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Episodes

We post new episodes verey weekday (except holidays).
April 22, 2026

War vs. Markets

War headlines dominate attention, but history shows they rarely have lasting impacts on stock markets. Don and Tom break down why geopolitical events—despite their emotional weight—typically cause only short-term volatility, while long-term returns are driven by economic growth and corporate earnings. They reinforce the importance of global diversification, push back hard against market-timing myths (with a great 1929 example), and remind investors that reacting to headlines is a losing game. Li...
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April 21, 2026

Hard to Save

Roxy Butner joins the show to break down practical retirement saving strategies—especially for entrepreneurs who struggle to pay themselves first. The conversation covers foundational options like IRAs and Roth IRAs, then moves into more powerful tools such as Solo 401(k)s, SEP IRAs, and SIMPLE IRAs for business owners. They highlight the enormous impact of starting early through compounding, common planning mistakes (like neglecting retirement and estate planning), and current client concerns a...
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April 20, 2026

Why Retire?

Don and Tom tackle the idea that retirement isn’t what it used to be—and maybe shouldn’t be at all. From historical retirement ages (when most people never made it) to today’s longer, healthier lives, they explore why many people aren’t eager to stop working. The conversation shifts to purpose, identity, and the growing trend of “phased retirement,” where people scale back instead of quitting outright. They also answer listener questions on using the TSP’s G Fund as a stable anchor in a portfoli...
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April 17, 2026

Qs and Stuff

A wide-ranging Q&A episode tackles the real-world tradeoffs investors actually face: whether Paul Merriman’s aggressive small/value “ultimate” portfolio is worth the complexity and risk, how much stock to put in scary online bank reviews versus FDIC reality, and how to find advice when you don’t want someone managing your money. Don also explains why FAFSA tricks with traditional IRA contributions don’t work, how to control capital gains taxes using specific share identification, and—somehow—con...
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April 16, 2026

Annuity Tricks

Annuities promise peace of mind—but often at a steep and poorly understood cost. Don and Tom break down when (rarely) annuities might make sense, why most—including fixed indexed annuities and QLACs—tilt heavily in favor of the insurance company, and how investors can replicate “guaranteed income” with a disciplined portfolio instead. They also take on a listener question about escaping high fees at Edward Jones (spoiler: yes, run) and dismantle a pitch for a Bitcoin-backed “bond alternative,” e...
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April 15, 2026

Start Young

Starting early beats almost everything else in investing—and this episode drives that home with eye-opening math and a brand-new tool for jumpstarting a kid’s retirement. Don and Tom break down the new “Youth Retirement Account” concept (government seed money plus family contributions), compare it to Roth IRAs and 529 rollovers, and show how relatively modest early contributions can grow into millions. Then they pivot to a listener question about a Nationwide indexed annuity and dismantle the sa...
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April 14, 2026

On Your Side?

This episode exposes the misleading language behind “best interest” financial sales practices, using the insurance-backed fight against the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule as the main example. Don and Tom explain why rolling money from a 401(k) or 403(b) into an IRA can leave investors vulnerable to commissions, conflicts, vague disclosures, and expensive products dressed up as advice. They break down the difference between true fiduciary advice, so-called best-interest standards, and bare-...
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April 13, 2026

Miss a Stock...

A century-long study by Hendrik Bessembinder reveals a stunning truth about investing: while the U.S. stock market produced enormous overall wealth, the vast majority of individual stocks were losers, with just 46 companies responsible for half of all gains. Don and Tom unpack what this means for investors—namely, that stock picking is essentially a losing game driven more by luck than skill, and that broad diversification through index investing is the only reliable way to capture market return...
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April 10, 2026

Whole Lotta Questions

This Friday Q&A episode of Talking Real Money features a surge in listener questions, covering key retirement and investing topics including IRA inheritance strategies, borrowing in retirement, how to find fiduciary advisors, the powerful tax advantages of HSAs, pension timing decisions, and whether Robinhood’s 2% IRA transfer bonus is worth the trade-offs. Don emphasizes simplicity and tax efficiency—favoring IRA rollovers over inherited structures for spouses, cautioning that borrowing becomes...
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April 9, 2026

Simple Beats "Smart"

Don and Tom tear into Kiplinger’s roundup of “best money advice,” separating the genuinely useful from the obvious, the flawed, and the downright silly. They agree that core principles like living below your means, automating investing, and seeking qualified fiduciary advice still reign supreme, while pushing back on oversimplified takes about debt, life decisions, and self-auditing. The conversation reinforces a familiar truth: personal finance isn’t about clever hacks—it’s about consistent beh...
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April 8, 2026

What is an Advisor?

This episode cuts through the marketing fog around “financial advisors,” breaking them into three real categories—brokers, insurance agents, and fiduciary investment advisors—and exposing how incentives, commissions, and murky regulations shape the advice investors receive. Don and Tom highlight the industry’s gradual shift away from commissions while warning that titles like “fiduciary” or “CFP” don’t guarantee behavior. A listener segment dives into retirement portfolio construction, clarifyin...
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April 7, 2026

Modern Bucket Shops

Don and Tom kick things off with a colorful history lesson on 19th-century “bucket shops,” drawing a sharp parallel to today’s emerging world of tokenized securities—digital representations of stocks traded on blockchain platforms. While proponents tout 24/7 trading and faster settlement, the hosts question the real value, highlighting added complexity, thin trading, pricing deviations, and unclear ownership structures. They frame tokenized investing as a solution in search of a problem—one that...
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April 6, 2026

