Podcasts about Roth IRA

Natalie Brunell sits down with Clay Garrett, Bitkey Lead at Block, to break down the massive Coldcard hack — including how his team found clues that may help law enforcement identify who was behind the attack. Then we go inside Bitkey itself: how it works, why it doesn't use a traditional seed phrase, and how its 3-key security design is meant to make self-custody safer and easier for everyday Bitcoin owners. We also discuss: What the Coldcard hack can teach Bitcoin owners about keeping their savings safe  How Bitkey protects your Bitcoin without relying on a seed phrase  Why Bitkey uses three keys — and what happens if you lose your phone or the device (or both)  How inheritance works and how your Bitcoin can eventually be passed on to your family  If you own Bitcoin and have ever wondered how to keep it safe without making self-custody overly complicated, this episode is for you. If you own Bitcoin and are thinking about securing it yourself — this is an important conversation. Get 10% off using code STORIES at Bitkey.world/STORIES (I do not earn commission from this discount). Follow Clay Garrett on X https://x.com/clay_garrett  ---- Order Natalie's new book "Bitcoin is For Everyone," a simple introduction to Bitcoin and what's broken in our current financial system: https://amzn.to/3WzFzfU  ---- Borrow against your Bitcoin without selling it. Ledn offers Bitcoin-backed loans built for serious holders, with rates that get lower as your loan size increases. With Ledn's custodied loan product, your Bitcoin is held in custody and not lent out. Ledn has operated through multiple market cycles without a loss of client assets and publishes Proof of Reserves so you can verify what they hold. Get 0.25% off your first loan at ledn.io/natalie. Terms apply — see the site for details. ---- Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR) powers AI and Bitcoin mining infrastructure with 3 GW of secured global energy — and owns the entire stack, from equipment manufacturing to data centers to proprietary orchestration software. Learn more at https://www.bitdeer.com  ---- Abundant Mines is a fully-managed Bitcoin mining in the U.S. You own the miners. You keep 100% of the Bitcoin. Voted #1 mining company by peers. Get 1 month of free hosting: AbundantMines.com/Natalie ---- Natalie's Bitcoin Product Partners: Speed is my go-to Bitcoin Lightning wallet! Send, receive, or swap stablecoins and digital gold into Bitcoin in one app. Run a business? Speed powers Bitcoin payments for Steak 'n Shake, and it can do the same for you. Download at https://speed.app/natalie  and use code COINSTORIES10 for 5,000 free sats after your first transaction. Download Bitkey Today and use my promo code STORIES to get 10% off the new Bitkey. This episode has been sponsored by Bitkey: https://bitkey.world/STORIES Master Bitcoin self-custody and gain peace of mind with 1-on-1 training: https://www.thebitcoinway.com/natalie?utm_source=partner-natalie&utm_medium=podcast With BitcoinIRA, you can invest in bitcoin 24/7 inside a tax-advantaged IRA. Choose a Traditional IRA to defer taxes, or a Roth IRA for tax-free withdrawals later. Take control of your future with BitcoinIRA: https://www.bitcoinira.com/natalie  Natalie's Upcoming Events: The best time to plan for Bitcoin 2027 is right now. Early bird tickets are live — grab the lowest pricing available and use code HODL for 10% off: https://tickets.b.tc/event/bitcoin-2027?promoCodeTask=apply&promoCodeInput=HODL  Extra Services to Consider: One of the best decisions I made for both my heath and my bank account was joining CrowdHealth years ago. I never spend more than $200 on health coverage through my CrowdHealth plan and all my health events have been crowd-funded. Get started with a discounted plan at my link. : www.joincrowdhealth.com/natalie  ---- Disclaimer: The News Block and Coin Stories are for educational and entertainment purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Natalie Brunell is not a financial advisor. Some content may include sponsorships or paid partnerships, which are disclosed. Always do your own research and consult a licensed professional before making financial decisions. Bitcoin and digital assets are volatile — never invest more than you can afford to lose.

This episode brought to you by Abound Wealth. Take the relationship to the next level and become a client: https://moneyguy.com/become-a-client/ At 27 years old, Melissa has already built a $61,000 net worth on a $65,000 salary—proving you don't need a six-figure income to build wealth. Brian and Bo break down her investing strategy, Roth IRA contributions, 401(k), HSA, emergency fund, car loan, and savings rate while showing how small financial decisions compound into long-term financial independence. They also discuss the Financial Order of Operations (FOO), whether to prioritize investing or paying off debt, and how someone earning a moderate income can still become a millionaire through consistent investing and smart money habits. If you're building wealth in your 20s or 30s, this episode offers practical personal finance lessons you can apply today. Jump start your journey with our FREE financial resources⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Reach your goals faster with our products⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Take the relationship to the next level: become a client⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe on YouTube for early access and go beyond the podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect with us on social media for more content⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bring confidence to your wealth building with simplified strategies from The Money Guy. Learn how to apply financial tactics that go beyond common sense and help you reach your money goals faster. Make your assets do the heavy lifting so you can quit worrying and start living a more fulfilled life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One decision in your first year of service can make you a military millionaire and most people never make it. In this long-awaited 2026 refresh of their most popular episode ever, Spencer and co-host Jamie break down the Thrift Savings Plan from the ground up: what it is, how the 5% match really works, Roth vs. traditional, the combat zone triple tax benefit, and exactly how much to contribute to retire with seven figures. Whether you just left boot camp or you're 15 years in and think you're too late, this is the no-nonsense TSP playbook for the modern service member. Questions Asked: What is the TSP, and how is it different from a savings account or a civilian 401(k)? How do the TSP and a Roth IRA work together — and why aren't they the same thing? How much can you contribute in 2026, and how much do you actually recommend? When does the government's 5% match kick in, and how do you avoid missing it? Can you contribute to a non-working spouse's IRA? Roth or traditional — which should most military members choose? What are catch-up contributions, and who are they actually for? How does the combat zone tax exclusion (CZTE) supercharge Roth contributions? I'm 10–15 years in under Legacy High-3 — is the TSP still worth it? What happens to my TSP when I separate or retire? How do the G, F, C, S, and I funds work, and what should I pick? What are Lifecycle (L) funds, and are they good enough? Is the TSP still a good deal on cost compared to Fidelity's zero-fee funds? What are your personal allocations? If I'm feeling overwhelmed, what's the one thing I should do? Main Topics Covered: TSP basics: employer-sponsored plan, Blended Retirement System (BRS) vs. Legacy High-3, and the 2018 transition The 5% match explained — 1% automatic + 4% after your 2-year mark — and why it doesn't count against your $24,500 elective deferral limit 2026 contribution limits: $24,500 TSP, $7,500 per person IRA, and the $72,000 combined limit The millionaire math: 20% (officer) or 25% (enlisted) to Roth TSP = a seven-figure account in 20 years Setting it up in myPay and tsp.gov, and why you should spread contributions across all 12 months Roth vs. traditional for military pay, and why Roth wins for ~90%+ of service members The combat zone triple tax benefit and tax-free re-enlistment bonuses New for 2026: Roth in-plan conversions and the military mega backdoor Roth Late to the game? Why it's never too late to start Keeping, rolling over, or consolidating your TSP after separation — and Guard/Reserve combined limits Breaking down all five funds (G, F, C, S, I) — including the I Fund's ex-China index change Lifecycle/target-date funds as the ultimate hands-off solution, and why chasing Facebook-group "gurus" backfires Costs, expense ratios, front-end load fees (looking at you, First Command), and the mutual fund window Rebalancing, interfund transfers, and tax-efficient asset placement Spencer's and Jamie's personal allocations, and why there's no perfect portfolio Resources Mentioned: The Military Money Manual: A Practical Guide to Financial Freedom (Amazon / militarymoneymanual.com) Tools at militarymoneymanual.com: MilTaxCaster: https://militarymoneymanual.com/military-tax-estimator/MilTaxCaster Cost/expense ratio calculator: https://militarymoneymanual.com/costs/ Roth TSP conversion calculator: https://militarymoneymanual.com/roth-tsp-conversion-calculator/ Contribution percentage chart: https://militarymoneymanual.com/military-tsp-match-max/  tsp.gov and FINRA.org (unbiased resources) Related episodes: #2 (original TSP) https://podcast.militarymoneymanual.com/ , #39 (mutual fund window) https://podcast.militarymoneymanual.com/39-2022-changes-to-the-tsp-mutual-fund-window-tsp-app-more/, #211 (Roth in-plan conversions with Brian "Alf" O'Neill) https://podcast.militarymoneymanual.com/roth-in-plan-conversions-tsp-with-brain-alf-oneill-211/  Tax Planning To and Through Early Retirement by Sean Mullaney and Cody Garrett Spencer and Jamie offer one-on-one Military Money Mentor sessions. Get your personal military money and personal finance questions answered in a confidential coaching call. militarymoneymanual.com/mentor Over 24,000 military servicemembers and military spouses have graduated from the 100% free, Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course available at militarymoneymanual.com/umc3 In the Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course, you can learn how to apply for the most premium credit cards and get special military protections, such as waived annual fees, on elite cards. Learn how active duty military, military spouses, and Guard and Reserves on 30+ day active orders can get your annual fees waived on premium credit cards in the Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course at militarymoneymanual.com/umc3 If you want to maximize your military paycheck, check out Spencer's 5 star rated book The Military Money Manual: A Practical Guide to Financial Freedom on Amazon or at shop.militarymoneymanual.com. If you have a question you would like us to answer on the podcast, please reach out on instagram.com/militarymoneymanual.

In this episode, Emily interviews Quinn Nguyen, a 4th-year PhD student in chemistry at UC Irvine. Quinn has been highly intentional with her finances during graduate school. She maintains a zero-based budget, uses targeted savings accounts for her cat and annual trips to Vietnam, keeps emergency savings, and pays herself first into a Roth IRA. She also lives in subsidized graduate student housing and drives an electric bike in addition to a car. Quinn and Emily discuss the advantages of these practices, specifically the Roth IRA, and how Quinn has developed confidence that she can make her finances work no matter what life throws at her post-graduate school.

Jim and Chris discuss listener emails on Social Security survivor benefits and earnings records, financing a home purchase, and using a fixed indexed annuity (FIA) for discretionary spending. (11:15) A listener asks why a Social Security estimate lists a $3,944 survivor benefit rather than the projected $5,101 age-70 benefit and which amount would actually be paid. (21:45) The guys consider whether adding previously omitted stock option income to a 2017 earnings record could result in higher Social Security benefits and back pay. (31:30) Jim and Chris weigh using a 60-day IRA or Roth IRA rollover to finance a home purchase before selling the current home against a HELOC or mortgage. (55:15) Another listener asks for their thoughts on using a fixed indexed annuity (FIA) with an income rider to support discretionary spending and how it compares with their simpler annuity strategies. The post Social Security, Social Security, Home Purchase, Fun Spending: Q&A #2635 appeared first on The Retirement and IRA Show.

Friday - Clark Stinks day! Christa  shares Clark Stinks posts with Clark. Submit yours at Clark.com/ClarkStinks.   Also,  every time a major technological shift happens, we hear predictions of widespread job destruction—and the rapid rise of Artificial Intelligence is driving those fears to a whole new level. Clark breaks down what the AI boom actually means for your paycheck, how tech expansion shifts hidden costs onto consumers, and the concrete steps you can take today to pivot, re-educate, and make your career resilient against technological change. All this and more on the August 28, 2026, episode of The Clark Howard Show. Clark Stinks: Segments 1 & 2 AI & Jobs: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Top Fortune 500 Companies for Remote Work - Clark Howard How To Find a Trustworthy Mechanic - Clark Howard Credit Card Car Rental Insurance: What You Need To Know Should I Keep My Old Car or Buy a New Car? - Clark Howard  NYTimes: A.I. Companies Are Recruiting Electricians and Carpenters by the Thousands Employers still place a premium on people skills, not AI, when making hiring decisions Should I Convert a Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA? - Clark Howard  Top 7 Ways To Shop Safely Online - Clark Howard  Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Submit your opinions or questions: Ask Clark. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Behind on retirement savings or starting to invest later in life? Brian and Bo break down how to catch up on retirement in your 40s and 50s, including how much you should have saved by age, retirement savings rates, 401(k) and Roth IRA strategies, catch-up contributions, Social Security, and the power of working longer. You'll see how increasing your savings rate, reducing high-interest debt and fixed expenses, and growing your income can dramatically change your retirement trajectory. If you feel behind financially, learn the practical steps that can help you build wealth, invest for retirement, and create a realistic financial independence plan. Jump start your journey with our FREE financial resources⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Reach your goals faster with our products⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Take the relationship to the next level: become a client⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe on YouTube for early access and go beyond the podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Connect with us on social media for more content⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bring confidence to your wealth building with simplified strategies from The Money Guy. Learn how to apply financial tactics that go beyond common sense and help you reach your money goals faster. Make your assets do the heavy lifting so you can quit worrying and start living a more fulfilled life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1046. Did your teenager earn money from a summer or part-time job? Laura answers a listener's question about two tax-advantaged savings accounts for minors: the Roth IRA and the new Trump Account. You'll learn how both accounts work and where working teens or their parents should put their hard-earned dollars first.Key Takeaways:Minors can have a custodial Roth IRA when they earn income from W-2 employment or self-employment and contribute up to $7,500 or 100% of earned income, whichever is less.A Section 530A Trump Account can be opened for kids under 18 regardless of whether they earn income, and contributions can total $5,000 annually.A Roth IRA offers tax-free growth and tax-free withdrawals in retirement.A Trump Account grows tax-deferred, and once the owner turns 18, it becomes a traditional IRA, with distributions taxed (except for contributions that were previously taxed).Parents or relatives do not need to use a minor's money to fund a Roth IRA; they can match or make an eligible contribution for the minor.After age 18, doing a Roth conversion on an old Trump Account is a wise move to lock in tax-free growth forever.Eligible working minors can max out a Custodial Roth IRA up to their earnings limit and receive up to $5,000 in a Trump Account from family, friends, or employers in the same tax year.Discover more from Money Girl!FacebookNewsletterTranscripts available at QuickandDirtyTips.com.Email: Laura@LauraDAdams.com or leave a voicemail: (302) 364-0308. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's Friday Q&A—with a small experiment. Don slips one AI-generated voice among the listener questions and challenges you to identify the robot, with his complete two-book library hanging in the balance.The financial questions are thoroughly human: where to keep a future car fund, whether an $11,000 Roth-conversion program earns its fee, when children can fund Roth IRAs, and what happens when bond holdings move from a traditional IRA into a Roth.Don also tackles the enviable problem of an oversized HSA, its inheritance rules and post-65 flexibility, plus the timing tradeoff for Social Security survivor benefits.0:46 — Friday Q&A and the find-the-robot challenge4:03 — Where should a $70,000 car fund live?7:21 — Is an $11,000 Roth-conversion plan worth it?9:39 — Roth IRAs for children—and newborns11:13 — Bonds that move into a Roth conversion13:54 — The $500,000 HSA problem16:43 — When a surviving spouse should claim Social SecurityQuestions? Comments? Click!

