The Department of Veterans Affairs has launched a tool for reducing veteran suicides — a financial tips website for helping former service members pay off debts, avoid scams and better manage their money.  (U.S. Air Force)

WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs has launched a tool for reducing veteran suicides — a financial tips website for helping former service members pay off debts, avoid scams and better manage their money.

Citing research showing unemployment and financial stress put veterans at higher risk of suicide, VA officials said the self-help guide assists veterans in building budgets, connecting with help and recovering from financial setback.

Called FINVET, the website is a one-stop resource for individuals who joined the military out of high school and might lack the real-world experience of managing bills on their own for housing, food and clothing, the VA said.

FINVET is short for National Veterans Financial Resource Center, which focuses on helping veterans mitigate financial problems as a strategy for reducing their suicide risks.

“We deal with a lot of veterans who are suicidal. Many times, their mental-health problems stem from a financial crisis,” said Army veteran Ron Etheridge, 70, of Pennsylvania, who operates a not-for-profit agency that assists veterans in crisis who don’t have enough money to cover rent, pay for groceries or meet other basic needs.

Veterans are twice as likely to die by suicide as the general population, according to the VA. Suicide also is the second-leading cause of death for veterans younger than 45 years old, according to the 2024 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report.

“The veterans we see can benefit from a self-help tool like this that offers a simple road map to manage money. Many get overwhelmed by their situations,” said Etheridge, who runs the Specialist Zachary R. Clouser Foundation, a nonprofit named after his late son, a 19-year-old Army specialist who died in combat in July 2007.

Etheridge, a former sergeant first class, served from 1973 to 1986, including deployments to Korea and Germany. Etheridge said he felt unprepared himself for managing money after he left the military and sought employment.

“It was very stressful. You’re dealing with a higher cost of living than when you’re on base,” he said.

FINVET has logged more than 150,000 visits since it launched a year ago, the VA said. Its tips and resources on money management also include links to rental assistance, employment help and retail discounts for veterans.

While FINVET does not offer personal financial assistance for individuals, it explains how to build and follow a plan for managing expenses — and connect with assistance when faced with hardship, the VA said.

A member survey by the Wounded Warrior Project found one out of three wounded veterans with financial problems considered suicide, according to the veterans advocacy group.

“A critical piece of the veteran suicide puzzle has been hiding in plain sight — financial stress,” according to GoVA, a nonprofit that offers free financial counseling to military members and veterans.

Healing from combat trauma or finding the right mental health treatment can take months or years, but making small financial gains can reduce stress immediately, according to GoVA. The nonprofit points veterans and their families to the online resources offered by FINVET.

FINVET covers financial well-being with lessons and worksheets to download on how to budget for basic needs, increase income and protect money from scams and abuse, according to the VA.

Etheridge said veterans often fall deeper into crisis because they are not used to asking for help. His organization, for example, has worked on cases of veterans who discover that people they know — friends or family members — drained their personal bank accounts while they were on active duty, he said. The service members might have asked a “buddy” to be their power of attorney and manage their bills while they’re deployed or simply gave them access to their bank accounts.

“It’s more common than you would think,” he said.

Banking is done electronically making it easier to deposit military pay but also to become victim to scams, Etheridge said.

A household survey by the U.S. Federal Reserve Board found veterans were more likely to be the victims of fraud than the general population. Veterans also were more likely to have credit card debt.

Many veterans often have accrued earnings from military service that went directly into personal bank accounts, Etheridge said. Active-duty pay in the Army, for example, starts at about $25,000 and goes to $40,000 a year for staff sergeants.

“Because they have had this ready amount of cash, their hometown buddies may borrow or take money if they have access to their accounts. It’s a big problem for some,” Etheridge said.

Caitlin Bunch, an occupational therapist at the Durham VA Medical Center in North Carolina, said she hears from many veterans worried about their financial stability. Bunch said she refers them to the FINVET website as a place to start addressing their problems.

“Veterans have reported having money left over at the end of the month for the first time after completing” the lessons and worksheets on the website, she said.

Etheridge said the website is a useful guide for understanding the basics of money management and avoiding a crisis.

“Many of these guys did not have to worry about money while in the military, and some overspend or get taken advantage of after discharge. Their money is gone before they realize it,” he said.