MBA Board of Directors approve a refund of premium to MBA members in the amount of $1.15 million

The Board of Directors of Military Benefit Association (MBA) approved a refund of premium to MBA members in the amount of $1.15 million. Premium refund checks were mailed December 2009. The issue of a refund of premium is possible due to the excellent financial health of the Association. Apply for MBA – sponsored insurance today. We are here to make sure your family’s future is secure!

Do you like getting a great Deal? Find Government Surplus Auctions & Sales !

Do you want to find a great deal? Here are 5 web-sites that give access and information to auctions and sales of a variety of government surplus;


1) GovSales.gov is a catalog with items for sale from federal government: www.govsales.gov/html/index.htm
2) Bid4Assets is an online auction, selling a wide variety of surplus: www.bid4assets.com
3) U.S. Treasury – IRS auction of property seized by the government: www.treas.gov/auctions/irs
4) Military Surplus furniture, appliances, camping gear, jeeps, computers and more: www.drms.dia.mil/sales
5) Department of Justice: U.S Marshalls Service property seized by law enforcement www.usdoj.gov/marshalls

All the above web-sites were borrowed from the ‘Money Book’ First Edition

Another cool web-site that you may be interested in is ‘Operation Classifieds’ a brand new site that allows military families to advertize items to other military families throughout military bases worldwide at no cost: http://www.operationclassifieds.com

Military Benefit Association Scholarship Program

This program is administered by Scholarship Management Services, a department of Scholarship America. It is a nonprofit educational support and student aid service organization that assists in expanding educational opportunities and encourages education achievement. Awards are granted without regard to race, color, creed, religion, gender, disability, or national origin.

Applicants for the scholarship must be dependent children of members of the Military Benefit Association. They must maintain a 2.5 or higher cumulative grade point average on a 4.0 scale or its equivalent. Applicants must have a high school degree or GED and plan to enroll in a full-time undergraduate course of study at an accredited two- or four-year college, university or vocational-technical school by fall of the year in which the award is granted. Current full-time undergraduate students enrolled in an accredited school are also eligible to apply. Up to five $2,000 scholarships will be awarded each year.

Interested applicants must complete their application and send it to Scholarship America with current entire official transcripts of grades. The application must be postmarked by February 15, 2010. The applicant must gather and submit all necessary information and answer all questions thoroughly. Information received is considered confidential, to be reviewed only by Scholarship America.

Applications will be available in December 2009. To obtain an application, please contact MBA's Member Services department at 1-800-336-0100 or 703-968-6200 locally, extension 3. You may also submit a written request for an application to Military Benefit Association, P.O. Box 221110, Chantilly, VA 20153-1110.

"Lift The Spirits" November Winners Announced!

Military Benefit Association's “Lift The Spirits” contest was launched November 1st to support the brave men and women deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Thank you to everyone who submitted such great ideas! While MBA would love to honor all the November entries, we decided to carry out not one, but two ideas to lift the spirits. Our winners for November are Erin McQuaig from Nick town, PA and Kimber Stolz from Colorado Springs, CO.

We will be sending the gifts to Erin's husband and Kimber's fiance soon. Both men are stationed in Afghanistan.

To all our deployed troops, we send you best wishes for this holiday season.

If your name was not chosen, please enter again here. We will be selecting a new winner each month.

Happy Thanksgiving!

There are so many ways to give thanks this holiday season. If you had $100, how would you use it to thank a loved one or family member who is deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan this holiday season? Through Military Benefit Association’s “Lift the Spirits Contest,” we can help you give a special thank you to your loved one. Visit http://www.facebook.com/MilitaryBenefit and post your suggestion on our wall for others to see – THEN post it to http://www.mbaevent.org/MilitarySupport to officially enter! We’ll take all your ideas, as different as they may be, and pick a winner at the end of each month.
Image courtesy holidays.kaboose.com

Excellent News from the DoD: Your Military Benefits are Improving

As a member of the armed services, it can be tough to stay abreast of all the changes, especially as it relates to your benefits. MBA wants to help you sort through and better understand some of these changes as they occur. There have been two recent changes that will help you improve your financial situation: the increase in Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH), and a new transferability option to the Post-9/11 GI Bill.


So What's New in the World of BAH

BAH is a housing allowance for those living off-base. The amount is based on geographic duty location, pay grade, and dependency status. The BAH rate increased an average of 6.9 percent for 2009! BAH tables are updated and released every year between December 15 and January 1. There are several types of BAH to satisfy various housing situations that occur among military members. For more information and to calculate your 2009 BAH rate, please visit the DoD information site and for types of BAH, visit militarypay.defense.gov.

