Nobody can be
sure what 2017 will bring their way. We don’t know either. There are some
things we are pretty sure of, some we hope will happen, and some will be a
surprise. Here is what we know so far.
I will get a
very small Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) increase in my Military Retirement
and Social Security Retirement. I anticipate the increase for the Military
Retirement to be about $5 per month and Social Security will probably increase
about $3 per month. Yeah, I know, having a combined yearly increase in Navy
Retirement and Social Security of $95 to $100 per year isn’t much, and for sure
my actual cost of living will increase more than that per year, but I am
thankful I have two Retirement incomes. One of the blessings is that in the
State of Georgia they stop taxing your Retirement incomes once you reach the
age of 62. So I do factor in the fact that I have reduced my Georgia State
Income Taxes by about $200 per year so I cannot really complain. This is under
the heading of items we are pretty sure of.
Becx started
working at Any Lab Test Now (ALTN) in January 2014. When January 2015 came
around her Supervisor was very kind and blessed Becx with a very nice pay
increase and more job duties. When January 2016 rolled around Becx received
another nice pay increase but her job functions remained basically the same.
The 2016 pay increase wasn’t as much as the 2015 increase but without
additional job functions tossed in I consider what she received in 2016 was
fair and honest. What Becx might receive in January 2017 is not yet known. This
is one under the heading of something we hope happens.
We have been
researching purchasing a home in Winder, Georgia, from LGI Homes. They are new
construction in a very nice community in Winder. The benefits of purchasing a
home from this company in this location are many. Once both of us have a
certain mid-range Credit Score from the three credit reporting agencies we can
purchase a very nice single level home, model name is Burton, and the cost is
under $190,000 for a nearly 2,000 square foot home. The same home in Duluth,
Lilburn, Norcross, or Lawrenceville, would easily go for $220,000 and higher
but it would be an older home and not a brand newly constructed home. Since I
have Veteran’s Administration Home Loan Guarantee that allows us to purchase
their home in Winder with no money down except a token $100 fee. The builder,
LGI Homes, also offers if you are a Military Veteran and purchase with a VA
Loan, they will pay the closing costs for you which saves us several thousand
dollars. They have a community center there with a pool, recreation center, and
play area for children. They also have a Homeowner’s Association which, believe
it or not, has Annual Dues of less than $150 per year and they pay the first
year’s dues. On top of that LGI Homes is so sure of the quality of their work
they will fix any problem that is due to materials or workmanship defects for
one year from date of purchase. This item falls under the category of this will
be a surprise if it happens in 2017.
What else
will 2017 hold in store for us? We don’t know. We hope most of what comes our
way are good things. Keep tuned into our Family Blog starting January 2017 to
see what happens next.
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