Money is never just about money, and work is never just about a paycheck. Scripture teaches that God owns everything, gives us the ability to earn, and calls us to work with integrity because ultimately, we serve Christ. Howard Dayton, Founder of Compass Financial Ministry and author of Business God's Way, says those truths should shape not only how Christians manage money, but how we earn it in the first place. Remember Who You're Really Working For The foundation of biblical earning begins with recognizing that God owns everything and that He is ultimately the One we serve. Colossians 3:23-24 says: “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men… You are serving the Lord Christ.” That applies whether you own a business, work for a large company, serve in ministry, or earn a paycheck somewhere in between. Your employer may sign the check, but your work is ultimately an act of service to Christ. Even the ability to earn is a gift from God. Deuteronomy 8:18 reminds us: “You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth.” That perspective guards against pride when things go well. Our abilities, opportunities, creativity, and strength are all resources God has entrusted to us. Let Integrity Define Your Work If we represent Christ in the workplace, honesty should characterize everything we do. For business owners, that means treating customers, employees, vendors, and even competitors with integrity. For employees, it means giving an honest day's work, using company resources responsibly, and refusing to take what does not belong to us—even when no one would notice. Jesus said in Matthew 5:16: “Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Our conduct at work can either reinforce or undermine the faith we profess. Biblical integrity means doing what is right because we belong to Christ, not simply because honesty is good for business. Plan Wisely Without Presuming on Tomorrow Running a business or managing a career requires planning. Scripture affirms the value of order and thoughtful preparation. 1 Corinthians 14:40 says, “All things should be done decently and in order.” While the immediate context concerns worship in the church, the broader principle reminds us that order and intentionality have value. At the same time, good planning should never become confidence that we control the future. James 4:13-14 warns those who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit,” reminding them, “You do not know what tomorrow will bring.” Christians should plan carefully while holding those plans with open hands. We prepare responsibly, but we remain dependent on God. Make Generosity Part of the Business Plan Many biblical principles such as honesty, diligence, and planning are also recognized as sound business practices. Generosity, however, can run against the world's instinct to accumulate and protect as much as possible. Proverbs 11:24-25 says: “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.” This is not a promise that generous people will always become materially wealthy. Scripture does not teach us to give in order to get more. Instead, generosity reflects trust in God and loosens money's grip on our hearts. For a business owner, generosity might mean giving a portion of profits, caring intentionally for employees, supporting ministry, or finding creative ways to use the company's resources to serve others. Some Christian business leaders have gone even further. Entrepreneurs such as Alan Barnhart and Stanley Tam structured their businesses around extraordinary generosity, viewing their companies not simply as vehicles for personal wealth but as resources entrusted to them for God's purposes. The form generosity takes will look different for every person and every business. The important question is whether we are willing to ask God how the resources He has entrusted to us can bless others. Work as a Steward Earning money God's way begins with a different definition of success. The goal is not merely to maximize income or grow a business. It is to faithfully steward the abilities, opportunities, relationships, and resources God provides. We work diligently because we serve Christ. We act honestly because we represent Him. We plan wisely while remembering that tomorrow belongs to God. And we hold what we earn with open hands so that generosity can become a natural expression of faithful stewardship. When we understand that God is both the Owner and our ultimate Employer, work becomes more than a way to make a living. It becomes another opportunity to honor Him with what He has entrusted to us. On Today's Program, Rob Answers Listener Questions: I'd like to help my daughter buy a home by financing part of the purchase myself. Can we structure a private family mortgage using the applicable federal rate, and how should we handle the interest, paperwork, and tax reporting? I'm behind on filing my taxes and have been quoted more than $600 for preparation. I also run a nonprofit ministry and would like to keep costs down. Where can I find affordable or free tax-preparation help, and could a Certified Kingdom Advisor® (CKA®) assist? I received a Schedule K-1 from an investment held inside my IRA. How should I handle that for tax purposes? My husband and I are dairy farmers with operating and capital lines of credit around 8.5%. We're considering using money from his Roth IRA to pay down the debt. At age 60, would there be taxes or penalties, and is that a wise move? Resources Mentioned: Faithful Steward: FaithFi's Quarterly Magazine (Become a FaithFi Partner) Business God's Way by Howard Dayton IRS Free File | AARP Foundation Tax-Aide | IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program FaithFi Field Guide: How Much Money is Enough?  Our Ultimate Treasure: A 21-Day Journey to Faithful Stewardship by Rob West Wisdom Over Wealth: 12 Lessons from Ecclesiastes on Money Look At The Sparrows: A 21-Day Devotional on Financial Fear and Anxiety Rich Toward God: A Study on the Parable of the Rich Fool Find a Certified Kingdom Advisor® (CKA) FaithFi App Remember, you can call in to ask your questions every weekday at (800) 525-7000. Faith & Finance is also available on Moody Radio Network and American Family Radio. You can also visit FaithFi.com to connect with our online community and partner with us as we help more people live as faithful stewards of God's resources. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week on Five Question Friday (FQF):Question 1: Has AI fundamentally changed the stock market, and does market history still matter?Question 2: If you retire a few years before claiming Social Security, how does the 4% rule apply during that gap?Question 3: If you roll a long-held Roth 401(k) into a brand-new Roth IRA, do you still have to wait five years to withdraw earnings?Question 4: Can you use traditional IRA funds to pay for long-term care and deduct the cost?Question 5: Can you build a fixed 50/50 portfolio by splitting money between Vanguard's 40/60 and 60/40 LifeStrategy funds?Resources mentioned in the episode:Schwab on the Roth 5-year rules: https://www.schwab.com/learn/story/wh...IRS Publication 502 (Medical and Dental Expenses): https://www.irs.gov/publications/p502Vanguard LifeStrategy Funds: https://investor.vanguard.com/investm...Boldin (retirement planner): https://go.robberger.com/boldin/yt-fq...ProjectionLab: https://go.robberger.com/projectionla...Join the Newsletter. It's Free:https://robberger.com/newsletter/?utm...

How much should you save in a 529 plan, and what happens if you save too much? In this episode of The White Coat Investor Podcast, Dr. Jim Dahle answers listener questions about 529 college savings plans, including how they work, why they can be such a powerful tool for physician families, and how to avoid some of the tax complications that can come from getting too clever with college funding. Jim starts with the basics of 529 plans, including state tax benefits, tax-free growth, qualified withdrawals, and how long-term compounding can dramatically increase the value of early contributions. He also explains what happens when a 529 is overfunded, including changing beneficiaries, using the money for future generations, and the newer ability to roll some 529 money into a Roth IRA. The discussion then gets more complicated. Jim addresses using appreciated investments to pay for college, the 0% long-term capital gains bracket, dependent status, support requirements, the kiddie tax, and gift-tax considerations. He also shares a personal example of over-optimizing a daughter's UTMA account and discovering an unexpected state tax bill. Finally, Jim explains how families can continue contributing to a 529 while a child is in college, how he handles withdrawals and receipts, and what alternatives make sense when a family is already on track to fully fund college. A 529 is a powerful account when you know the money is going toward education. The goal isn't to maximize every possible tax trick. It's to save enough, use the tax benefits available to you, and keep your financial life simple. Texas Loan Repayment Program: https://www.hhloans.com/physician-education-loan-repayment-program  Today's episode is brought to us by SoFi, the folks who help you get your money right. Paying off student debt quickly and getting your finances back on track isn't easy, but that's where SoFi can help — they have exclusive, low rates designed to help medical residents refinance student loans—and that could end up saving you thousands of dollars, helping you get out of student debt sooner. SoFi also offers the ability to lower your payments to just $100 a month* while you're still in residency. And if you're already out of residency, SoFi's got you covered there too. For more information, go to https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/Sofi SoFi Student Loans are originated by SoFi Bank, N.A. Member FDIC. Additional terms and conditions apply. NMLS 696891. The White Coat Investor Podcast launched in January 2017, and since then, millions have downloaded it. Join your fellow physicians and other high income professionals and subscribe today! Host, Dr. Jim Dahle, is a practicing emergency physician and founder of The White Coat Investor blog. Like the blog, The White Coat Investor Podcast is dedicated to educating medical students, residents, physicians, dentists, and similar high-income professionals about personal finance and building wealth, so they can ultimately be their own financial advisor-or at least know enough to not get ripped off by a financial advisor. We tackle the hard topics like the best ways to pay off student loans, how to create your own personal financial plan, retirement planning, how to save money, investing in real estate, side hustles, and how everyone can be a millionaire by living WCI principles. Website: https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com  YouTube: https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/youtube  Student Loan Advice: https://studentloanadvice.com  TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thewhitecoatinvestor  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewhitecoatinvestor  Twitter: https://twitter.com/WCInvestor  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewhitecoatinvestor  Subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/whitecoatinvestor  Online Courses: https://whitecoatinvestor.teachable.com  Newsletter: https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/free-monthly-newsletter 

Kate has good money habits. She's saving, she's investing, she's automated her high-yield savings account. So why does she still feel like she's behind? Today, Nicole sits down with a Money Rehab listener for a real-life financial intervention, digging into the exact questions so many 20-somethings are quietly Googling at 1am. Kate walks Nicole through her real numbers: what she earns, what she spends, and how she's splitting money between a Roth IRA, a brokerage account, and student loan payments. Nicole breaks down the actual mechanics she never learned, like why you need cash in the account before you can buy anything, how to think about a Roth versus a brokerage account, and whether it's smart to max out one before touching the other. They also get into the emotional side of money: the guilt Kate feels every time she spends, why her financial goals always seem to move further away the more she achieves, and how giving herself a real number for guilt-free spending changes everything. Check out Nicole's financial literacy course The Money School Find a Financial Advisor or Financial Coach from Nicole's company Private Wealth Collective Watch video clips from the pod on Money Rehab's Instagram and Nicole Lapin's Instagram Here's what Nicole covers with Kate: 00:00 Are You Ready for Some Money Rehab? 02:28 Meet Kate: Her Money Goals 03:53 From Ice Cream Shop Paychecks to a 9-5 04:39 Breaking Down Kate's Budget 05:54 The High-Yield Savings Account Strategy 07:11 Using a HYSA as a "Don't Touch This" Account 08:01 Roth vs. Brokerage: Kate's Investing Confusion 09:25 Why No One Teaches You How to Actually Buy 11:06 Roth vs. Brokerage, Explained 13:28 Should You Max Out Your Roth First? 15:09 Why Kate Sticks to Index Funds 17:15 The Tax Truth About Brokerage Accounts 20:07 What Financial Freedom Actually Means to Kate 21:19 The Guilt Spiral of Spending 22:28 Why Sticking to the Plan Is the Hard Part 22:52 How Kate's Childhood Shaped Her Money Mindset 23:52 The Moving Goalpost Problem 25:25 Building (and Sticking to) a Budget 28:30 Solving Spending Guilt With a "Fun Money" Number 29:51 Where Kate Keeps Her Savings 31:05 Kate's 5 and 10 Year Money Goals 32:36 Is Money a Never-Ending Game? 34:41 How Kate Started Investing With Just $20 36:45 Nicole's Game Plan for Kate 45:05 Tip You Can Take Straight to the Bank Get started with a SoFi high yield savings account: SoFi.com/MNNBank All investing involves the risk of loss, including loss of principal. This podcast is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, or legal advice. Always do your own research and consult a licensed financial advisor before making any financial decisions or investments.

1045. Are you taking full advantage of tax-free retirement growth? While both workplace Roth plans and Roth IRAs offer tax-free growth, they come with vastly different eligibility limits, withdrawal rules, and investment options. Laura breaks down the key Roth differences so you can decide which option is right for you. Key Takeaways:You can contribute up to $24,500 to $32,750 in a workplace Roth for 2026—over triple the $7,500 to $8,600 limit for a Roth IRA, depending on your age.Roth contributions make sense if you believe your income or tax rate will be higher in the future when you can take tax-free withdrawals. High earners who exceed the 2026 Roth IRA MAGI limits can not make full contributions to a Roth IRA. You can withdraw 100% of your original Roth IRA contributions anytime, tax- and penalty-free, but that's not possible with a workplace Roth. A Roth IRA offers better investment choices and early liquidity compared to a workplace Roth. Workers over 50 and earning over $150,000 in prior-year wages must make any workplace catch-up contributions on a post-tax Roth basis.Most investors should prioritize contributions to a workplace retirement plan to receive 100% of any employer match.Discover more from Money Girl!FacebookNewsletterTranscripts available at QuickandDirtyTips.com.Email: Laura@LauraDAdams.com or leave a voicemail: (302) 364-0308. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Wall Street has declared yet another “year of the stock picker.” Don and Tom examine Morningstar and SPIVA data showing how few active large-cap funds beat their benchmarks—and why high fees, trading costs, taxes, short horizons, and fierce competition keep the odds tilted toward low-cost diversification.Then Greg asks where stocks and bonds belong while he begins Roth conversions. The discussion covers asset location, small-cap value exposure, international diversification, tax brackets, IRMAA, and keeping the portfolio's overall risk level intact.Finally, they tackle an all-U.S. Roth for a 20-year-old, a couple's pre-retirement glide path, and a pricey Fidelity target-date fund that can be replaced inside a Roth without creating a tax bill. Stay through the end for a money-music bonus.0:37 — The “year of the stock picker” returns2:41 — Active funds trail their benchmarks again8:30 — Why passive keeps winning13:29 — Asset location for Roth conversions22:09 — Should a 20-year-old invest only in the U.S.?23:59 — Reducing risk before retirement28:24 — Escaping an expensive target-date fund31:53 — Reviews, inflation, and a money-music bonusQuestions? Comments? Click!

