In addition to the J.L. Collins series, I'd recommend Nord's Military Guide for Retirement:
http://the-military-guide.com/
Nords is also a frequent poster on these forums.
Thanks, Rubic!
A little background on myself. Turning 26 soon and planning on retiring early. I have a career lined up as a military officer. I plan on saving 20% of my salary in the Military Thrift Savings Plan and maxing out a Roth IRA every year. My goal is to retire at around 46 years old with the military pension. I also am planning on buying up quite a few rentals. I do have a solid side income of $2000 per month that I'd like to invest, but not sure how. If you had 2k to invest every month with the plan of retiring around 46, what would you do? Stock market index funds? Mutual funds? I have very little knowledge when it comes to investing. Thanks!
Welcome to the forums, Rybrad.
The first thing I'd do with an extra $2000/month (above/beyond military income) is use it for living expenses to ensure that I deducted at least $1500/month from my base pay to the Roth TSP. That way its contributions are maximized each year ($18K) in the world's largest passively-managed index funds with the world's lowest expense ratios.
The next thing I'd do is maximize my annual contributions to my Roth IRA account. Then you'd invest more in taxable accounts.
Finally, I'd try to save at least 40% of my gross pay among those three types of accounts. (It's difficult as an O-1 or O-2, but it can be done. After the promotion to O-3 it's a lot easier.) Investing that in the TSP and other equity index funds will achieve financial independence in less than 20 years-- you will not even need a military pension.
That answers the "where" you'd put your money. As far as "what", I'd choose passively-managed equity index funds with low expense ratios. You can read more about choosing your asset allocation on the Bogleheads wiki:
https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Main_PageMake sure you choose your asset allocation before you choose the specific funds.
Finally, take your military career one obligation at a time. Don't just grimly clench your jaw and gut it out to 20-- that risks your physical, emotional, and even mental health. (My readers and I have the testimony to back up that assertion.) Instead, stay on active duty as long as you're feeling challenged & fulfilled. When the fun stops, consider leaving active duty for the Reserves or National Guard.
And remember that with a high savings rate you won't have to be tempted to stick around for the military's big bonus bucks.
If you have more questions about the military aspects of personal finance then please post here, or PM me, or e-mail me at NordsNords@Gmail.