I have been considering the military for some time now, and I have focused on going into the Navy. Now my dad seeing as though going into the military is a waste of time and I won't be making that much when I start out. The last part is true since I looked at the pay grades, they're like from $1426 to $2637.Now my dad has been trying to get me out of going into the military and says Real Estate makes more that what military offers by a substantial rate. I don't believe that, but I would like to get an answer from both sides to see which is right. I want to go into the military, but I also like making more money (hell everyone does). So please help me and thanks for taking the time to actually read this!
No on gets rich in the military, but when trying to compare salaries, you have to take into account all the free stuff you get from the military: free housing and food (or money to pay for those if you're married or have dependents), free health insurance for you AND your dependents, free dental for you and discounted dental for your dependents, guaranteed life insurance (though not the cheapest out there), free education while you're in through tuition assistance and the GI Bill for when you're out, plus tuition breaks for your dependents. My base pay is about 34k, but when you add in all the freebies, it's more like making about 50k.
Real Estate is a HUGE gamble in the job world. Do not do it if you don't want to. This month you may get a few thousand, but the next few months you could be DEAD broke. The military is stable. Yeah, the pay rate looks low on paper, but think of all the benefits and discounts you would have. I pay about $20 a month for $300,000 of life insurance.That much life insurance in the civilian world could be hundreds of dollars. In the real world your $17,000 to $18,000 would feel like you have a $10,000-$20,000+ salary. Trust me kid. I love it. Do what you want to do, kid. It's your life, not his.
If you have a Bachelors Degree then you can become an officer and they make a lot more. Also, you need to look at the net worth. Yes an E-3 might make 25,000 a year but that's after tax and he/she isn't paying for housing, insurance, etc. So you live like you're making 45,000. You also get the GI Bill which pays for college if you've gone, if you haven't gone to college then you can take college courses online for free while in the Navy and after the Navy. My mother went to Eastern Washington University and is still paying back loans, it has been quite some time since she's been there, and that university isn't that expensive. So if you're young and you join then you will make more salary than most 18-24 year olds, not including net value and the fact you're not paying back college. If you feel a strong sense of patriotism then serve in the military, I guarantee you will make much more of a difference for this nation and yourself. You could join the Navy and serve 4 years, then get out and do real estate. You can also buy a house for $0 down, I have a friend who did that after he got out of the Army. I would say it comes down to do you want instant gratification (money and head start on career) with Real Estate, or do you want more pride and discipline, free college, then gratification? I hope this helped.
I was guna say to forget about real estate but then i saw you werent in America and your economy isnt geting raped. The military will give you the experience of a lifetime. You wont be sent to a desert to fight barbarians, youll travel the world and have great stories to tell in the future. Dont jump right into real estate because once you start your job your stuck in the system till you retire.
As an enlistee, you wouldn't be making much money to start off. If you do Real Estate, you'd likely need to go to college and get a business degree, so its an entirely different route than enlisting. Of course, you could always try to get an ROTC scholarship and into the military as an officer. Base pay is only a party of what you get per month. You also get allowances BAH and BAS for housing/food, a uniform allowance (for enlisted members only) plus pay for different jobs or deployments or hardships. You also get a nice tax advantage. I've looked at the Fed's economic report and they're not expecting the housing market to recover until 2020, so I wouldn't expect a very lucrative career in realty if that's the route your dad was talking about within the Real Estate market. Do what is going to make you happy. You can even enlist for a couple years then use the GI Bill to help pay for your college and get that degree for Real Estate. It comes into effect for all service members who have served at least 2 years active duty.