Jonathan Goodman did everything the Bitcoin experts tell you to do: Multiple hardware wallets, backups stored in separate places and a seed phrase stamped into metal. But last month he opened his cold storage set-up and found his Bitcoin gone. In this deeply personal episode of Coin Stories, Natalie Brunell sits down with the author and entrepreneur, one of the most affected victims of the Coldcard exploit — money he had set aside for his children. We discuss: The moment he found out and what he did right away Why three separate backups all failed for the exact same reason What the detectives told him about getting his Bitcoin back Why he expects no class action lawsuit is coming What he'd say to the founder of the company that lost his savings  Why he refuses to be angry about any of it Follow Jonathan Goodman on X: https://x.com/itscoachgoodman   ---- Order Natalie's new book "Bitcoin is For Everyone," a simple introduction to Bitcoin and what's broken in our current financial system: https://amzn.to/3WzFzfU  ---- Borrow against your Bitcoin without selling it. Ledn offers Bitcoin-backed loans built for serious holders, with rates that get lower as your loan size increases. With Ledn's custodied loan product, your Bitcoin is held in custody and not lent out. Ledn has operated through multiple market cycles without a loss of client assets and publishes Proof of Reserves so you can verify what they hold. Get 0.25% off your first loan at ledn.io/natalie. Terms apply — see the site for details. ---- Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR) powers AI and Bitcoin mining infrastructure with 3 GW of secured global energy — and owns the entire stack, from equipment manufacturing to data centers to proprietary orchestration software. Learn more at https://www.bitdeer.com  ---- Abundant Mines is a fully-managed Bitcoin mining in the U.S. You own the miners. You keep 100% of the Bitcoin. Voted #1 mining company by peers. Get 1 month of free hosting: AbundantMines.com/Natalie ---- Natalie's Bitcoin Product Partners: Speed is my go-to Bitcoin Lightning wallet! Send, receive, or swap stablecoins and digital gold into Bitcoin in one app. Run a business? Speed powers Bitcoin payments for Steak 'n Shake, and it can do the same for you. Download at https://speed.app/natalie  and use code COINSTORIES10 for 5,000 free sats after your first transaction. Download Bitkey Today and use my promo code STORIES to get 10% off the new Bitkey. This episode has been sponsored by Bitkey: https://bitkey.world/STORIES Master Bitcoin self-custody and gain peace of mind with 1-on-1 training: https://www.thebitcoinway.com/natalie?utm_source=partner-natalie&utm_medium=podcast With BitcoinIRA, you can invest in bitcoin 24/7 inside a tax-advantaged IRA. Choose a Traditional IRA to defer taxes, or a Roth IRA for tax-free withdrawals later. Take control of your future with BitcoinIRA: https://www.bitcoinira.com/natalie    Natalie's Upcoming Events: The best time to plan for Bitcoin 2027 is right now. Early bird tickets are live — grab the lowest pricing available and use code HODL for 10% off: https://tickets.b.tc/event/bitcoin-2027?promoCodeTask=apply&promoCodeInput=HODL  Extra Services to Consider: One of the best decisions I made for both my heath and my bank account was joining CrowdHealth years ago. I never spend more than $200 on health coverage through my CrowdHealth plan and all my health events have been crowd-funded. Get started with a discounted plan at my link. : www.joincrowdhealth.com/natalie  ---- Disclaimer: The News Block and Coin Stories are for educational and entertainment purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Natalie Brunell is not a financial advisor. Some content may include sponsorships or paid partnerships, which are disclosed. Always do your own research and consult a licensed professional before making financial decisions. Bitcoin and digital assets are volatile — never invest more than you can afford to lose.

In this Tax Tuesday replay, Anderson Business Advisors' Barley Bowler, CPA, and Eliot Thomas, Esq. answer real-world tax questions on Roth IRA conversions, investing in real estate with retirement accounts, and depreciation after a 1031 exchange. How can you estimate the tax impact of a Roth IRA conversion before filing your 2026 tax return? Is buying real estate through an HSA, traditional IRA, or Roth IRA a smart investment strategy—and what tax rules, advantages, and potential pitfalls should you understand before moving forward? Plus, how is depreciation calculated after a §1031 exchange when you sell a rental property and acquire a replacement property? Barley and Eliot break down these questions and explain the tax considerations investors and business owners should keep in mind when planning their next move.   Would you like to learn more about passing down your estate? Schedule a free consultation here: https://aba.link/b51702  Register for the next Tax Tuesday webinar to get your questions answered Live: https://aba.link/9e733b  Register for an upcoming workshop today if you want to protect your business and personal assets from snoopy lawyers and creditors. Save Your Seat: https://aba.link/7c2c4d    Show Notes: 0:00 Intro 9:05 When I convert a Roth IRA this year how do I determine the accurate tax impact from the conversion amount before filing the 2026 tax return? 20:18 Is it a good idea to buy real estate using your HSA, IRA, or Roth IRA accounts? What are some pros and cons and how should I proceed? 35:51 How is depreciation calculated going forward after a §1031 exchange following the sale of a rental property and purchase of a new one? 43:41 I am planning to use a HELOC from my personal residence and use the funds for my trading activity. Can I deduct the interest as investment interest under Form 4952 if I loan the money to my LLC, and what counts as "net investment income"? 1:04:05 I will have a tax loss carryforward if I elect to use Section 475(f) mark-to-market accounting method. What types of income can I offset? 1:08:51 I currently have a Living Trust that ABA set up in Wyoming, as well as an LLC. I put all my cryptocurrencies into the LLC. Is this the best way to mitigate my taxes? I paid about $2.00 per share and the value is growing substantially. What other options might be better than the LLC? 1:12:42 Is there a way to organize and structure an entity to trade a taxable account and be able to defer taxes until a cash withdrawal?

