Episodes

There's a lot money tied up in our homes, so should you pay off your cheap mortgage? What are the costs to access all of that money should you need it? At Bank of America, it could cost up to 10% for a home equity line of credit. We talk about the potential future of bond prices. The we here from a bunch of Kens, a Barb (and others): What happens to the homeowner's capital gain exemption if you rent you house for a few years? Does direct indexing make investing sense? To invest in other fu...

The movie "Dumb Money" depicts a small slice of the pandemic meme stock trading stupidity. Today, we discuss trying to time the market and it's similarity to other ways we lose money. Then, listeners ask: How much should be kept in the short-term liquid accounts? Should we take money from different types of account in different markets? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Questions? Comments? Click!

A recent study found that the vast majority of Americans don't believe they will be in good enough financial shape to retire at age 65. What are some of our biggest concerns and how can we deal with our unpreparedness? Plus, we share the tale of a money talk show host who went wild with listeners money. Then, we here from listeners: One takes us to task for sharing mutual fund portfolios instead of just ETF portfolios. Another asks where Health Savings Account (HSA) should be invested. Learn ...

In this Friday's Question and Answer episode: While stocks plunged for most of the Great Depression, how did bonds perform? Does it make sense to convert to a Roth if the taxes are paid from the IRA? Does taking early Social Security payments and investing them better than waiting until age 70? How is a lump sum pension distribution taxed and should it be used to pay off a house? In which kinds of accounts should different types of investments be kept? Why do we state that homes haven't be...

Trillions of dollars are wasting away in low-yielding bank accounts. Why do investors keep making the same investing mistakes, over and over again, despite evidence that investing is incredibly simple if done right? How can you avoid making bad investing decisions? We also discuss the huge spread between savings account and credit card interest. A listener asks: Is her brother's dividend portfolio a smart way to invest? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Questions? ...

The 401k and 403b investment offerings are a mess and the US Labor Department would like to make it better, but the financial product industry opposes mandating truly honest investing advice. Salespeople aggressively push expensive or unsuitable products, while the low cost products are hidden from participants view. What can you do to avoid the bad products and fiind the best retirement investments for you? Plus, listeners wasnt to know: What is our problem with target-date funds? Can an inhe...

We came prepared to talk about the impact of a government shutdown on your investments. Just as we came on the air, Congress voted to defer the issue for another 45 days. Yet, what would be the financial impact of another shutdown? We look back at the recent performance of the markets. Don shares some great streaming TV shows with Tom. Fund fees keep falling. Then, listeners ask: What should be done with some extra cash in retirement? Should marketable limit orders be used when trading ETFs? ...

The evidence continues to show why most "expert" money managers fail to beat their benchmarks. Don and Tom share some powerful academic reasons why money managers (and you) are unlikely to beat the market over time. Plus, those once-hot NFTs have turned icy cold, losing billions of dollars. Then, we take some questions: Is the I-Bond early-withdrawal interest penalty from early interest or the latest amount? With Social Security in trouble, what is the best age to take withdrawals? Learn more...

In today's question and comment episode: Don is appalled by another great example of a slick salesperson selling a horribly complex and misleading insurance investment for retirement. Should a Roth be funded for someone on the cusp of making too much money. A listener shares positive comments about a recent show. Does overfunding a 529 to allow a future Roth IRA transfer to a child make sense? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Questions? Comments? Click!

A recent study shows that most people trust the right people for investing advice. What is your trusted source of money information? Then, we hear from listeners: What do we think of this retirement portfolio, heavily invested in real estate trusts? Does the Schwab CD ladddering tool look good? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Questions? Comments? Click!

Morningstar recently reported a ongoing gap between investor returns and the returns of the stock market. You and your behavior make less than underlying indexes. We discuss Tom's attempt to buy a new Toyota and the lack of resonse to his queries. A caller shares his long history as a trader. Another looks for our opinion on real estate investment trusts (REITs). Is there any way to avoid the capital gain on the sale of property? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...

Finding good financial advice is really tough. You might believe that those providing money information in the media are required to tell the truth. They're not. You need to carefully vet anyone providing investing information. We take a close look at the truth behind one the money radio shows in the Seattle radio who calls himself "The Money Professor." We find out there is less there than meets the ear. WE also look at some of the best CD rates and discuss laddering. Our loyal listeners ask: ...