Retiree Ripoffs

This episode shifts from investing to the growing threat of scams—especially targeting older adults—breaking down how common fraud tactics work, from fake virus alerts and spoofed calls to AI-driven voice cloning and recovery scams. Don and Tom emphasize a simple but powerful rule: if you didn’t initiate the contact, assume it’s a scam, and never act under pressure. The conversation then pivots to listener questions, covering how to construct a globally diversified portfolio with proper U.S./int...
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April 3, 2026

Questions Aplenty

This Q&A episode tackles a mix of practical retirement and investing questions, starting with why spousal Social Security benefits rarely change the core advice to delay claiming. Don explains the limits of basic retirement calculators versus more robust planning tools, then reassures a late-starting saver that simple, low-cost investing (like target-date funds) often beats complexity. A listener’s story about $242 stock commissions leads into a blunt reality check on day trading (spoiler: still...
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April 2, 2026

Yield Trap

This episode opens with a blistering takedown of sensationalized financial media, using a Kiplinger income piece as the latest example of how risky, high-fee junk bond products get dressed up as safe income solutions for yield-hungry investors. Don and Tom explain why bonds are supposed to provide stability, not speculative upside, and why chasing eye-popping payouts usually means swallowing hidden risk, ugly expenses, and stock-like volatility. They then pivot to listener questions on building ...
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April 1, 2026

Final Broadcast - Two

In the final hour of the radio show, Don and Tom blend nostalgia with a blunt reality check—highlighting the looming Social Security shortfall that could force 20–25% benefit cuts within a decade. They explore politically painful solutions (tax increases, benefit reductions, later retirement ages), while reinforcing their core investing philosophy: ignore fear-driven moves like chasing gold, stay diversified, and avoid market timing. Listener calls drive discussions on fiduciary advice, ethical ...
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March 31, 2026

Final Broadcast - One

The final live radio episode of Talking Real Money blends nostalgia, listener appreciation, and core investing philosophy. Don and Tom reflect on nearly four decades of broadcasting while reinforcing their timeless message: consistent investing beats prediction. Using a simple S&P 500 example, they illustrate how discipline—not brilliance—builds wealth. They address current market declines with calm realism, urging listeners to ignore noise and stick to a plan. Calls cover everything from podcas...
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March 30, 2026

College Pays

This episode mixes studio banter with a surprisingly substantive look at education and investing trade-offs. Don and Tom walk through data on the lowest-paying college majors, highlighting that many bachelor’s degrees—especially in education and the arts—start and stay low in income unless paired with advanced study. They push back on the idea that college isn’t worth it, citing Federal Reserve data showing higher lifetime earnings, better job stability, and longer life expectancy for graduates,...
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March 27, 2026

Asking Away

A lively Friday Q&A kicks off with some unintended voice effects courtesy of Don’s grandkids before diving into listener questions on money market funds versus high-yield savings accounts, Roth vs. traditional 401(k) decisions in high tax brackets, expense ratios in fund-of-funds like Avantis ETFs, the limited value of international bonds, the reality behind indexed annuity caps, and whether investors should ever move beyond simple one-fund portfolios. The throughline: keep it simple, understand...
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March 26, 2026

Your Retirement Number

The idea of a universal “retirement number” gets dismantled as misleading and overly simplistic, with Don and Tom arguing that retirement planning is deeply personal and depends on spending, income sources, and lifestyle. They walk through a practical way to calculate your own number—starting with real spending, subtracting Social Security and any pension, and determining what your portfolio must generate—while warning against blind reliance on rules like the $1 million target or aggressive with...
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March 25, 2026

Retirement Myths

As Talking Real Money moves into its final week on terrestrial radio, Don and Tom mix transition talk with a practical rundown of common retirement myths. They push back on the idea that expenses automatically fall in retirement, warn that Social Security was never meant to cover everything, and explain why relying on the market alone can be dangerous when withdrawals begin. Callers bring in questions about the sketchy-sounding Quantum X trading platform, required minimum distributions, whether ...
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March 24, 2026

You Can't Know

With geopolitical tension rattling markets and investors stampeding into cash, gold, and energy, Don and Tom step back to deliver a familiar message: nobody knows what’s next—and anyone claiming otherwise is selling something. They walk through the behavioral traps of market timing, explain why diversification (especially beyond U.S. large caps) is quietly doing its job, and highlight the role of small cap and micro-cap stocks as part of a broader portfolio—not a silver bullet. Along the way, th...
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March 23, 2026

Icy Market

The housing market is stuck in an unusual freeze, driven by the lingering effects of ultra-low COVID-era mortgage rates, reduced housing inventory, and sharply higher income requirements for buyers. With fewer people moving, less new construction, and more all-cash purchases, affordability has deteriorated and first-time buyers are older than ever. Don and Tom argue that homeownership is often overrated as an investment and suggest renting may be the more rational choice for many. They also tack...
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March 20, 2026

Fewer Q Friday

Don fields listener questions on asset allocation, advisor timing, and investing complexity with his usual bias toward simplicity and self-awareness. He emphasizes that the decision to add bonds isn’t about age but about emotional tolerance for loss, shares his own shift to a more conservative 55/45 portfolio, dismisses futures markets as largely speculative noise for most investors, and advises a listener nearing retirement that while there’s no urgency to hire an advisor, the value of planning...
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S&P 500 Index represents the 500 leading U.S. companies, approximately 80% of the total U.S. market capitalization.
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Bloomberg Barclays US Aggregate Bond Index measures the performance of the U.S. investment grade bond market. The index invests in a wide spectrum of public, investment-grade, taxable, fixed income securities in the United States – including government, corporate, and international dollar-denominated bonds, as well as mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities, all with maturities of more than 1 year.
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