Join our upcoming live event at GREwebinars.com. It's called "The Seven Figure Solution" on August 27th at 8 PM Eastern. After listening to me for 12 years, learn how to finally put it all together for a coordinated, tax-efficient retirement and wealth plan.  Keith debunks alarmist predictions of an 80–95% housing crash and explains why inflation, constrained supply, and strong demand continue to put upward pressure on home prices.  He breaks down key trends in renter mobility, highlights how the AI boom is driving record-breaking rents in San Francisco, and contrasts "dopamine culture" and money maxing with GRE's philosophy of growing one's means through income property and leverage.  Keith also discusses how the Seven-Figure Solution framework helps real estate investors more effectively integrate properties, taxes, insurance, and retirement planning.  Episode Page: GetRichEducation.com/620 For access to properties or free help with a GRE Investment Coach, start here: GREmarketplace.com GRE Free Investment Coaching: GREinvestmentcoach.com Get mortgage loans for investment property: RidgeLendingGroup.com or call 855-74-RIDGE  or e-mail: info@RidgeLendingGroup.com Invest with Freedom Family Investments.  For predictable 10-12% quarterly returns, visit FreedomFamilyInvestments.com/GRE or text  FAMILY to 66866  Join Mid South Home Buyers' one-time, free live webinar featuring Keith Weinhold on September 30 at GetRichEducation.com/MidSouth to learn how Memphis' economic expansion could create new real estate investment opportunities, and have your questions answered in real time. Will you please leave a review for the show? I'd be grateful. Search "how to leave an Apple Podcasts review"  For advertising inquiries, visit: GetRichEducation.com/ad Best Financial Education: GetRichEducation.com Get our wealth-building newsletter free— GREletter.com  Our YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/c/GetRichEducation Follow us on Instagram: @getricheducation Complete episode transcript:   Keith Weinhold  0:01   Welcome to GRE. I'm your host Keith Weinhold. An alarmist calls for a housing price crash of 80 to 95 percent. We'll listen to it. This city's rents are up 26 percent annually. The rise of dopamine culture and money maxing has made its way into personal finance. Then an invitation to join us for a special event today on Get Rich Education.   Keith Weinhold  0:29   What if I told you that one of America's strongest cash flow real estate markets is also becoming the new brains and brawn behind AI? That city is Memphis, believe it or not. In September 30th, we're going to show you why the smart money is paying attention now, along with an investing opportunity you won't want to miss. Join me, Terry Kerr and Matthew Van Horn of Mid South Homebuyers, the largest turnkey company in Memphis with more than 6,000 homes under management, for a free live webinar, the likes of which I've never done before. We're going to look at what billions in new investment could mean for jobs, housing demand, neighborhood appreciation, and your portfolio. Everyone who attends live will also get exclusive access to the best deal terms MidSeal has ever offered. Reserve your free seat at getricheducation.com/midsouth. Again, that september 30. Don't say we didn't tell you. Save your spot at getricheducation.com/midsouth.   Speaker 1  1:35   You're listening to the show that has created more financial freedom than nearly any show in the world. This is Get Rich Education.   Keith Weinhold  1:51   Welcome to GRE from Naples, Italy, to Naples, Florida, and across 188 nations worldwide. You're listening to one of America's longest-running and most listened-to shows in the real estate world. This is Get Rich Education, and I'm Keith Weinhold. Yes, the very founder of this snaggle-toothed operation right here. I'm a longtime real estate investor myself, erstwhile writer for both Forbes and the Rich Dad Advisors, serving on the Forbes Real Estate Council, you can also see my work in the USA Today and Business Insider. I'm the creator of Real Estate Pays Five Ways and the Inflation Triple Crown. Oh, after all that, really, I'm just a shaved mammal with slack jaw, a highly leveraged hominid of the landed gentry, right before I discuss the housing price crash of 80 to 95% you know, keep in mind that most people think that if you're in real estate, then you've got to be either a realtor or a landlord. I am neither a realtor nor a landlord. People also think that it takes tons of money. It does not. Now you could pursue no money down strategies, but that takes some time to learn and skill to develop. Now I was a landlord in the early years of my real estate investing, but after about six years of that, I hired a property manager and never looked back. Therefore, keeping this mostly passive, a 20 to 25 percent down payment on a carefully selected residential rental property includes ones that today can still have purchase prices below 200k. That's purchased in a geographically investor advantaged market. Okay, that is the center of what we do here because when you own property this way, now you've got the margin where you can pay a property manager to enjoy the five ways that you're paid mostly passively. Be a savvy borrower.   Keith Weinhold  4:02   Now, when you're between deals and accumulating capital to add the next piece of property to your rental portfolio, that's where you can flip and do the opposite in the short term and be a real estate lender for perhaps an eight to 10% stable return. That's what I do, rather than getting three and a half percent, which is the going rate today in a high yield savings account. So be a lender between deals in the short term, or you're a savvy borrower long term. Now the late analyst at Housing Wire, and he was also a past guest here on the show, Logan Modashami, he brought this 80 to 95% housing price crash media piece to my attention. It's in the form of a meta reel that got a lot of attention. Let's play it. I mean, this type of nonsense circulates out. It's not founded on anything substantive, and this just absolutely does not serve anybody. You've got to take this type of thing as entertainment, but it's being presented in a serious, informative way, and just listen to the basis for the claim.    Hayden Weston  5:19   The United States housing market is about to collapse 80 to 95 percent, which means that homes that were worth 1.5 million are going to be worth 300,000. The reason is simple: the U.S. housing market has reached its most unaffordable level in history. People cannot afford to buy homes, and if people cannot buy homes, the market must correct. The question is how hard the market is going to crash, not if it will. According to CPI and price history data, this is predicted to be worse than the 2008 housing bubble. We are going to see prices drop 80 to 95 percent.   Keith Weinhold  6:02   A housing price collapse of 80 to 95 percent. This is from a platform called Hayden Trades. It has got to be the worst example of trying to steal attention rather than serving people. Gosh, don't even make 20% or 50% crash predictions anymore go for far higher, I guess. He says it is according to the CPI and price history data. This doesn't even make sense. Now the low affordability mentioned that part is true, and this is what's slowed home price appreciation. But here in the late 2020s, there was more upward pressure on home prices, not downward inflationary pressure, which is rampant. That is poised to raise replacement cost because a home is a bundle of land, labor, lumber, concrete, copper, and energy. America's best job markets face land and regulatory constraints that pressures prices upward, and regulations are not easily repealed either. There's a large reservoir of sideline buyers that still want to own, and single-family home construction is woefully insufficient, keeping the supply down. Indeed, there is more upward pressure on home prices, not downward. This coming inflation wave, that's exacerbated by war, is unfortunately, or fortunately, if you're positioned, it's poised to widen the K-shaped economy where winners win bigger and losers lose more. The boat is leaving the dock. Are you on it?   Keith Weinhold  7:54   The distance between the boat and the dock just keeps increasing, and eventually you won't be able to make the leap, the jump from the boat to the dock. Now, in the near term, because we're approaching the fall season, when you hear stats about median home prices, note that prices are lower in autumn and winter than they are in spring and summer. It happens pretty much every year. Now, why is this? Well, one reason is that a lot of people don't think about is simply the fact that smaller houses get sold in the winter compared to the summer. And why would this be? This is because families with school-age children who need larger homes get their deals done in summer months before school starts. That is one reason why median home prices are higher in the summer than they are in the winter. When you look at a long-term price chart of homes, this is why you see peaks each summer and dips each winter. Now, investors like us. Now we're not buying so much for school-age children considerations, but this phenomenon affects the median prices that you see quoted in most any market. That is how that works, and why homes present better in the summer too. Green lawns, Leaves, flowers, and natural light improve curb appeal. Some say buy when the snow is flying, sell when the flowers are blooming.   Keith Weinhold  9:32   Shortly, I want to tell you about the city with rents that are up 26% year over year, and there's no end in sight to those rent increases, either. But first, there's a significant national real estate trend. Now, a lot of times, the discussion about the rental market centers around the level of rents or the vacancy rate, and those metrics sure do matter. But what about tenant retention? That is. Renter mobility rate. How long do residents stay? Well, renter mobility is down, down, down. They are not moving around. That's the big trend. Tenants are staying longer. Renters are waiting longer to buy homes than prior generations did. I mean a lot of people are beginning to wonder if their starter home will arrive before their first social security check does? The share of renters planning to move within three years that has plunged since 2019 from 57% then down to just 37% now. This is according to a national survey from the New York Fed. 57 down to 37% that plan to move within three years. Yes, this means that even after the pandemic waned, renters plan to stay in place longer. Everyone is staying put longer, and what exactly is keeping all of those moving boxes in storage? You guessed it. Buying their own home is more difficult to afford. It's kind of like an obstacle course where the down payment is waiting at the finish line, which is a long ways away. It's like an ultra marathon. This decline in renter mobility. This is obviously good news for income property owners and landlords because vacancy and turnover are our greatest expenses. People are paying more.   Keith Weinhold  11:39   You know, it's interesting that many are staying and put because a lot of renters often pay three to 5% annual renewal increases, especially in single-family rentals. Among apartment dwellers, there are currently more move-ups than move downs. People willing to spend a little more, and part of this is because a lot of people have just simply given up, completely given up on buying a home, choosing instead to fritter away their money on DraftKings parlays, couchie predictions, meme coins, burritos whose delivery fees cost more than the burrito, and a dozen forgotten subscriptions quietly feeding on their checking account. Yeah, a lot of people have just given in. Besides falling renter mobility, there is also falling homeowner mobility. One reason it has fallen is due to the well-documented mortgage rate lock-in effect. But mobility is down among both groups, among renters and homeowners, for a few different reasons. Like I've mentioned in previous shows, America is aging, and older people move less. Remote work means people don't have to move for a job, and housing inventory remains limited. This means that there are few attractive alternatives to move into, whether you're a homeowner or a renter. Those are some reasons as to why mobility is down for both groups. And the New York Fed analysis shows that renter mobility it is especially weak among that subgroup that believes that they will never own a home. I mean, this group of people really isn't moving. They are staying in place even longer. This group that believes that they will never own a home, and this is a skew toward lower income renters for sure, but even upper income renters are staying longer. You know, I own a lot of single family rental homes myself, and I'm just thinking now, I can't even remember the last time someone's moved out. It might be over a year since anyone has moved. The average renter's perceived chance of ever owning a home that has fallen, and this is significant for investors. Okay, that percent of renters that ever hope to own a home has fallen from 52% back in 2015 down to just 35% last year. 52% down to 35% The amount of renters that think they'll ever own a home. Both single-family rental and apartment renters are staying longer. This is both types, and it's not because these renters stop wanting homes. About two-thirds say that they would prefer to own if they had the money to do so. This is substantial. The drop in American mobility rate. I mean, that part is actually decades long, and this seems to catch people off guard. A lot of people falsely believe that people are moving more often, and that's something I've touched on before. This deeply hurts.   Keith Weinhold  15:00   Certain industries like moving companies, furniture stores, and yes, real estate agents—all these groups of people have got to be wondering where did everybody go? The answer is nowhere. Apparently, they are not going anywhere. So the bottom line here, with this lack of mobility, is that renters feel locked out, owners feel locked in, and landlords feel locked up with their tenants staying longer. Although this is good news for landlords and investment property owners, you know there is one thing to be careful of amidst these longer tenant stays, and that is, well, say you buy a rental property with an existing tenant in place that's been there for a while, it's more likely then that that tenant is paying below market rent, and why would that be? Well, because generally, the longer a tenant stays, the more likely it is that the previous landlord gave them a break on the rent. Now, why does that happen? Well, landlords can get lazy about bumping up the rent, and see what's really going on is that the previous landlord, perhaps the person you bought the property from, they themselves bought the property at a much lower price years ago than you did today, and therefore their mortgage payment is lower, and therefore the lower rent was able to cover their mortgage payment. So they weren't too worried about it. But if you're buying at today's prices, well, then you cannot stand for yesterday's rent amount, and that's why it's more likely that you need to bump up the rent to market rent. Although national rent growth is pretty flat, San Francisco continues to rewrite its record book per Zumper's national rent report.San Francisco's one-bedroom rent is up 23% year-over-year to 4,180 bucks, and two-bedroom rent is up 26% to over 6K, 6,020 dollars for the median rent in a two-bedroom San Francisco apartment-the first time they've ever topped 6K there. Yes, the city continues to lead the nation in annual rent growth, and even ahead of New York City for two bedrooms. That's because this is where the growth of the AI industry has collided with a supply-constrained housing market, high demand over low supply. I mean, you might remember that San Francisco was hit especially hard by the pandemic, but its bounce back has been amazing. Even beleaguered San Francisco office buildings are filling up again amidst the AI boom. Now, the Bay Area's previous tech boom back a while ago that was led by tech giants like Facebook, Apple, and Google. All right, that boom was largely concentrated in these sprawling suburban office parks in Silicon Valley. Now Silicon Valley is not in San Francisco. It is depending on just where you're going, perhaps 60 minutes south of San Francisco proper. But see, this time the city limits San Francisco finds itself as the epicenter because a lot of the newest, biggest names in tech like Anthropic and OpenAI, they are headquartered in the very same city neighborhoods that were struggling with occupancy just a few years ago, and see a big part of what's going on, and there's a lesson in this for you as when a lot of other cities built like Phoenix and Austin did, San Francisco did not, and what's interesting is that the publication, the San Francisco Standard, it reported that get this last November a two-bedroom apartment overlooking Alamo Square was advertised for $5,000 per month. That was already 30% above San Fran's median two-bedroom rent at the time, but despite that fact, so many people attended the open house that the property manager had to divide them into two touring groups. Qualified applicants were then emailed and told to submit their best offer of rent. Okay, basically an invitation to a bidding war here. One tech worker and her roommate bid $5,100. Management responded that they had reached the second round and invited them to increase their bid again, and they declined to increase their bid and they lost the apartment. Those. Same article reported that an even more extreme marina neighborhood example, the winning renter offered substantially above asking price, six months upfront rent, and twice monthly professional cleaning. What kind of prospective tenant offers their landlord professional cleaning? I've surely never had it happen. That and bidding wars are now taking place for San Francisco rentals. Could an AI surge and a lack of supply make anything like that happen in your rental market? That remains to be seen, and probably not to that extent. I've got more for you straight ahead, including the trend of money maxing. I'm Keith Weinhold. You're listening to episode 620 of Get Rich Education. What if you got your mortgage loans the same place I get mine? You sure can at Ridge Lending Group NMLS 42056. They provided GRE listeners with more loans than anyone because Ridge specializes in investment property. They'll help you build a long-term plan for growing your real estate empire with leverage. Start your prequal and even chat directly with President Chaley Ridge while it's on your mind. Start at RidgeLendingGroup.com. That's ridgelendinggroup.com. Let me ask you something: If you've worked hard to build wealth, is your money positioned to actually support your goals? A lot of accredited investors leave capital sitting in cash because it feels safe, but inflation and missed income opportunities can quietly erode its value. Freedom Family Investments offers freedom notes for investors seeking structured income backed by real estate. It's a straightforward approach built on real assets, not speculation. In full disclosure, I'm an investor myself. What I like is that their team walks you through how it all works, so you can decide if it aligns with your portfolio and income goals. Every investment carries risk, and nothing is guaranteed. But with a track record of consistent, on-time investor payouts, they built real credibility. Go to freedomfamilyinvestments.com to book a clarity call, or text family to 66866. That's family 266866.   