My name is Mark Estrada, and I am a 27-year U.S. Army retiree. After nearly three decades of service, and working 9-5 jobs, I decided to start Estrada Financial Services to share the financial knowledge I’ve gained through both my successes and failures.

Everyone starts life the same way — as a newborn, knowing nothing about everything. As we go through life, we only learn from what we experience or from what others take the time to teach us. My mission is to help others by sharing what I’ve learned about financial planning, helping you avoid the mistakes I made, answering the questions you might not yet know to ask, and providing a strong financial foundation for your future.

During my military career, I discovered that Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) contributions made while deployed are tax-exempt. I took advantage of this by maximizing my contributions, allowing me to retire with $62,000 of tax-exempt funds. However, I later learned hard lessons — my first investment was being charged a 6% management fee, well above the 1% industry norm. Additionally, an improper rollover of my TSP resulted in a $10,000 tax liability. These experiences taught me a valuable lesson: always ask about potential tax implications before transferring money.