Capitalizing On The Opportunity – Get More for your BAH Dollar

Have you ever thought about living off-base? This year’s expected 6.9 percent increase in BAH coupled with historically low interest rates provides uniformed service members with a unique opportunity to get into the housing market. The U.S. is experiencing a decline in inflation, from a 5 percent inflation rate to 1.3 percent, according to inflationdata.com. With this decrease in inflation and increase in BAH rates, uniformed service members now have more buying power. This presents an excellent opportunity to move off-base in the midst of lower housing costs and the lowest inflation rate in more than 54 years!

For a look at historic inflation rates, visit the USA Inflation Calculator.

What Should Uniformed Service Members Do

If you live on-base, take time to research housing costs near you to ensure you are getting the most for your BAH allotment dollars. Although house prices and rents have leveled off in some parts of the country since 2008, there are still other places where prices continue to fall. If you are thinking about buying a house, now may be the time to sit down with a financial planner to see what you can afford. If you are renting, what you agreed to pay a year ago for your rental might have been a good price then, but maybe there is a better deal today. Keep in mind BAH comes with individual rate protection, which prevents decreases in housing allowances, as long as the status of a uniformed service member remains unchanged.

For more on BAH, visit:

http://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/perdiem/bahfaq.html - just FAQs
http://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/perdiem/BAH-Primer.pdf - All you want to know about BAH (you will need Adobe Acrobat to view this file)

Sneak Preview: Post-9/11 GI Bill Transferability

Allowing career service members to transfer their GI Bill benefits to family members has long been one of the most requested items among military family readiness and advocacy groups and now it is finally a reality.

The buzz is out–look for further insight and tips on this new option that’s available to you! Follow our blog to see our post on Post-9/11 GI Bill transferability.

Lift the Spirits Contest--Launched Today!

Do you want to lift the spirits of your friend or loved one who is deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan? Tell us what you have in mind and we’ll make your idea a reality for your servicemember. One winner will be chosen every month. Join our facebook fan page, http://facebook.com/MilitaryBenefit and post your suggestion on our wall for others to see–THEN post it to http://www.mbaevent.org to officially enter! You may enter as many times as you’d like with different ideas.

We will notify the winner of the month before the end of the following month. We will carry out the lucky winner’s idea and post it on our blogs: militarybenefitassociation.ning.com, militarybenefitassociation.wordpress.com and militarybenefitassociation.blogspot.com as well as our Facebook fan page.

Next announcement: December 1.

Lift the Spirits of Your Friend or Loved One Who is Deployed - Military Benefit Association May Be Able to Help!

Do you want to lift the spirits of your friend or a loved who is deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan? On November 1st, Military Benefit Association will launch a new contest to show our support for those deployed as well as those who are stateside. Tell us what you have in mind to lift the spirits of your friend or loved one who is deployed. We’ll choose one winner every month

Please see our website and Facebook pages for more details and check back here on November 1st, 2009.
http://www.militarybenefit.org
http://www.facebook.com/militarybenefit

Financial Tips for Soldiers

Holidays are right around the corner, and this year, many of us are more worried about travel and gift costs than the joy that the holidays should bring. Military Benefit Association has a few tips to help you get through the next few months and protect your financial well-being.

1. Verify your charities.

Be sure you know if your donation is tax deductible for you. Also, be sure to know how far your generous dollars are going--some donation dollars end up going to professional fundraisers, mailings, and callers while some are volunteer-run. Check out the charities you give to on the internet and call to make sure the charity is registered at www.nasconet.org/agencies. Unfortunately, some charities don’t have the infrastructure to help their cause even if you give them money. Others end up being scam artists that take advantage of the generosity of others. Other great information on charitable giving can be found here: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/telemarketing/tel01.shtm

2. Register for online banking and overdraft protection.

Online banking is the easiest way to check your balances around-the-clock and make sure you're not overspending on gifts, travel, or other holiday necessities. Overdraft protection links credit cards to your checking account and bypasses $35-$50 overdraft fees in case you lose track.

3. Protect yourself from identity theft.

People lose and steal credit card information daily. One trick you can use to minimize damage is write "Ask for ID" on the back of the credit card in permanent marker (please avoid the magnetic strip and covering your signature). Cashiers will notice it and while you will have to show your id more often, it will protect you in case your card falls into the wrong hands. Many more helpful tips for avoiding credit and charge card fraud can be found here http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre07.shtm.

4. Protect and improve your credit score.

Many don’t know that it doesn’t take much to damage your credit score. This often happens around the holidays. It will be a new year, why not start it off with a fresh score? You get one free report each year from freecreditreport.com. If it is above 700, little needs to be done. Tips for improving your score are: pay off as much of your balance each month as possible, pay on time, and don't close old accounts. Part of a credit score is your available credit ratio, and an empty, paid off credit card is not a bad thing.