Keith Weinhold  17:22   Although national rent growth is pretty flat, San Francisco continues to rewrite its record book per Zumper's national rent report. San Francisco's one-bedroom rent is up 23% year-over-year to 4,180 bucks, and two-bedroom rent is up 26% to over 6K, $6,020 for the median rent in a two-bedroom San Francisco apartment-the first time they've ever topped 6K there. Yes, the city continues to lead the nation in annual rent growth, and even ahead of New York City for two bedrooms. That's because this is where the growth of the AI industry has collided with a supply-constrained housing market, high demand over low supply. I mean, you might remember that San Francisco was hit especially hard by the pandemic, but its bounce back has been amazing. Even beleaguered San Francisco office buildings are filling up again amidst the AI boom. Now, the Bay Area's previous tech boom back a while ago that was led by tech giants like Facebook, Apple, and Google. All right, that boom was largely concentrated in these sprawling suburban office parks in Silicon Valley. Now Silicon Valley is not in San Francisco. It is depending on just where you're going, perhaps 60 minutes south of San Francisco proper. But see, this time the city limits San Francisco finds itself as the epicenter because a lot of the newest, biggest names in tech like Anthropic and OpenAI, they are headquartered in the very same city neighborhoods that were struggling with occupancy just a few years ago, and see a big part of what's going on, and there's a lesson in this for you as when a lot of other cities built like Phoenix and Austin did, San Francisco did not, and what's interesting is that the publication, the San Francisco Standard, it reported that get this last November a two-bedroom apartment overlooking Alamo Square was advertised for $5,000 per month. That was already 30% above San Fran's median two-bedroom rent at the time, but despite that fact, so many people attended the open house that the property manager had to divide them into two touring groups. Qualified applicants were then emailed and told to submit their best offer of rent. Okay, basically an invitation to a bidding war here. One tech worker and her roommate bid $5,100. Management responded that they had reached the second round and invited them to increase their bid again, and they declined to increase their bid and they lost the apartment. Those. Same article reported that an even more extreme marina neighborhood example, the winning renter offered substantially above asking price, six months upfront rent, and twice monthly professional cleaning. What kind of prospective tenant offers their landlord professional cleaning? I've surely never had it happen. That and bidding wars are now taking place for San Francisco rentals. Could an AI surge and a lack of supply make anything like that happen in your rental market? That remains to be seen, and probably not to that extent. I've got more for you straight ahead, including the trend of money maxing.   Keith Weinhold  20:46   I'm Keith Weinhold. You're listening to episode 620 of Get Rich Education. What if you got your mortgage loans the same place I get mine? You sure can at Ridge Lending Group NMLS 42056. They provided GRE listeners with more loans than anyone because Ridge specializes in investment property. They'll help you build a long-term plan for growing your real estate empire with leverage. Start your prequal and even chat directly with President Caeli Ridge while it's on your mind. Start at ridgelendinggroup.com. That's ridgelendinggroup.com.   Keith Weinhold  21:23   Let me ask you something: If you've worked hard to build wealth, is your money positioned to actually support your goals? A lot of accredited investors leave capital sitting in cash because it feels safe, but inflation and missed income opportunities can quietly erode its value. Freedom Family Investments offers freedom notes for investors seeking structured income backed by real estate. It's a straightforward approach built on real assets, not speculation. In full disclosure, I'm an investor myself. What I like is that their team walks you through how it all works, so you can decide if it aligns with your portfolio and income goals. Every investment carries risk, and nothing is guaranteed. But with a track record of consistent, on-time investor payouts, they built real credibility. Go to freedomfamilyinvestments.com to book a clarity call, or text family to 66866. That's family 266866.   Robert Kiyosaki  22:26   This is our rich dad, poor dad author Robert Kiyosaki. Listen to Get Rich Education with Keith Weinhold, and there is I respect Keith. He's a very strong, smart, bright young man.   Keith Weinhold  22:47   Welcome back to Get Rich Education. I'm your host Keith Weinhold. The rise of quick hit dopamine culture has definitely hit the personal finance world, and this is not a good trend for a lot of Gen Zers, who are those age 14 to 29, sports gambling is increasingly a part of what they think is financial planning. A recent survey from the wealth management platform Betterment shows that 26% of Gen Zers, more than one in four, then consider sports gambling as part of a deliberate long-term financial strategy. If you think that's bad, more than half of Gen Zers, 52% say they've rerouted funds from investment over to sports betting in the past year, and that's versus just 24% of all Americans. Yes, the rapid legalization of sports gambling means it's never been easier to bet your whole paycheck that the Mets are going to lose 100 games this season. When a prediction market or a sports book starts to feel like a retirement strategy, we have a problem, and this is congruent with the rise of dopamine culture across all of society, where we've gone from playing sports, then to watching sports, and now to gambling on sports. In the kitchen, it's where we've gone from home cooking to leaving and getting fast food, to ordering Uber Eats, it's where media has gone from film and TV to streaming shows, and now with dopamine culture, it is watching reels. It's how shopping has gone from first high street shopping, then to Amazon and now to the TikTok shop. It's how communicating with people. It's gone from handwritten letters to sending emails to Snapchats. It's how we've gone from newspapers to breaking news to rage bait. As far as what we listen to for music, this rise of dopamine culture-it used to be vinyl records, and then Spotify playlists, and now it's trending sounds.   Keith Weinhold  25:11   It's gone from finding love to casual dating to infinite swiping. How about the way we look at and share photos? It's gone from photo albums to camera rolls to Instagram stories, and how about the way we access information with this rise of dopamine culture? It's gone from libraries to Google to Chat GPT, and that brings us to money maxing. Okay, yes, here in our finance world, the rise of dopamine culture has led to this. Yes, that is apparently a word now. Money maxing-it's all one word with 2x's. It sounds like something invented by a 22-year-old who's got three credit cards, three hoodies, and one fork. Okay, but money maxing-that is one of the newest personal finance trends spreading across social media. Now, the maxing stuff in that whole suffix that first became popular through terms like looks maxing, which means trying to maximize your physical appearance, whether you're male or female, and now people are sleep maxing, health maxing, career maxing, and I guess it was just inevitable until they were money maxing. And what it really means is optimizing your financial life so that every dollar works harder for you. That could include using a high yield savings account, earning credit card points and rewards, automating your investments, negotiating bills, and eliminating wasteful spending-eh, in other words, it's just another internet reinvention of financial responsibility. I mean, your grandparents just called it being sensible.   Keith Weinhold  26:58   Now, I do like the fact that young people are talking about money. I mean, as we've covered before, financial education is desperately needed. Schools will teach you about the parts of a biological cell, but surely not how to read a mortgage statement. So you can graduate knowing that mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell, while believing that a tax refund is free money from the government. So you know, directionally, money maxing is good, but see, it usually only focuses on one side of the equation. That's the problem with money maxing. It only focuses on spending less. And here at GRE we take a different approach. The old financial advice is live below your means, and GRE's philosophy is grow your means. You should only live below your means earlier in your financial life when you sort of have to and you need to form capital for investments. But grow your means so that you can have the means to do things. I mean, that is the point of financial betterment.   Keith Weinhold  28:09   Long term, financial betterment is certainly not sustainable by saving money by getting a haircut at home, only watching men's fast pitch softball at the Moose Lodge because it's free instead of going to a Major League Baseball game, saving $120 on air tickets by adding an extra layover on your trip itinerary, or a buy one get one free deal on Hillshire Farm Bacon. Now, of course, you shouldn't waste money if you're paying for six streaming services and you're only watching one. Well, cancel the others. If you carry a credit card balance at 24% surely extinguish that financial dumpster fire. But you cannot shrink your way to an extraordinary life. There is a floor beneath how little you can spend, there is no ceiling above how much value you can create for others. You can cancel your coffee, you can stop eating out, you can turn down the thermostat until your living room feels like a meat locker, but eventually there is nothing meaningful left to cut. That is the weakness in traditional money advice. It treats personal finance like a sinking ship, and it just hands you a bucket. Growing your means is building a bigger ship. The most powerful form of money maxing is not squeezing another 2% off your grocery bill. It is increasing your income. It is acquiring productive assets and creating systems that pay you repeatedly. I mean, saving 20 bucks is fine. Creating another income stream can continue for. Years. This is the difference between subtraction and multiplication. Most money-maxing advice really isn't different than that conventional advice. It's living in the world of subtraction. Cut this. Cancel that. Buy the generic cereal. Drive across town to save 12 cents per gallon. Hey, congratulations! You just spent 40 minutes of your finite life to save $2.80. Real wealth is built through multiplication. Multiply your income, multiply your skills, multiply your relationships, learn a new system, multiply the number of people you serve with rental property, and then multiply your money through productive assets. Now, this does not mean to spend recklessly. Growing means is not permission to inflate your lifestyle every single time your income rises, but it means directing more attention toward expansion than deprivation.   Keith Weinhold  30:59   Ask yourself a better question. Instead of asking how can I save another $100 this month, ask how can I create another $1,000 of monthly income. That very question activates a completely different part of your brain. Now maybe you develop a valuable skill. Maybe you negotiate your compensation. Maybe you start a business. Maybe you acquire an income property. Maybe you turn knowledge, intellectual property, or an audience into a recurring revenue stream. You start looking for leverage rather than looking for coupons and leverage, that is the real engine of what money maxing ought to be. Leverage means accomplishing more with less of your personal effort, and there sure are a lot of forms you can leverage other people's time. You can leverage systems and technology. We're going to talk about a system later here. You can leverage media where one message reaches 1000s or millions of people, and in real estate, you can leverage other people's money. You can scale. A few weeks ago, here I discussed four different types of scale. Real estate investors can get them all at the same time. If you remember, they are financial leverage, like with the five ways. There's operational leverage, there's geographic leverage, and finally replication. You use a relatively small down payment to control a much larger asset while your tenant pays you rent, that income helps cover the property's expenses and mortgage, and over time, inflation tends to lift rents and property values. While your fixed rate debt becomes easier to repay with diminished dollars, I mean that is real money maxing right there. In fact, GRE's real estate pays five ways framework might be the ultimate money maxing system. One property can produce cash flow; it can appreciate. Your tenant can gradually amortize your loan for you. You get the tax benefits, and inflation can transfer wealth from the lender to you through your fixed rate debt, five simultaneous financial benefits attached to one asset. Oh, and we're going to take that and compare that with saving 50 cents on toothpaste. Now, both things technically do improve your finances, but they don't even belong in the same zip code.   Keith Weinhold  33:41   Now, none of this means that every leveraged property is a good investment. In fact, leverage amplifies outcomes. A well-selected, properly financed property is going to accelerate your wealth creation. But a bad deal with thin reserves-hey, that can accelerate your introduction to an attorney. Money maxing still requires judgment. You want durable income, adequate liquidity, responsible underwriting, and you want to have enough reserves to withstand the inevitable surprise. Because every rental property eventually introduces you to something that is leaking, squeaking, or perhaps refusing to pay. The goal is not to optimize every dollar so aggressively that your financial life becomes fragile. And really, that is an important warning about all forms of maxing. Optimization can go too far. Someone might transfer money among five banks to chase these tiny promotional yields, and open 12 credit cards for bonus points, and then monitor every purchase with the intensity of airport security. Okay, I mean technically they're optimization. Their money, but they're also turning their life into like an unpaid accounting internship. Your money should create freedom, not become another demanding employer. Effective money maxing focuses on the big levers first. Get some big wins. Increase your earned income. Own those productive assets. Use good debt prudently. Reduce taxes legally. Protect yourself against catastrophic losses. Maintain liquidity, and then optimize the smaller expenses. Do not spend three hours clipping coupons while ignoring a poorly structured $400,000 mortgage. You do not congratulate yourself on saving $9 on lunch while leaving 50k idle in an account that earns almost nothing. So we don't obsess over credit card points while carrying a balance because paying 24% interest to earn 2% cash back is not money maxing. That is like arithmetic getting mugged in an alley. And there's also an important difference between looking rich and becoming wealthy. Social media rewards visible consumption on things like cars, watches, first-class seats, rooftop dinners, actual wealth-that's something that's often invisible. It is the rental property quietly producing income. It is the ownership stake compounding in the background. It is the tax strategy that's never going to appear in a photograph, and it is the growing gap between what you earn and what you need to live.   Keith Weinhold  36:46   The person displaying the most wealth can have the least. The person saying very little might own the building. So yes, embrace money maxing. Know where your money goes. Eliminate the waste. Negotiate recurring expenses, automate your good decisions, and make your dollar purposeful. Each dollar, but don't stop with living below your means because that is only financial defense. Growing your means is financial offense. Saving money can make you more secure. Owning productive assets-that's what can make you free. The highest form of money maxing is not becoming the world's most efficient consumer. It is making the transition from consumer to owner. Own businesses, own equities, own real estate, own assets that produce value while you sleep, travel, or spend time with the people that matter to you. Because your time is limited, and yet your appetite for generic cereal is also limited. But your ability to create value, acquire assets, and grow your means. That is far less limited. Live below your means if you must, but don't stay there. Grow your means. That is true money maxing. And the number one reason that people don't acquire wealth. Do you know what it is? It's that it simply does not occur to them that they can.    Keith Weinhold  38:24   That is what Brian Tracy said. That is so incredibly simple, and it's true. If you want a money max, you need to have a great system. Let me tell you about a system called the Seven Figure Solution. Now you've been listening to me weekly for almost 12 years here, which I'm immensely grateful for. You've been earning money, investing well, and here with the seven-figure solution, you're going to be able to finally see how it all goes together. It's about making sure that your real estate and other assets appropriately fund your retirement in a way that gives you protection against market downturns, a tax advantage pool of liquidity, the death benefit of a life insurance policy, and actually introduces you to a new form of leverage all at the same time, the liquidity is key because this is where a 401(k) or IRA limit you. Those vehicles have taxes and penalties if you want to use those funds early, and this does not.   Keith Weinhold  39:34   But the seven-figure solution-it's not just for retirees. In fact, our own in-house investment coach here, Naresh uses something like this, and he's in his 30s. It also gives you a significant tailwind during your investing career. Integrate the seven-figure solution the GRE way, where we have a conscientiousness about leverage in cash flow, and in this case, part of it is how to prove. Leverage a life insurance policy. When it's time to tap that policy's cash value, you take what is a policy loan, not a withdrawal, because you're borrowing against your cash value, and therefore you're using the funds in more than one place. That's the leverage, and then the IRS does not tax loan proceeds, and this reminds me of a billionaire borrowing against the value of their stock rather than having to sell any of those assets. And yet, this can be done tax-free. It's similar to what you can do with the seven-figure solution, even for non-billionaires, it is buy, borrow, die. This leverages an indexed universal life policy, and there is the right way to do this and the wrong way to do it. Part of the seven-figure solution is that your cash value can have an upside ceiling and loss protection on the downside. That's really something that you only care about more as you're closer to retirement. And there are some mistakes to avoid here. You don't just want to set up the seven-figure solution off of a website, and it's based on products that you might have heard of from companies like Nationwide and mass mutual. I strongly encourage you to learn more, see how it all goes together, and learn how the seven-figure solution compares to other vehicles like a Roth IRA, 401k, and even a 721 and 1031 exchange. This is very much about you being able to picture your future, you've been building your real estate portfolio either from your investment coach or on your own. This is how the puzzle pieces finally are all going to go together. I am cordially inviting you to join us for a special live event, the Seven Figure Solution. It is co-hosted by our own GRE investment coach Naresh and Haven Bridges Jared, who you heard from on the show with me last week. By attending live from the comfort of your own home or from anywhere, you can have your questions answered in real time. It is this Thursday, the 27th, at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 p.m. Pacific.   Keith Weinhold  42:23   Most people spend decades building wealth, and then they lose far too much of it because the retirement pieces were never designed to work with each other. So you're going to see how real estate, taxes, insurance, and retirement income can fit into one coordinated strategy, helping you grow and protect your wealth, access capital without immediately selling your assets, and potentially avoid losing hundreds of thousands of dollars to taxes unnecessarily. So it's not just another collection of disconnected financial tips. Really, it's your opportunity to finally see the entire retirement picture and understand what might be missing from yours. It's complimentary to attend. The longer you wait, the fewer options you could have. Decisions made today can affect your wealth for decades. Don't wait until retirement day to discover that your plan had expensive holes in it. There are some moving pieces here, so it's especially helpful that you attend this one live, and that way you can have any questions answered in real time, so that you really understand. And you might have been one of thousands of listeners that have attended our property webinars before, and they are important to building your portfolio. But this one could very well be more important in seeing your big picture, seeing your retirement, and seeing that your heirs aren't left with a giant tax bill too. You can reserve your seat now for the seven-figure solution at grewebinars.com again. That's grewebinars.com. Until next week, I'm your host Keith Weinhold. Don't quit your daydream.   Speaker 2  44:14   Nothing on this show should be considered specific, personal, or professional advice. Please consult an appropriate tax, legal, real estate, financial, or business professional for individualized advice. Opinions of guests are their own. Information is not guaranteed. All investment strategies have the potential for profit or loss. The host is operating on behalf of Get Rich Education LLC exclusively.   Keith Weinhold  44:42   The preceding program was brought to you by your home for wealth building. getricheducation.com.

