Kate Horrell

Kate Horrell is an accredited financial counselor® and personal financial educator who helps the military community make the most of their pay and benefits. With more than 10 years working with thousands of military families, she understands the concerns of currently serving, retired and veteran families.

Kate has a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Maryland, volunteers with the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society and is a member of the Military Officers Association of America, or MOAA, currently serving spouses advisory board. She has been married to a sailor for 27 years, corralling four girls and two cats across four OCONUS tours and a handful of homes in the U.S.

Latest Articles

US $100 bills, bent into four sections resembling paper airplanes or birds, fly in a V through the blue sky.

Should You Borrow from Your TSP Account?

Financial experts don’t recommend taking out loans against retirement accounts such as the military’s Thrift Savings Plan...

A stack of bills looks blurry, as though it's in the process of being flipped through, with one president's face in focus.

Basic Needs Allowance Overview

The Basic Needs Allowance can potentially add hundreds of dollars to the paycheck of a military member with a family whose...

7 Cheap and Fast Halloween Costumes

Looking for a cheap Halloween costume? Your closet probably has all the components you need to make a great costume. Here are...

Flames appear to burn a pile of $50 bills, which take up the whole frame.

5 Reasons for Service Members to Avoid Borrowing from Their Thrift Savings Plan Accounts

While taking a loan from a TSP account may be a simple solution, it is important to understand the long-term reasons a...

Vanessa Arzabala, right, a military spouse and Truman Army Education and Personnel Testing Center guidance counselor, will help operate the new Fort Leonard Wood Spouse Resource Center. The center, opened Jan. 30, 2024, is designed to provide military spouses with community, education and employment resources on and off the installation. (Brian Hill/Army)

The DoD Just Expanded Its Education Benefit for Military Spouses. Here's How to Choose a Reputable School

As military spouses become newly eligible for educational funding assistance, it's important to know how to shop for a...

Transition Funds Vital for Exit from Military, Financial Adviser Says

One of the most important, yet overlooked, parts of transition to civilian life is a transition fund.

Air Force airmen in camouflage uniforms sit at a table in front of laptops, while one counts out fake money from a stack.

5 Reasons to Pay Attention During the Military's Financial 'Touchpoint' Training

Taking full advantage of financial touchpoint training can be one of the smartest moves service members make to build a...

In a photo illustration, a blurry white house is in the background, while in the foreground, a red stick declaring "scam!" obscures the house's for-sale sign.

Why Military Homeowners May Be at Greater Risk of Title Fraud

Title fraud is still relatively rare, but the military lifestyle makes service members more vulnerable than their civilian...

Family loading moving van for PCS military transfer

Can You Make Money Off a DITY Move?

Should you believe those folks who claim they made bank on a PCS move?

Six men and women, most in uniform, stand in a row in front of an American flag draped as a backdrop.

4 Things 'Gray Area' Reservists Need to Do When They Turn 60

Finally receiving that hard-earned military retirement pay at age 60 is a big deal, and you definitely want to get that...

PCS Efficiency: How to Set Up Your New Home so It Costs Less to Run

Decisions you make when you move into your new home will affect the ongoing costs of running it.

What You Need to Know About Virginians' Fight to Restore Benefits for Families of Vets

Veterans' families are geared up for Friday's special session of the Virginia General Assembly to review the massive changes...

Three apartment towers arranged around a central drive

Get Your PCS Priorities in Order with This House-Hunting Checklist

When it's time to PCS, military service members who identify their priorities before they start house hunting can save time...

Facing away from the camera, male veterans stand amid folding chairs while wearing vests embroidered with military affiliations.

VA Benefits Likely Won't Cover All of a Veteran's Funeral Costs

A veteran's surviving family members may be caught off guard if they expect the VA to cover all the costs of a funeral or...

A hand places the fourth colored 'slice' into a pie-chart type of pie on a wood surface.

Pieces of a Pie: How to Start Saving for Retirement Right Now

Your retirement income will likely come from a variety of sources. Imagining retirement income as pie pieces can make the...

Military News

Get the Military Insider Newsletter

Get the latest on pay updates, benefit changes and award-winning military content. Right in your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Notice.

Thank you for subscribing!

View more newsletters on our Subscriptions page.

One last step.

Verify your free subscription by following the instructions in the email sent to:

Most Popular Military News

U.S. Army Col. Christopher J. Kirkpatrick receives the Joint Multinational Readiness Center colors from Brig. Gen. Steven P. Carpenter during a Change of Command Ceremony near Hohenfels, Germany.

More than Half of Senior Army Officers Are Turning Down Command Consideration

More than half of the Army's senior officers are turning down opportunities to command, choosing instead the stability of...

The Coast Guard medically evacuated a 66-year-old woman from a cruise ship

A Coast Guard Commander Miscarried. She Nearly Died After Being Denied Care.

U.S. service members have long faced strict limits on abortions, even when used to resolve miscarriages. Under federal law...

A vintage American jeep is parked during the 80th commemoration of the Battle of the Bulge in Bastogne, Belgium.

101st Airborne Division Troops Return to Bastogne to Mark 80th Anniversary of Battle of the Bulge

The siege of Bastogne was lifted on Dec. 26, 1944, when a tank column from the 4th Armored Division of then-Lt. Gen. George...

U.S. Navy SEAL candidates participate in BUD/S training.