5. In debt? Pay attention to interest rates.

It would be silly to keep money in a checking account that is getting you only 1% interest when your credit card company is charging you 11% per month in interest. That's 10% you're losing on every dollar in your savings account. Pay off your debt before you start saving.

6. Plan for the future

If you're worried about what might happen to your family should you pass away unexpectedly, now is better than never to reconsider and enhance your life insurance plan. Visit www.militarybenefit.org to review life insurance available to military members, veterans, federal employees and their families.

From Box Office to Military Base: Watch Favorite American Shows, Play American Games Overseas

It can be hard to stay entertained when overseas. The DVDs are in a foreign language. Your iPod freezes. Maybe you didn't have enough room in your bag to include all your favorite games and movies on your trip--and you know you miss classic board games from time to time. With the internet, it is now easier than ever to stay entertained away from home as long as you have internet access from time to time.

Hulu.com
For television shows, Hulu.com is great. You don't have to sign up and the clips are easy to view. The commercials are limited, so watching television shows on Hulu is easier than downloading it from the network's Web site--and it's free. Only drawback: not all television shows are on here, so you will have to download those shows elsewhere.

iTunes
You don't need an iPod to take advantage of iTunes. You can pay $1.99 for those television shows that are omitted from Hulu, and you can watch them on the easy-to-use iTunes program that keeps clips organized and ready to view.

Cinemanow.com
This site is the #1 movie download service in the world. Movies can be downloaded for $10-15 at the click of a mouse. Movies can be rented for $3.99 or pay-per-view if you don't want to own it forever and want to save a buck. New movies, old movies, and music videos are available on this site and will surely keep soldiers entertained for hours.

PublicDomainFlicks.com
This site is home to hundreds of oldies-but-goodies that are in the public domain. These full-length classic movies can be downloaded for free. Some of them star old Hollywood legends like Charlie Chaplin, Frank Sinatra and Shirley Temple.

Youtube.com
Always a favorite, and a great way to stay in tune with mainstream culture from home, is Youtube. The drawback of Youtube compared to the other video sites is the inability to download favorite clips, so you will need a good internet connection to take advantage of the site.

Pogo.com
This free gaming site is home to hundreds of games and thousands more gamers. Classics like solitaire, checkers, and poker (with fun money) are played around-the-clock with people from all over the world. There are single-player puzzles and card games that will keep your mind sharp for bootcamp or combat. You will also find favorites from home that you wouldn't expect to see on an internet site--like Monopoly and Trivial Pursuit.

AddictingGames.com
For simple but addicting games, this site is for you. This site is home to sports-themed computer games, puzzles, pong-type games, and skill games like Greyhound Tycoon. If you have internet access and are craving a cheap thrill, visit addicting games and get hooked on something for a few hours.

MBA: Fighting to Secure the Financial Future of Military Families

Just as you are on the front line fighting for our security, Military Benefit Association (MBA) is fighting to secure the financial future of military families. Even in a volatile economy and with military action in two foreign countries, MBA-sponsored life insurance is rock solid.

Since March 2003, over $23 million has been paid to the beneficiaries of 146 members killed in military hostilities. Each death is a tragedy, but that's why we're here. You keep fighting and we will, too. MBA appreciates your service to our country.

We are committed to continuing to improve our ability to provide solutions for you. Please join us on our Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Military-Benefit-Association/264579270155?ref=ts ) and follow us on Twitter (http://twitter.com/militarybenefit ) to provide us your view on how we can tailor our products/services better to meet your needs.

Vote Now for two new Directors and 52nd Annual Meeting

The 52nd Annual Meeting of the members will be held on Friday, October 16, 2009, at 11:30 a.m. at the Dulles Hyatt, 2300 Dulles Corner Blvd., Herndon, Virginia. The purpose of this meeting is to elect two directors. This meeting will also serve to transact any other business as may properly come before the meeting.

You may log on to your online account on www.militarybenefit.org to cast your vote OR simply return the proxy ballot that we recently mailed you. Biographies of the director nominees are included in the issue of LifeNotes that accompanies the ballot. If you have not yet received the ballot mailing, you will receive it shortly. Please be sure to also vote on the Articles of Organization revision included on the ballot.

If you're young and healthy, now is the best time to sign up for life insurance with MBA

Welcome to Military Benefit Association

Founded in 1956, Military Benefit Association (MBA) is one of the nation’s largest non-profit associations sponsoring insurance plans and other valuable membership benefits to the military and federal civilian communities. The purpose of the Association is to promote the welfare of its members, advance and safeguard their economic interests and generally to encourage and promote better financial conditions for its members.

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