Rule Seven of Financial Physics says there is no new news: by the time public information reaches you, the market has already reacted.Don and Tom explain why neither headlines nor illegal insider tips offer ordinary investors a durable edge, why fast trading and miracle systems disappoint, and why accepting market returns is the saner path.Then they compare JAAA with BND, help a student balance FAFSA concerns with emergency savings and a Roth IRA, warn against reaching for yield, and untangle a Roth 401(k) rollover.0:44 The shortest investing book1:54 Rule Seven: No New News3:27 Public information versus insider information6:48 Why trading the headlines is futile9:37 Efficient markets and accepting market returns11:27 The trouble with miracle trading systems14:13 Talking Real Money music online17:17 JAAA versus BND for bonds20:21 FAFSA, emergency savings, and a Roth IRA22:28 Reaching for yield with riskier bonds24:49 Rolling over a Roth 401(k)Questions? Comments? Click!

You went looking for Infinite Banking, or maybe "be your own bank," and a max funded IUL came back as the answer: market-linked growth, tax-free access, no downside. On paper, it sounds like whole life, only better. https://youtu.be/UMTiXDmYNok A max funded IUL is an indexed universal life policy funded at or near the maximum premium the IRS allows before the contract becomes a modified endowment contract. It's not a separate product, but a funding decision applied to an ordinary IUL that pushes cash value growth harder while offsetting internal costs. Max funding gets invoked to explain why an IUL didn't work: you just didn't fund it hard enough. But a product that needs funding to its legal ceiling to perform as illustrated says something about the product, not just the strategy. Max funding improves the odds. It doesn't remove the fragility underneath. What Is a Max Funded IUL?Why Max Funded IULs Are Marketed So AggressivelyThe IUL Fees the Illustration Doesn't Show YouWhy Your Credited Return Is Not the Index's ReturnThe Rising Cost of Insurance Inside an IULCan a Max Funded IUL Still Lapse?Max Funding a Whole Life Policy InsteadWhen Max Funding an IUL Makes SenseWhat to Ask Before You Fund OneBook a Strategy CallFrequently Asked QuestionsWhat is a max funded IUL?What does max funding an IUL actually mean?How does a max funded IUL work?Is a max funded IUL better than a 401(k) or Roth IRA?Can a max funded IUL still lapse?Can you max fund a whole life policy instead? Key takeaways: Max funding is a funding strategy, not a distinct product. There's no "max funded IUL" you buy off the shelf. A zero-crediting year isn't a flat year: fees still come out, and growth compounds off a permanently lower base. The insurer can change your cap, participation rate, and spread once a year, without asking first. Max funding defers lapse risk. It doesn't eliminate it. Apply the same instinct to whole life, and you get the guarantees an IUL was never built to offer. What Is a Max Funded IUL? A max funded IUL, sometimes called a maximum funded indexed universal life policy, is an indexed universal life policy funded at or near the highest premium level the IRS permits before crossing into modified endowment contract status. There's no separate product line behind the term, just this definition. A few people write it as "max funded indexed universal life" or shorthand it to "max fund IUL"; all of it points to the same funding decision. Every universal life policy quotes two premium figures: a minimum, the least you could pay and still have a shot at sustaining the death benefit if the index cooperates, and a maximum, the most the IRS allows before the tax treatment changes. Max funding means paying near the top of that range. More dollars in means more dollars exposed to crediting: 10% on $100,000 of premium is $10,000; the same 10% on $10,000 is $1,000. One term worth pinning down: a modified endowment contract, or MEC. The IRS caps how much premium can go into a permanent policy while preserving tax-free access. Cross that limit and the policy still grows tax-deferred, but access gets taxed, including policy loans, tax-free in every other context. (Consult a licensed tax professional on how §7702 and §7702A apply to your contract.) The distinction everything else here rests on: this isn't a different kind of policy, just a decision about how much premium goes into an IUL. You'll sometimes see it called an overfunded IUL, which is just another name for the same funding choice, not a separate product to shop for. And it's worth flagging now: you can max fund a whole life policy the same way. For a full breakdown of how an indexed universal life policy works, see what an indexed universal life policy is. Why Max Funded IULs Are Marketed So Aggressively Before picking apart max funding, it's worth saying plainly: the appeal is real. A max funded IUL has genuine features that draw in smart, financially literate people, and pretending otherwise would make the rest of this article dishonest. It offers tax-deferred growth with tax-free access through policy loans, no annual contribution ceiling like a 401(k) or Roth IRA imposes since capacity is governed by the death benefit purchased, a 0% floor marketed as downside protection, an included death benefit, and in strong index years, the possibility of double-digit credited growth. The most effective version shows up as a retirement play: a tax-free income vehicle for people phased out of Roth eligibility or maxed on contribution room elsewhere. We won't unpack that comparison; we cover IUL-for-retirement here. Bruce and I both make this concession without hesitation: the instinct behind max funding is correct. It flips the usual "buy the most death benefit for the least premium" logic on its head and treats a permanent policy as a place to store and access capital instead. The open question isn't whether to max fund, but which product deserves it. The IUL Fees the Illustration Doesn't Show You IUL fees are disclosed, sitting in the contract right now, but rarely walked through in the illustration or the sales conversation, so buyers routinely agree to a fee structure they've never once seen quantified. Give the product its due: disclosure is a genuine point in its favor. Whole life keeps most costs internal, priced against guarantees, so an actuary can tell you exactly what those costs do to cash value over time. An IUL has no such floor, so the same load fee taken from a smaller balance next year does more damage, and the shortfall compounds forward. One misconception worth correcting: indexed crediting doesn't mean your premium is invested in the index. The insurer manages the underlying assets and hedges its own exposure as it sees fit. Surrender charges also tend to run larger on an IUL than on whole life, relevant only if you actually surrender; whole life's rough equivalent is simply lower cash value in the early years. This is where max funding earns its name: it exists to outrun these fees through sheer volume, which means the strategy's own proponents are conceding the drag is real. The illustration never asks what happens if the funding doesn't outrun it. For the full risk picture beyond fees, see dangerous truths about IUL risks. Why Your Credited Return Is Not the Index's Return The 0% floor isn't free. It's purchased with three mechanisms the insurer can adjust annually: a cap ceilings the credited rate, a participation rate credits only a percentage of the gain, and a spread is a hurdle the index must clear before anything credits. The worked numbers are below. One "uncapped" strategy runs a three-year point-to-point at 60% participation: the index gains 30% over three years, but the policyholder is credited 18%, roughly 6% annualized. "Unlimited" is doing marketing work the mechanics don't back up. MechanismWhat it doesWorked exampleCapCeilings the credited rate15% cap, index gains 25%, credited 15%Participation rateCredits a percentage of the gain80% of a 15% cap, credited 12%SpreadDeducts a hurdle before crediting3% spread, index gains 8%, credited 5%0% floorPrevents index-driven loss, fees still deductedIndex falls 15%, credited 0%, fees still come out The insurer can change the cap, participation rate, and spread once a year, without your consent. It's disclosed, not misconduct, just a term rarely explained. With fifteen indexes and multiple crediting strategies on offer, a policyholder can face well over a hundred permutations, which reads as control and functions as confusion. Now the zero-year mechanics, the single most important thing to understand here. A zero-crediting year is not a flat year: fees still come out, pulled from a smaller cash value, and the next year's crediting compounds off that lower base. A zero in year eight of a $3-million, thirty-year projection doesn't just mean missing that year's interest , it resets the compounding base permanently, and when the index drops, the insurer's hedging costs rise too, so you lose nothing to the index and still lose money. Agents say zero is your hero, then illustrate 30 years at a flat assumed rate, often 6.45% or 6.85%, sometimes a more conservative 5.25% column, without a single zero year anywhere in the projection. Both claims can't be true at once. Average isn't actual either: $100,000 down 20% is $80,000, and up 20% from there is $96,000, not $100,000. For an independent take on these mechanics, see Todd Langford's analysis of indexed universal life. The Rising Cost of Insurance Inside an IUL IUL insurance charges are priced as annually renewable term. The cost re-prices every year based on age, and it climbs. Max funding puts more premium in to help absorb it, but doesn't change the fact it keeps rising. The climb accelerates: something like $10 more from age 55 to 56, then $14, then $22, then $35. Whole life prices base-policy mortality cost across the entire life of the contract with a defined endowment point built in, so early years cost more relative to a small cash value and later years cost less relative to one grown large enough to absorb them. Bruce has personally seen carrier illustrations where mortality cost inside an IUL becomes severe around age 77, with the in-force death benefit graph turning sharply downward within a couple of years, even under continued maximum contributions. That's his observation from specific illustrations, not a universal threshold. That leaves the policyholder in a rough spot decades in: pay materially more than illustrated, or give up a policy funded faithfully for thirty years. This is the cost max funding is supposed to outrun, and the one cost that climbs on a schedule funding can't influence. Can a Max Funded IUL Still Lapse? Max funding reduces lapse risk. It does not remove it,...

How do you protect a lifetime of savings when tax laws and changing life goals shift your priorities? In this episode of Money Matters, Scott and Pat explore wealth preservation, from managing concentrated stock positions and real estate decisions to sophisticated tax planning. In this episode: The $5.6M Property Test: Scott and Pat analyze a caller's plan to carry three homes in retirement. They discuss “carry risk” and why even a $5.6 million net worth doesn't automatically justify expanding a real estate portfolio. Savings Trade-Offs at 52: A caller asks how to balance college costs for two children with the long-term goal of maximizing 401(k) contributions and Roth IRA savings. Managing Concentrated Stock: Tom Kaiser, Allworth's Director of Equity and Option Management, explains how options strategies such as collars can help protect concentrated positions without immediately selling appreciated stock and realizing capital gains. Step-Up in Basis: Scott and Pat explain how this powerful tax provision can reduce or eliminate unrealized capital gains on inherited assets—and why it can play an important role in wealth preservation and estate planning. For investors who have accumulated significant assets, wealth preservation isn't simply about avoiding risk. It's about understanding the trade-offs between taxes, spending, investments, and the legacy you ultimately want to leave. Join Money Matters:  Get your most pressing financial questions answered by Allworth's co-founders Scott Hanson and Pat McClain. Call 833-99-WORTH. Or ask a question by clicking here.  You can also be on the air by emailing Scott and Pat at questions@moneymatters.com. Download and rate our podcast here.  

Giving your kids a financial head start may be one of the most valuable lessons you can teach them. Richard Rosso & Jonathan McCarty explain how a Custodial Roth IRA can help children with earned income start building tax-free retirement wealth early, while learning the importance of saving, investing, and paying themselves first. We also discuss Roth IRA withdrawal rules, the potential transition from Trump Accounts to Roth IRAs, and how even a lemonade stand can become a lesson in long-term wealth building. Plus, we look back at Wall Street history, the value of financial writing, and why understanding the past can make you a better investor.   0:00 INTRO 0:21 - Magic Mike & $100 Hot Dogs 2:46 - Wall Street Magazines from Days of Yore 4:36 - The story of Richard & Cecilia Wycoff & Wall Street Magazine  10:50 - The best knowledge is history 17:17 - Giving Kids a Head Start on Retirement w Custodial Roth IRA's 19:22 - Benefits of Jump-starting Retirement 21:51 - Getting on the Pay-Yourself-First track 22:56 - Content Creators & Demise of Writing 25:49 - Withdrawing Contributions from Roth IRA's before 59-1/2 27:13 - Converting Trump Accounts to Roth & J. G. Wentworth 29:57 - Money Lessons from Roths & Lemonade Stands Hosted by RIA Advisors' Director of Financial Planning, Richard Rosso, CFP, w Senior Investment Advisor, Jonathan McCarty, CFP  Produced by Brent Clanton, Executive Producer ------- Do you enjoy our content? Rate us on Google: https://bit.ly/4b9JtEo ------- Watch Today's Full Video on our YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/live/IqyxMopn1Uw?feature=share  ------- Watch our previous show, "Is Treasury Bailing Out the Bond Market?" https://youtube.com/live/9qhjXZbxkxs  ------- Get more info & commentary: https://realinvestmentadvice.com/insights/real-investment-daily/ ------- * REGISTER for our next Dynamic Learning Series, "The Smart Way to Pay for College," Thursday, September 3, 2026: https://streamyard.com/watch/mcE7YgphgMns --- Visit our Site: https://www.realinvestmentadvice.com Contact Us: 1-855-RIA-PLAN --- Subscribe to SimpleVisor : https://www.simplevisor.com/register-new --- Connect with us on social: https://twitter.com/RealInvAdvice https://twitter.com/LanceRoberts https://www.facebook.com/RealInvestmentAdvice/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/realinvestmentadvice/ #RothIRA #RetirementPlanning #InvestingForKids #FinancialPlanning #RichardWycoff #CeciliaWycoff #WallStreetMagazine

Natalie Brunell sits down with Alex Leishman, Founder, CEO & CTO of River. Alex shares what River's own client data reveals about who is buying and selling Bitcoin right now — and why big institutions are quietly accumulating during this downturn while everyday investors sell. In this episode: Is Bitcoin still Bitcoin if Wall Street owns a growing share of it? Why most people never move their Bitcoin off an exchange How scammers actually steal Bitcoin, and the simple habits that stop them Whether quantum computing is a real threat to your Bitcoin, and how River is preparing Why Alex has no plans to take River public, even as competitors go the other way What Alex tells people when everyone around them has turned bearish Follow Alex Leishman on X: https://x.com/Leishman  and sign up for River at https://www.river.com/natalie  ---- Order Natalie's new book "Bitcoin is For Everyone," a simple introduction to Bitcoin and what's broken in our current financial system: https://amzn.to/3WzFzfU  ---- Borrow against your Bitcoin without selling it. Ledn offers Bitcoin-backed loans built for serious holders, with rates that get lower as your loan size increases. With Ledn's custodied loan product, your Bitcoin is held in custody and not lent out. Ledn has operated through multiple market cycles without a loss of client assets and publishes Proof of Reserves so you can verify what they hold. Get 0.25% off your first loan at ledn.io/natalie. Terms apply — see the site for details. ---- Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR) powers AI and Bitcoin mining infrastructure with 3 GW of secured global energy — and owns the entire stack, from equipment manufacturing to data centers to proprietary orchestration software. Learn more at https://www.bitdeer.com. ---- Abundant Mines is a fully-managed Bitcoin mining in the U.S. You own the miners. You keep 100% of the Bitcoin. Voted #1 mining company by peers. Get 1 month of free hosting: AbundantMines.com/Natalie ---- Natalie's Bitcoin Product Partners & Sponsors: Speed is my go-to Bitcoin Lightning wallet! Send, receive, or swap stablecoins and digital gold into Bitcoin in one app. Run a business? Speed powers Bitcoin payments for Steak 'n Shake, and it can do the same for you. Download at https://speed.app/natalie  and use code COINSTORIES10 for 5,000 free sats after your first transaction. Download Bitkey Today and use my promo code STORIES to get 10% off the new Bitkey. This episode has been sponsored by Bitkey: https://bitkey.world/STORIES Master Bitcoin self-custody and gain peace of mind with 1-on-1 training: https://www.thebitcoinway.com/natalie?utm_source=partner-natalie&utm_medium=podcast With BitcoinIRA, you can invest in bitcoin 24/7 inside a tax-advantaged IRA. Choose a Traditional IRA to defer taxes, or a Roth IRA for tax-free withdrawals later. Take control of your future with BitcoinIRA: https://www.bitcoinira.com/natalie  Kalshi is the largest prediction market in the world. Use code HODL and get $25 when you trade $25: http://kalshi.com/r/HODL   Natalie's Upcoming Events: The best time to plan for Bitcoin 2027 is right now. Early bird tickets are live — grab the lowest pricing available and use code HODL for 10% off: https://tickets.b.tc/event/bitcoin-2027?promoCodeTask=apply&promoCodeInput=HODL  Extra Services to Consider: One of the best decisions I made for both my heath and my bank account was joining CrowdHealth years ago. I never spend more than $200 on health coverage through my CrowdHealth plan and all my health events have been crowd-funded. Get started with a discounted plan at my link. : www.joincrowdhealth.com/natalie  ---- Disclaimer: The News Block and Coin Stories are for educational and entertainment purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Natalie Brunell is not a financial advisor. Some content may include sponsorships or paid partnerships, which are disclosed. Always do your own research and consult a licensed professional before making financial decisions. Bitcoin and digital assets are volatile — never invest more than you can afford to lose.  

