college, I would have a lot more disposable income.

The trick is leaving DC for someplace with a high COLA and low cost of living (Like Huntsville, Alabama). I only lasted a year in DC before transferring because I knew it would be hard to make it on an entry level salary there. Cutting your expenses is probably the way to go unless you just want out of being a Fed employee.

But almost no one else provides a pension anymore, so I would think long and hard about it before bolting. My estimated pension in today’s dollars right now is $51,000 a year. That’s equivalent to drawing 5% on $1,000,000 401K, and you pay almost nothing for that. Add in the matching 5% with your own 5% and you should easily have another million by retirement. Plus, the Feds is one of the only places you get to take your health insurance with you at the same rates you are currently paying if you retire from Federal service. That is a huge, often overlooked expense that allows you to retire at 57 or 62, depending if you want the 1 or the 1.1% retirement multiplier for each year of service.
Changing agencies and locales can make a world of difference as it did for me after my first year with the Feds.