Instead of lining up at the track or using a bookie, today's compulsive gamblers have a respectable way to feed their dangerous habit: short-duration option trading. The amount of money gambled away in securities markets is staggering, and it is no better than playing slots at a casino. It may be worse. We also discuss the egomaniacal comments of Bill Gross. Listeners ask: Which is better: Regular or Roth retirement accounts? What do we think about Titan Capital? Learn more about your ad ...

In this week's Friday Q&A session: A caller shares information about the downside of non-qualified deferred compensation plans at work. Should some olf 401k plans be moved to a current 401k? In a TSP, what should the fixed-income allocation be? Do investors need to be diversified globally in large-cap stocks Is his international diversification appropriate? Does longevity insurance make sense? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Questions? Comments? Click!

Most "experts" say you'll need $1 million or more to retire comfortably. How will you get by if you've saved less than that, and how can you catch up if you're short on retirement savings? Plus, we hear from listeners: What do we think of an expensive 403b investment? Can funds from a Coverdell ESA be transferred to a Roth IRA? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesQuestions? Comments? Click!

With the release of the meme-stock movie "Dumb Money," it seems like a good time to discuss the reality of chasing after the latest hot "investment." Then, with Don tending to his ailing mom, Tom is joined by Paul Merriman to look back at an old, hot investing craze, the "Nifty-Fifty" and to answer listener questions: What's the best way to educate grown children about money and investing? With the UAW on strike, are we likely to see defined-benefit pensions return? Learn more about your ...

Choosing the right time to take Social Security can add hundreds of dollars every month. With Don away on family matters, Tom is joined by Paul Merriman to discuss money and investing. Listeners ask: Does his decision to take Social Security at FRA make sense? What do we think of Ken Fisher's investing philosophy? What will provide a high return without much risk? How should a 16 year-old invest accumulated savings? What's our opinion of a new Avantis balanced ETF? Does it make sense to co...

Investors are trying to avoid paying taxes to the detriment of overall returns. Tom and Don discuss tax strategies that might make sense. Plus, it turns out those GICs or guaranteed income accounts aren't actually "guaranteed." A listener asks: Is there any reason to be concerned about Vanguard funds reorganization plans? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Questions? Comments? Click!

It's everyone's favorite day: Q&A Friday with Don. This week listeners ask: Why don't more online brokers adopt automatic rebalancing? Why should we invest overseas when international stocks have done poorly recently? Does it make sense to take a loss on longer term bonds and move to one-year CDs? What do we think of VIOV vs AVUV? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesQuestions? Comments? Click!

Who wouldn't love double or triple returns on their investments? What is the downside to leverage? Listeners ask: What do we think of Mercer Advisors and their sub-advisors? Should money be moved from a less aggressive small cap value fund to a more aggressive one? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Questions? Comments? Click!

Over centuries, gold has proven to be a lousy investment. Its big selling point has been "safety." But, is gold really safe? What good is gold? Then, listeners want to know: Should a home equity line of credit be used to buy a new home? What's the best way to make a lot, quickly, with both safety and liquidity? What should be dome with retirement investment money after maxing out retirement plans? Should I-Bonds be sold now that they're earning less? After big losses from a brokerage por...

Because people have been known to rip off customers, the financial industry is heavily regulated, with a few exceptions. We explore how indexed annuity salespeople get away with misleading customers and how hard it is to stop them. Don explains how indexed annuities work and why they are so lightly regulated. Listeners want to know: Why is BND going down in value? How should unneeded money in IRA be invested? What do we think about the four-year Bitcoin cycle? Learn more about your ad choice...

Advisor Diana Bacon joins Tom and Don to discuss those future purposes for which you need to invest. Should you invest for a house, education, retirement, or beer, and how much for each? Listeners ask: Is a Fidelity investor limited to their funds, or can a couple of ETFs work? Is buying individual bonds better than a bond fund? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Questions? Comments? Click!

In this Q&A (and C) episode: What's the best way to sell gold for an estate and what are the tax ramifications? What type of 401k is better for charitable contributions? Those Vanguard transaction fees get paid back into the funds. Can an index fund be traded, tax-free for an ETF from another firm? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Questions? Comments? Click!