More investors are turning to TikTok, YouTube, and other social-media platforms for financial advice. But how do you separate useful financial education from bad advice, speculation, and outright scams? Lance Roberts and Jonathan Penn discuss how to evaluate financial advice online, the warning signs investors should watch for, and why popularity, followers, and flashy lifestyles aren't substitutes for expertise. Social media can help people become better investors—but only if they know whom to trust. 0:00 INTRO 0:57 - FOMC Meeting Minutes Preview & Weaker Economic Data 3:26 - Will Earnings Tailwinds Fade in 2207? 5:12 - Market Deviations Continue - Downside Risk Remains 10:15 - Bond Yields & Abnormal Interest Rates (article coming) 16:45 - Why the National Debt is not a Factor in Interest Rates 19:42 - Momentum ETF's & Roth IRA's 27:47 - Shorting Strategies post-IPO? 30:10 - First Houses & Starter Homes 33:27 - Things Aren't That Bad... 37:37 - Buying Bonds and paying accrued interest 38:18 - Putting Money in 401-k 38:40 - Buying Energy Stocks Now? Hosted by RIA Advisors' Chief Investment Strategist, Lance Roberts, CIO, w Senior Investment Advisor, Danny Ratliff, CFP Produced by Brent Clanton, Executive Producer ------- Do you enjoy our content? Rate us on Google: https://bit.ly/4b9JtEo ------- Watch today's "Before the Bell" premarket commentary, "September Rally Test Ahead" https://youtu.be/j6w6g_kXQrU?si=zGfqusgrjAIu1jdN -------- Watch Today's Full Video on our YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/live/9qhjXZbxkxs ------- Articles mentioned in this report: "SpaceX IPO: Should I Buy It, Or Wait?" https://realinvestmentadvice.com/resources/blog/spacex-ipo-should-i-buy-it-or-wait/ "Leveraged ETFs: Math Often Trumps Hype" https://realinvestmentadvice.com/resources/blog/leveraged-etfs-math-often-trumps-hype/ "Think Like An Investor, Not A Speculator (Chapter 1 of 5)" https://realinvestmentadvice.com/resources/blog/think-like-an-investor-chapter-1-of-5/ -------- Watch our previous show, "Can You Trust Financial Advice on Social Media? https://youtube.com/live/v6Wy7iLl-gQ ------- Get more info & commentary: https://realinvestmentadvice.com/insights/real-investment-daily/ ------- * REGISTER for our next Dynamic Learning Series, "Savvy Medicare Planning: Everything You Need to Know Before You Enroll," Thursday, August 20, 2026: https://streamyard.com/watch/Qjx33M2tS4i4 --- Visit our Site: https://www.realinvestmentadvice.com Contact Us: 1-855-RIA-PLAN --- Subscribe to SimpleVisor : https://www.simplevisor.com/register-new --- Connect with us on social: https://twitter.com/RealInvAdvice https://twitter.com/LanceRoberts https://www.facebook.com/RealInvestmentAdvice/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/realinvestmentadvice/ #StockMarket #SP500 #Investing #MarketOutlook #FederalReserve #FederalReserve #InterestRates #Inflation #SpaceX #HomeBuyers

AI's appetite for data centers is sending tech giants to the bond market—and some of that debt will still be around in 2075. Don and Tom look at the scale of the borrowing and why a tempting yield deserves a closer look.They separate coupon rate from yield to maturity, explain senior unsecured debt, and show how brutally interest-rate-sensitive a 50-year bond can be. The verdict: these bonds may belong in a broad index, but they don't belong on your personal shopping list.Listener questions cover sequence-of-return risk, Roth IRAs versus 529s for children, and the smart savings order for a 19-year-old earning real money for the first time.Timestamps:0:38 AI, data centers, and corporate debt3:40 The $50 trillion U.S. bond market5:21 Big Tech's borrowing binge7:06 Coupon rate versus yield to maturity8:10 The danger in a 50-year bond12:45 Sequence-of-return risk in retirement16:05 Roth IRAs and 529s for children20:14 A young saver's order of operationsQuestions? Comments? Click!

Michael Saylor and Phong Le sat down with Natalie Brunell to take questions directly from Strategy investors — including some pointed concerns about MSTR's sharp drawdown, dilution and whether common shareholders are still the company's top priority. One investor said he put $73,000 into MSTR for each of his three children, only to see each investment fall to roughly $20,000. He asked Saylor and Le directly: have common shareholders become Strategy's lowest priority? In this episode: Michael and Phong address dilution fears around $MSTR common stock  Are $MSTR buybacks are on the table, and under what conditions? What they say they learned from the $STRC drawdown Whether the $1 million and $10 million per Bitcoin scenarios still hold Why Strategy wants to become the "J.P. Morgan of digital assets" and what that really means ---- Order Natalie's new book "Bitcoin is For Everyone," a simple introduction to Bitcoin and what's broken in our current financial system: https://amzn.to/3WzFzfU  ---- Borrow against your Bitcoin without selling it. Ledn offers Bitcoin-backed loans built for serious holders, with rates that get lower as your loan size increases. With Ledn's custodied loan product, your Bitcoin is held in custody and not lent out. Ledn has operated through multiple market cycles without a loss of client assets and publishes Proof of Reserves so you can verify what they hold. Get 0.25% off your first loan at ledn.io/natalie. Terms apply — see the site for details. ---- Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR) powers AI and Bitcoin mining infrastructure with 3 GW of secured global energy — and owns the entire stack, from equipment manufacturing to data centers to proprietary orchestration software. Learn more at https://www.bitdeer.com. ---- Kalshi is the largest prediction market in the world. Get $25 when you trade $25. http://kalshi.com/r/HODL ---- Natalie's Bitcoin Product Partners: Speed is my go-to Bitcoin Lightning wallet! Send, receive, or swap stablecoins and digital gold into Bitcoin in one app. Run a business? Speed powers Bitcoin payments for Steak 'n Shake, and it can do the same for you. Download at https://speed.app/natalie  and use code COINSTORIES10 for 5,000 free sats after your first transaction. Download Bitkey Today and use my promo code STORIES to get 10% off the new Bitkey. This episode has been sponsored by Bitkey: https://bitkey.world/STORIES Master Bitcoin self-custody and gain peace of mind with 1-on-1 training: https://www.thebitcoinway.com/natalie?utm_source=partner-natalie&utm_medium=podcast With BitcoinIRA, you can invest in bitcoin 24/7 inside a tax-advantaged IRA. Choose a Traditional IRA to defer taxes, or a Roth IRA for tax-free withdrawals later. Take control of your future with BitcoinIRA: https://www.bitcoinira.com/natalie  Natalie's Upcoming Events: The best time to plan for Bitcoin 2027 is right now. Early bird tickets are live — grab the lowest pricing available and use code HODL for 10% off: https://tickets.b.tc/event/bitcoin-2027?promoCodeTask=apply&promoCodeInput=HODL  Extra Services to Consider: One of the best decisions I made for both my heath and my bank account was joining CrowdHealth years ago. I never spend more than $200 on health coverage through my CrowdHealth plan and all my health events have been crowd-funded. Get started with a discounted plan at my link. : www.joincrowdhealth.com/natalie  ---- Disclaimer: The News Block and Coin Stories are for educational and entertainment purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Natalie Brunell is not a financial advisor. Some content may include sponsorships or paid partnerships, which are disclosed. Always do your own research and consult a licensed professional before making financial decisions. Bitcoin and digital assets are volatile — never invest more than you can afford to lose.

