Long post incoming.

BLUF: I know I made a bad mistake using First Command. I just need help to minimize the damages moving forward.

I've always been a hand-off type of person for Finances. I prefer to get things set, then forget about it. As long as I keep within my budget, I'm good. But I absolutely am not smart on the ways of making my money work the hardest it will, so to say. I don't know specifics of how to invest long term; I just know you want to get started early. And that's what I did. Or rather, tried to do.

I actively sought out First Command in 2020, when I arrived at my first duty station after BOLC. I knew I wanted to start investing, but needed someone to help me. My brother used to use First Command, but moved on from them. He did not recommend them to me at all, but I remembered the name, so I went for them. I fully admit, I did not do my research, and I recognize that was a horrible decision.

My personal finances were in order. I had no debt, owned my car, had a lot of money in savings, etc. At the time, I was single, saving as much money as humanly possible.

I met with an advisor, and we went over everything. He was a very nice guy, did not seem pushy at all, and gave me his opinion on what to do. He convinced me to buy their whole life insurance (big whoops, I know) even telling me he was getting commission off of it. I was fine with it, because (at the time), his investing strategy made sense. I also invested with them, and currently have a ROTH IRA and single registered account.

Several months later, my first advisor mysteriously stopped working for the company. I've never figured out why, but it definitely raised red flags with me. I was given a new advisor. This guy was a lot more aggressive, made me feel like I didn't know anything at all (which, granted, is true, but that's not how you want your financial advisor to act), and, while he was super smart with investments, he never really helped me understand anything. Another red flag. However, my company commander at the time (who I was XO for) had the same advisor, and only had positive things to say about him. So I stayed.

Fast forward to 2024. I've separated from the Army, am married (spouse has a job too) and with a full time civilian job. I started contributing to their 401k with Vanguard. I need advice on what I should do with everything I have with First Command.

1. From everything I've read, I was foolish to invest with First Command, much less, by Whole Life Insurance. What I want to know is, what have they been doing behind my back? Obviously, my counselor would not tell me these things. I've read somewhere about a 5% fee. Does anyone know what that is for? How does it affect the money I already have invested through them?

2. Am I able to roll over any (or all) of my investments to my new Vanguard accounts? As stated, I have a ROTH IRA and single registered account with First Command. My Vanguard account has a Roth IRA and Traditional IRA.

3. What should I do with my Whole Life Insurance policy? I pay $220 a month (gasp) for $400,000 of coverage (double gasp), and I've had the policy for 4 years. I know this is outrageous compared to term insurance. At some point, the Whole Sale policy supposed to be paid up. When that is? I'm not sure...I can surrender the policy right now and get the cash value of a measley $300. Additionally, since I am not hurting on my finances at all, I can keep paying the premium as long as needed, if it will get me less of a worse deal in the long run. If I were to surrender the policy right now, and throw away all the money I've paid towards it the last 4 years, my personal life wouldn't change at all, other than bearing the shame of making such a bad financial decision.

4. Are there any redeeming qualities to whole sale life insurance? How can it be so popular of an item, if it really is such a bad deal? Reading online, it seems like some people out there prefer to have both types of insurance, and swear it's worth it.

I thought I was doing the right thing by getting started with my finances early in my career. But ironically, I probably did the exact opposite but trusting my money to a shady company and making bad investment decisions (the WL policy.) Anyone with good financial knowledge, please advise. Everyone else, take notes and don't repeat my mistakes. And feel free to let me know how big of a fool I've been - I deserve it.

TL:DR I've invested money for 4 years with First Command and bought a whole life insurance policy. I want to transfer my investments to Vanguard and get rid of the WL policy, if it's a good idea.