Q: I plan to retire under FERS at the end of the year. My wife and I want to pay off our house with some of my TSP savings so we won’t have to worry about our mortgage. I was planning to take out about $6,000 a month until the mortgage is paid and then reducing the monthly amount to $1,000 or less after that. I wanted to do it this way because the tax burden would be about the same as if I was still employed. Is this a plausible plan and would I be able to do this with my TSP savings?
A: While paying off the mortgage may not be in your best interests, the TSP will allow the withdrawal scheme. You’ll have to wait until the end of a year to make the change to the monthly payment amount, however.