Navy Drops Disciplinary Efforts Against 2 Navy Officers After Death of SEAL Candidate Kyle Mullen

Vice Adm. Rick Cheeseman decided to stop the boards of inquiry for Capt. Brad Geary, the commander of the Navy SEAL training...

1 Dead, Suspect Arrested After ‘Active Shooter’ Situation at Georgia Army Base

The victim, whose identity has not been released, was shot “in on-post housing” at Fort Eisenhower.

Gen. Charles Hamilton, Army Materiel Command commanding general, provides keynote remarks during the Association of the U.S. Army Global Force Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama.

Army Secretary Fires 4-Star General Who Meddled in Promotion of Unfit Subordinate

Army Secretary Christine Wormuth -- in a dramatic and rare move -- on Tuesday fired one of the service's top generals...

Latest Military Videos

Trump Claims Government Knows What Drones Are

In a far-ranging interview news conference, President-elect Donald Trump said the U.S. government "knows what is happening" with the...

Russian Forces Seen Withdrawing Toward Northern Syrian City of Tartus

A lengthy convoy of Russian military vehicles were seen withdrawing from Latakia toward the Syrian city of Tartus on...

Schumer Calls on US Agencies to Use Advanced Technology to Identify Mysterious Drones

After weeks of fear and bewilderment about the drones buzzing over parts of New York and New Jersey, U.S...

Mother of American Found in Syria: 'We All Want You Home'

An American citizen who disappeared seven months ago into former Syrian President Bashar Assad’s notorious prison system said he...

Investigations and Features

Army Capt. Jeremy Kuykendall and his wife Kate, cradle their daughter

Unsupervised: Military Child Care Centers Slow to Report Abuse with Little Oversight

A Military.com investigation into military day care centers revealed that service branch rules generally prioritize...

A patch in the home of retired missileer Paul Hunke

They Stood Sentry over America's Nuclear Missile Arsenal. Many Worry It Gave Them Cancer.

For years, it was an open secret among missileers that the Cold War-era missile alert facilities and launch control centers...

Army News

Bell Textron Chooses Fort Worth for Major Expansion to Build V-280 Valor Military Aircraft

Bell Textron Inc., already one the largest employers in the Metroplex, has chosen its hometown of Fort Worth to build...

National Guard Soldier Fatally Shot Ex's Boyfriend While on Drill Duty Break, Feds Say

Natravien Landry is charged with murder in a shooting that triggered a lockdown at a military base in Georgia, federal...

Navy News

Tom Cruise poses with the Navy Distinguished Public Service Award

Tom Cruise Honored by US Navy for His Role in 'Top Gun'

Cruise was presented with the Distinguished Public Service Award, which rewards civilians for acts of heroism or support to...

Navy Drops Disciplinary Efforts Against 2 Navy Officers After Death of SEAL Candidate Kyle Mullen

Vice Adm. Rick Cheeseman decided to stop the boards of inquiry for Capt. Brad Geary, the commander of the Navy SEAL training...

Air Force News

Graduation at the Air Force Academy, Colorado

The Air Force's Faltering Effort to Get More Diversity Among Officers May Be Out of Time

The diversity targets set in 2022 marked the first time in nearly a decade that the service had amended the benchmarks for...

Air National Guard Senior Airman Tyler Winterton, crew chief with the 168th Wing, Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, prepares a KC-135 Stratotanker prior to mission.

After a Yearslong Delay, Air Force Agrees to Send More Refueling Planes to Alaska

Four additional KC-135 Stratotankers, the lynchpins of the U.S. military's aerial refueling operations, have been assigned to...

Space Force News

The U.S. Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office, in collaboration with the U.S. Navy Strategic Systems Programs, launched a conventional hypersonic missile from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

Army and Navy Team Up for Hypersonic Missile Launch from Cape Canaveral

Cape Canaveral Space Force Station had a different kind of launch on its plate Thursday when the Army and Navy teamed up to...

(Photo by Airman 1st Class Shelby Kay-Fantozzi)

Transgender Troops, Confronting Shifting Policies of Acceptance, Just Want to Serve

Transgender troops' right to serve -- perhaps even to fight and die for a nation they volunteered to defend -- has been...

Marine Corps News

U.S. Marine Corps Col. Henry Dolberry Jr. receives a gift after a change of command ceremony on Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan.

Japan Vows to Reduce Okinawa's Burden from Bases as US Marines' Transition to Guam Gets Underway

The Japanese government aims to reduce the burden of hosting U.S. military bases on Okinawa Prefecture while maintaining the...

Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker takes off from the Kadena Air Base airfield on Okinawa.

US Marines Start Partial Transfer from Okinawa in Japan to Guam Under Plan Agreed 12 Years Ago

Under the plan agreed between Tokyo and Washington in April 2012, about 9,000 of the 19,000 Marines currently stationed on...

Coast Guard News

The crew aboard the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Kimball’s 35-foot, long-range interceptor small boat prepares to conduct a joint search-and-rescue exercise in Kagoshima Bay, Japan, with a Japan Coast Guard AgustaWestland AW139 helicopter aircrew.

US Coast Guard to Participate in First-Ever Drill in Tokyo Bay

The coast guards of Japan, the United States, Australia and India are to conduct their first four-country drill at the Port...

Coast Guard Cadets march in formation during sea trials at the Academy

House Probe Finds Former Coast Guard Commandant Decided to Withhold Sexual Assault Findings

An interim report into sexual assaults at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and subsequent cover-up of an investigation found the...