Despite a concerted effort from the Defense Department to help members of the military achieve greater financial stability, there is still an enormous financial education gap.
That was the message at a forum last week hosted by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's Office of Servicemember Affairs, which gathered representatives from the mortgage and banking industry, as well as some of the military's top officials, to talk about the ongoing financial challenges servicemembers face.
The forum also highlighted some of the areas — housing and payday loans, in particular — the office will focus on as it begins coordinating with federal and state agencies to raise awareness about consumer protection issues.
"We definitely don't want to reinvent the wheel or create things that are already there, so an important part of it is always going to be dialogue, and working collaboratively," Holly Petraeus, the assistant director overseeing the office, said in an interview last week. "I'm not too proud to take other people's good ideas, as long as they'll let me take them, and expand on those."
To that end, the office is planning to unveil its first education product early next year that could be delivered to servicemembers individually via computer or smart phone.
It would enhance the financial aid course that the military offers during basic training, but would be offered earlier, at a time when servicemembers are more likely to retain the information.
The office, which is part of the bureau's consumer education and engagement division, is also in the planning stages of a similar education product for military spouses, who are often responsible for household finances, especially during deployments.
It's an important issue to Petraeus, who has spent the past 37 years as a military spouse, married to CIA Director David Petraeus, the former commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
Banks and credit unions that are located on or near military bases have for several years offered products that serve as an alternative to those offered by unscrupulous lenders.
