Is an Army Reserve retirement worth it? How much does a retired SFC with 20-30 years get?

2018-09-01T09:28:28-04:00

Response by CW5 Jack Cardwell made Sep 1 at 2018 9:37 AM

2018-09-01T09:37:46-04:00

How much you get depends on your rank years service, and retirement points. The more points the more you make.

https://www.military.com/benefits/military-pay/reserve-and-guard-pay/military-reserve-component-retirement-overview.html

Guard And Reserve Retirement

National Guard & Reserve members who complete a minimum 20 qualifying years of service become eligible for retired pay at age 60.

Response by Capt Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 1 at 2018 9:38 AM

2018-09-01T09:38:04-04:00

How much one gets depends on how many points one has accrued. That said I will say that at least in my case my reserve time was worth it just for the medical benefits I use.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 1 at 2018 12:45 PM

2018-09-01T12:45:29-04:00

Its anywhere from a car payment to more money than you make now depending on how many years and points you have.

Response by 1LT John Mills made Sep 1 at 2018 1:30 PM

2018-09-01T13:30:39-04:00

Deoends

Response by SGT Cynthia Barnard made Sep 1 at 2018 1:43 PM

2018-09-01T13:43:31-04:00

That’s like asking the question is having no pension better than having a small pension. Any money that comes in at retirement is always good because let’s face it the more income do you have coming in at retirement the better

Response by MSgt Neil Greenfield made Sep 1 at 2018 1:52 PM

2018-09-01T13:52:27-04:00

Okay. I retired as a MSgt (E-7) from the ANG/AFR in 2000. That was after 21 years of both active and reserve service (Army and Air Force) giving me over 3700 points. I expect to start getting my military retirement in about 2 - 3 years when I turn 60. I expect my retirement pay to be between $16k - $18k a year.
Could I live on this amount? If I was single and lived off the grid, yes. But that’s not my situation. My reserve retirement pay, although smallish and not something i could actually live on, is a benefit I’m extremely grateful for having earned.
My reserve retirement pay is, however, a valuable component of my overall retirement plan, which consists of my 401k, pension, investments, Social Security, etc.
Is it worth it? Hell yes! I’m not one of the majority of Americans with only about $10k in savings for retirement. Make a plan and see an investment counselor (I use Edward Jones, there are many others) and become disciplined about saving for retirement.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 1 at 2018 11:18 PM

2018-09-01T23:18:31-04:00

Don’t forget the Tricare for life, that starts around the age you’re going to want some good health insurance.

Also, for a quick idea, 7300 points is 20 years active duty. 20 years, 2.5% per year, 50% x BASE PAY.

Knowing that quick conversion, you can get an idea of what your reserve pension might be.

If you’re averaging 75 points per year, for 25 years, you’d be at roughly 12% of your base pay. That’s a super lowball calculation though.

Response by SSG Mike Zientek made Sep 2 at 2018 6:49 PM

2018-09-02T18:49:02-04:00

Hell to the yes.
Any money coming in at retirement is a bonus.