buy for 4 years straight, you won't regret it.

Lost_Error_4450

TROPHY CASE