Keith breaks down why global crises, geopolitical shocks, and nonstop "doom" headlines haven't stopped stocks and real estate from reaching near all-time highs, and what that means for investors focused on inflation-resistant assets.  He also discusses Memphis as a surprising cash-flow market poised to benefit from the AI boom, sharing details on an upcoming webinar with Mid South Homebuyers.  Keith is joined by real estate investor and educator Jared Garfield to unpack the "Seven-Figure Solution," a strategy that combines cash-flowing rentals with tax-advantaged life insurance to create liquidity, reduce risk, and support long-term retirement income.  Together, they explore how disciplined portfolio growth, smart leverage, and coordinated tax planning can help real estate investors better align their assets with their long-term financial goals. Episode Page: GetRichEducation.com/619 For access to properties or free help with a GRE Investment Coach, start here: GREmarketplace.com GRE Free Investment Coaching: GREinvestmentcoach.com Get mortgage loans for investment property: RidgeLendingGroup.com or call 855-74-RIDGE  or e-mail: info@RidgeLendingGroup.com Invest with Freedom Family Investments.  For predictable 10-12% quarterly returns, visit FreedomFamilyInvestments.com/GRE or text  FAMILY to 66866  Join Mid South Home Buyers' one-time, free live webinar featuring Keith Weinhold on September 30 at GetRichEducation.com/MidSouth to learn how Memphis' economic expansion could create new real estate investment opportunities, and have your questions answered in real time. Will you please leave a review for the show? I'd be grateful. Search "how to leave an Apple Podcasts review"  For advertising inquiries, visit: GetRichEducation.com/ad Best Financial Education: GetRichEducation.com Get our wealth-building newsletter free— GREletter.com  Our YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/c/GetRichEducation Follow us on Instagram: @getricheducation Complete episode transcript: Keith Weinhold  0:02   Welcome to GRE. I'm your host Keith Weinhold. The world is about to end again. It's the economic disaster that never arrives. I'll break it down. Then you've been earning money and investing well all these years. How does it all go together? It can culminate in the seven-figure solution, it's about seeing your future today on Get Rich Education. What if I told you that one of America's strongest cash flow real estate markets is also becoming the new brains and brawn behind AI? That city is Memphis, believe it or not. And September 30th, we're going to show you why the smart money is paying attention now, along with an investing opportunity you won't want to miss. Join me, Terry Kerr and Matthew Van Horn of Mid South Homebuyers, the largest turnkey company in Memphis with more than 6,000 homes under management, for a free live webinar, the likes of which I've never done before, we're going to look at what billions in new investment could mean for jobs, housing demand, neighborhood appreciation, and your portfolio. Everyone who attends live will also get exclusive access to the best deal terms Mid South has ever offered. Reserve your free seat at getricheducation.com/midsouth again that september 30. Don't say we didn't tell you. Save your spot at getricheducation.com/midsouth.   Speaker 1  1:39   You're listening to the show that has created more financial freedom than nearly any show in the world. This is Get Rich Education.   Keith Weinhold  1:55   Welcome to GRE from Kankakee, Illinois, to Cherokee, Iowa, and across 188 nations worldwide. I'm Keith Weinhold. This is Get Recid Education, and the world is about to end. Even if you survive, your portfolio surely won't. Oh, jeez. At least that's the impression you get from mass media and what I'll call the Doom Scroll Industrial Complex. Fear creates urgency. Urgency attracts eyeballs. Eyeballs attract ad dollars. And I guess that using a slogan like "everything will probably be fine" well, that's never been a great ratings strategy. Now, can what has happened since 2020. Just this cheery little sequence: COVID, then Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, tariffs, and then the war in Iran. All that just since 2020. I mean, that right there sounds less like an economic timeline and more like a movie plot, or that the world is repeatedly spinning the wheel of misfortune. Yet after all of that, what is the result? Both stocks and residential real estate are near all-time highs. Apparently, the apocalypse has been postponed yet again-at least economically speaking. Now let's zoom out and break down these threats and a few more, all just since 2020, because 2020 is the year where, of course, you had the COVID-19 pandemic, economic shutdowns, the fastest major stock bear market in history, supply chain breakdown. You saw empty shelves, and there was unprecedented government intervention from the Paycheck Protection Program to stimulus checks to mortgage loan forbearance. Then, in 2021 and 2022, you had post-COVID inflation and supply shortages. Now, this was more of a result, not strictly geopolitical, but a major investment threat, and that led to aggressive interest rate hikes. From 2022 to the present, you have Russia's invasion of Ukraine, energy and food shocks came from that, sanctions, instability over in Europe, and really a heightened nuclear risk in 2023. You had the U.S. regional banking crisis. Remember SVB, yes, Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank, First Republic. They raised fears of a financial contagion that would spread like fat. Than a secret in a small town, it actually made me buy some gold. From 2023 to the present, you had the Israel-Hamas war and this broad Middle East instability, Hezbollah attacks, Houthi attacks, Red Sea shipping disruptions. It's almost like a geopolitical group project. And then from 2025 to the present, you have renewed U.S. tariffs and a global trade war, and this year you have the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran and the Strait of Hormuz disruption. That is the biggest current geopolitical investment threat because it combines all of these things: war, oil disruption, inflation, higher interest rates, and a recession risk. So it's a lot like this particularly unpleasant smoothie that's been blended together.   Keith Weinhold  5:55   All right. Well, all of that-that is just an absurd amount of uncertainty and disruption only since 2020, and though major markets are at all-time highs in the face of this, let's acknowledge that some were hurt here, like apartment building owners vulnerable to interest rate resets, and certain commercial sectors like office. Even worse, let's be sensitive to the fact that COVID in wars have resulted in a real loss of life. GRE's enduring strategy of primarily owning long-term residential rentals with fixed-rate debt has been comparatively really resilient. In fact, these calamities-they probably made you better off from the inflation that it has spurred. More people work from home. Well, that means that they're consuming our product while higher inflation debased our debt and jacked up our property values and our rents. And you know somehow every. single generation thinks that their collection of crises is uniquely terrifying, and it is not. And what do I mean by this? Well, in the 1980s, people feared war with the Soviet Union, the Cold War. A global population explosion so bad that millions or billions of people would surely die from hunger. You had the AIDS crisis. You had a hole in the ozone layer. Well, all those things. Virtually zero investors make decisions based on that stuff: an imminent Soviet attack or mass starvation from overpopulation. There is one thing that is 100% certain here, and that is that more shocks are coming. In case you don't want to sleep well, you can get worked up over the certainty of future calamities, artificial intelligence is making cyber attacks faster and more scalable. AI has even created entirely novel viruses. A confrontation between China and Taiwan that could create risk in the semiconductor space.   Keith Weinhold  8:18   A blockade that might disrupt the world's advanced chip supply, creating more inflation and more uncertainty. Here is what's changed, though, for what investors care about. You know what has changed with today's set of calamities versus those of the 1980s and earlier, because there is something, and it's a big deal for investors. Here's what's changed: recent history shows that the government does more to intervene during disasters, stimulus checks, liquidity programs where they're printing trillions, bailouts, pushing interest rates down to almost zero, quantitative easing. How about a foreclosure moratorium? Anything you know during COVID, it was a lot of these things, and it was the CARES Act, and it was a student loan payment pause. I mean, the Federal Reserve even set up emergency credit facilities. We now know that when the economic building catches fire, policymakers they rarely stand around admiring the flames. They just flood the place with currency. So the best investors they keep prudently building real estate portfolios in the face of risk, not the absence of risk, because the latter does not exist. This incessant government intervention, whether you agree with it or not, it gives you more safety cushions the next time that things fall apart. That's why what appears risk. Is still risky, but less so. So there is more incentive to take on prudent risk than I've ever seen. You know, no politician wants America to fall apart under their watch. So increasingly, they'll just paper over the problem by printing, printing, printing, and then, therefore, the resultant inflation, the consequence of this, that can be dealt with under the next president's watch, not theirs. In fact, future calamities they almost make you want to own scarce real assets that benefit from inflation, not a hedge, a benefit. Trying to time every war, election, banking crisis, tariff announcement, virus, and Fed decision. Trying to time all of those things-that is usually ineffective. You either own more assets, or you get left behind in everything that's happened since 2020. That just underscores this. In fact, Berkshire Hathaway, the closely watched company that Warren Buffett ran for a long time, but he still has influence in.   Keith Weinhold  11:16   You know, they recently began moving out of cash and into assets, they ended their long net selling stretch. In fact, in the latest quarter ended, they've now done the most buying that they've done since early 2022. They have jumped back in the game. It appears that Berkshire Hathaway got tired of sitting on the sidelines and seeing others make gains, and they're pretty bullish on housing too. They bought a home builder. The bottom line here is that shocks are going to keep arriving, and yet productive assets and well-financed residential real estate has repeatedly survived them and just continued appreciating. Don't wait for a risk-free world because you'll wait forever. When you evaluate all these calamities, just since 2020, again, COVID, Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, tariffs, and war in Iran, and then you realize that both real estate and stocks are near all-time highs anyway, and the government keeps backstopping asset owners like never before. This is just a fresh angle on how much better off you are when you prudently own more inflation-benefiting assets sooner. I want to tell you about something called the seven-figure solution. You've been here listening to me weekly since 2014. You've been earning money. You've been investing well, and now you're going to see how it all goes together. It's about making sure that your real estate and your other assets appropriately fund your retirement in a way that gives you protection against market downturns, a tax advantage pool of liquidity, the death benefit of a life insurance policy, and actually introduces you to a new form of leverage all at the same time. Now the liquidity here is key because this is where a 401(k) or IRA limit you, they have taxes and penalties if you want to use those funds early. This doesn't, but the seven-figure solution-it's not just for retirees. In fact, our own in-house investment coach Narayish uses something like this, and he is in his 30s. Let's discuss it, and then you'll see where I have an invitation for you, where you can get involved. I'd like to welcome in a guest we last had on the show a few years ago.   Keith Weinhold  13:54   He's a frequent guest on popular shows, including our friends over at the Real Estate Guys Radio Show, and this guest has also been a terrestrial radio show host himself. He's a long-time real estate educator and an active investor, just like you and I. So he speaks from experience and not a textbook. He's the creator of what we'll discuss today, called the Seven Figure Solution. Welcome back to the show, Jared Garfield.   Jared Garfield  14:21   Hey, it's great to be with you again. Thanks for having me.   Keith Weinhold  14:25   It's so good. Now you're with the Haven Bridge Group, and you help people, especially real estate investors, with what's called the seven-figure solution. Tell us about it.   Jared Garfield  14:37   it. Well, Haven Bridge, we get the name for that because people are really looking for a haven of safety, and the bridge is kind of what crosses the gaps that could kind of destroy your wealth, and it's the path to get there. So we want to take people on a path to safety, and the seven-figure solution is the idea that if you're going to be drawing out even 4% per year to not outlive your money, because people are living now. To 8590, 95 years old, and so that means you could have 35 years in retirement. And with inflation and different things like that, you really have to have a lot bigger nest egg than what most people realize. So a seven-figure solution is how to get to more than a million dollars liquid that you can draw on in a tax advantaged manner for the rest of your life, while also having living benefits. And we pull real estate in with it because we want people to have 10 or 15 or 20 rental properties by the time they retired. That they 1031 exchange regularly, so that they're always keeping tax advantages. So that even in retirement you have strong tax advantages, and ultimately we think that when you're 65 or 70, you might want to go from 30 single-family houses to 1031 exchange into one institutional asset that's a little bit less management intensive.   Keith Weinhold  15:57   Okay, so this is a tax advantage vehicle that real estate investors can use during their investing career, and those tax advantages then really convert into something that you can use in retirement as well.   Jared Garfield  16:11   Yes, what it does is it's a vehicle that instead of saving the money from your cash flow from your rental properties in the bank, we say, well, why wouldn't you rather invest in something where it grows tax-free, number one, and then number two, you don't have the penalties like you would with a 401k, where you get taxed and you get penalized 10% if you pull it out. It's liquid, usually about 80 to 90% liquid, so you can pull from it whenever you like, and you can use it for down payments to grow your real estate portfolio. But you can earn sometimes between five and even seven or 8% in a tax advantaged manner where you're not taxed on it, but you're earning a much higher return than if you put the cash flow into a bank.   Keith Weinhold  16:51   All right, so you're building this tax advantage pool of capital that grows over time, and this is important to have some liquidity. You know, Jared, I've often talked to our audience, about three to 5% of your portfolio value ought to be kept liquid. Maybe with a vehicle like this, you would want to put in more of that because real estate investors we have expenses, so you have this liquidity to cover things like vacancies and major repairs, or perhaps you could even use this account for future down payments on additional investment properties. Is that how it's utilized?   Jared Garfield  17:27   Yeah, absolutely. And I get it partially this way because in my early 20s, I got up to where I had about six rentals, and at the time, I also owned a real estate brokerage, and I was doing very well. I was making a six-figure income and things. And what happened is, I back when a   Keith Weinhold  17:41   six-figure income was a big deal.   Jared Garfield  17:43   Yeah, back in the early 2000s, it was a little bit better money. But the funny thing was, I had four rental properties that all went vacant at the same exact time, and so now all of a sudden, I was paying like 4500 bucks a month in mortgages, not counting the house I lived in, but I had to cover four mortgages on four of my rental properties all at the same time, and I hadn't saved the cash flow, so I didn't have a huge emergency fund. All my liquid capital went into down payments and into renovation money to rehab the properties. Okay, and so it put me in a real bind, and I was out driving a Volvo S80 around throwing two paper routes in the mornings, and then going to my real estate brokerage after my paper routes to cover those rental properties. And so this was basically meant as a way to say, okay, this is a way that I have the liquidity. I'm getting a higher return, but now my tenants are not only buying me the houses, but they're also giving me a couple million dollars in life insurance, and they're wrapping my investment component or the cash value of that, the cash value part of the policy. They're wrapping that in a way that it grows tax-free, so it just accomplishes a lot of things. But the other thing that's a beautiful thing about it is there's a lot of things that we call living benefits.   Keith Weinhold  19:02   All right, so you have the living benefits and the tax advantages, and I know how you have pointed out that this can save an investor 10s of 1000s of dollars in taxes per year and hundreds of 1000s or more over time. Can you tell us more about that?   Jared Garfield  19:20   Yeah, because what happens is the money that goes in is growing tax-free, so you don't get taxed on any of the growth. But what we really like about it is, let's say that you're cash-flowing $2,000 a month off your rental properties, and you're putting 2000 a month into this policy. Usually, after the first year, if you're max funding, 80 to 90% of that's liquid. So if you've got 24,000 sitting in there, you've got access to 89 to 90% of the money. So it's pretty liquid. But what happens is over a 20 or 30 year period, that money could turn into three or 400,000 a year that you can pull out in the form of policy loans. And by doing that, it's not taxed. And you can pull that out throughout your retirement tax-free. So if you were paying 25% in taxes and you're pulling out 200 grand a year, that's $50,000 a year in retirement that you're saving in taxes. But that could be over a 20 or 30-year period. So over 20 years, that 50,000 could end up being a lot of money. I mean, 500,000 over 10 years, a million over 20, and so that means you don't have to accumulate as much. But a lot of our investors love it because they'll save it up with discipline, and then that way it's there if the furnace blows. So it makes your real estate safer, but it also becomes your down payment funds to expand your portfolio.   Keith Weinhold  20:40   Okay, the seven-figure solution is the vehicle that we're talking about here, and what part of the IRS code, just briefly, is it that gives this tax advantage?   Jared Garfield  20:51   It's Internal Revenue Code Section 79 that allows it to grow tax-free. In the 1980 s, doctors and a lot of very wealthy people were using this to the point that IRS changed the laws. They went and sued the insurance companies because doctors would go in and dump $2 million in, and they would buy a $2 million life insurance policy. So they were self-insured, which meant that they didn't have any cost of mortality on it. So they basically got all the benefits of the tax-free growth and the tax-free pullout. And the IRS said, "Wait a minute! We think you're doing tax evasion. So what they did is they came around and they said, "We're not going to let you use this loophole anymore for the very wealthiest people to have this. So they came to a compromise, and the compromise was that if you wanted to put in 2 million, you had to maintain a corridor where there had to be a little bit higher amount of life insurance. So you might have to buy a $2.3 million policy, but then you could still dump, say, $2 million in and have all the tax advantages. It's a strategy that's been used for over 100 years by families like the Rockefellers and the Hunts and J.P. Morgan. The very wealthiest families have always used these strategies to grow and protect their wealth.   Keith Weinhold  21:59   Okay, so it's a part of the tax code that allows cash value to accumulate within and be withdrawn from a life insurance policy tax-free.   Jared Garfield  22:11   Correct, and it gives you living benefits, which I alluded to a minute ago. And the living benefits are if if you end up having to go through things like long-term care, disability, if you can't perform, you know certain functions for a certain period of time, chronic illness, critical illness, terminal illness. If any of those things happen to you, you can borrow against the policy and have access to money during those things that would normally decimate your wealth, because you can actually access the death benefit in advance.   Keith Weinhold  22:42   Now I know a little about the six risks. Tell us about that.   Jared Garfield  22:47   Well, Keith, there are six risks that all investors face regularly. The first one is inflation erosion, and that means that your purchasing power often ends up leaking out of your balance. And the balance might look fine, but inflation can eat away at it. So even if you've raised a lot of money, if inflation means that you can buy half as much five or 10 years from now, then you know your wealth isn't as big as you thought. The second is the volatility setback, and that's sequence of return risk. That means that if you retire on a bad year where things really bad, stock market drops, you could end up using your money at a time where it really weakens your wealth because it may have dropped by 50% So if you had a million, now you have a half a million, and you're spending 100,000 a year. At the end of year one, you might only have 400,000 left. So sequence of of return risks from volatility setback, tax drain. That's just the compounding cost of an uncoordinated tax picture can really be a problem, and then the next one is liquidity. If you don't have liquidity and you've locked up all your money and you can't access it until you're 59 and a half without significant taxation and 10% penalties, the liquidity lock is a problem. There's the longevity paradox. What happens if you outlive your money, you know. So living longer is a benefit, but it exposes you to where you might not have enough money to live on in your latter years. The last two are care avalanche, and that is if an unexpected health event happens at the wrong time, it could really destroy your wealth because medical costs have spiraled out of control, and then the last one is the line to land, and that's only one of the six that's really about growth.   Keith Weinhold  24:28   Right, only one of the six of those was about growth. I can't stand the longevity paradox. Yeah, we think we all want to live a long time, but then it's more difficult to fund living a long time, and if you outlive everybody, nobody shows up at your funeral either. The longevity paradox-one of the six risks that the seven-figure solution can really help you with. Now, tell us more about funding it, so you can get a good cash value balance in. There, I know that one way you do it is actually with short-term rentals instead of a paycheck.   Jared Garfield  25:06   We love short-term rentals, especially for our highest net worth clients, because the reason is is the bonus depreciation of the big beautiful bill. Oh, right! You could take up to like 150 or even $200,000 in year one, they take that depreciation that they used to spread out over a whole lot of years, and they make it to where if you get with your CPA and you analyze your short-term rental, you could potentially take all of the furnishings, all of the artwork, all of the dishes and things that are in the property. Sometimes they'll let you take components like the appliances, the air conditioning unit, the furnace, and they'll let you take it all in year one instead of having to line item it and spread it out over you know 27 and a half years. So what this means is, if you have a short term rental, then you you might get like 150 to 200,000 tax break in the first year on the right property, but it's better than that because instead of having to have like 750 hours to hit full-time real estate professional status, it cuts the hours that you have to have significantly down. I think it's more like 150 hours or something like that, or 300. It's like half the hours, and so you can hit the benefits of taking unlimited passive loss much easier if you have a couple of short-term rentals.   Keith Weinhold  26:24   You're listening to Get Rich Education. We're talking with Jared Garfield about the seven-figure solution, something that takes some time to understand, but it can give you a tax-advantaged pool of capital that grows over time, and it also creates this overall tailwind, not just during your investor life, but then it provides tax advantaged retirement income at the same time. More on this when we come back. You're listening to Get Rich Education. I'm your host Keith Weinhold. What if you got your mortgage loans the same place I get mine? You sure can at Ridge Lending Group and MLS 42056. They provided GRE listeners with more loans than anyone because Ridge specializes in investment property. They'll help you build a long-term plan for growing your real estate empire with leverage. Start your prequal and even chat directly with President Caeli Ridge while it's on your mind. Start at ridgelendinggroup.com, that's ridgelendinggroup.com.   Keith Weinhold  27:25   Let me ask you something: If you've worked hard to build wealth, is your money positioned to actually support your goals? A lot of accredited investors leave capital sitting in cash because it feels safe, but inflation and missed income opportunities can quietly erode its value. Freedom Family Investments offers freedom notes for investors seeking structured income backed by real estate. It's a straightforward approach built on real assets, not speculation. And full disclosure, I'm an investor myself. What I like is that their team walks you through how it all works, so you can decide if it aligns with your portfolio and income goals. Every investment carries risk, and nothing is guaranteed. But with a track record of consistent, on-time investor payouts, they built real credibility. Go to freedomfamilyinvestments.com to book a clarity call, or text family to 66866. That's family 266866. This is the   Speaker 2  28:28   Real Wealth Network's Kathy Betke, and you are listening to the Always Valuable Get Rich Education with Keith Weinhold.   Keith Weinhold  28:46   Welcome back to Get Rich Education. I'm your host Keith Weinhold. We're talking about the seven-figure solution with Jared Garfield. Something that can be a particular benefit to real estate investors both during your investing career and then once you're in retirement as well, and this can take the form of either an indexed universal life policy or a whole life policy. There are a lot of wrong ways to do this and wrong things to get into. We're talking about the right way. Part of that is funding it as best you can. Can you tell us more about that?   Jared Garfield  29:20   Well, there's a lot of different ways to fund it. A lot of our clients will come in. We have some people who will use rollovers if they're nearing the end of retirement. Some people will roll over a 401k into a cash value life insurance policy because they can do it over a five or seven year period, and they pay the taxes when they roll it over, so their taxes go up a little bit for five or seven years of retirement, but then what happens is that means that during their retirement they're not taxed on the income all the way through retirement, so that can save really significantly. But a lot of our clients will do a flip and dump 40 or 50,000 a year in by just saying I'm going to do one flip a year and use that to. Fund the whole thing, or they'll take the cash flow and dump the cash flow into here instead of the bank, just so that they get the living benefits and they get the much higher return with still 80 to 90% liquidity. So could be cash flow from rentals, could be money from a flip, or sometimes some of these short-term rentals can make 20 to $30,000 a year, and if you get $100,000 tax break, you have more money that's not going to Uncle Sam, and then because that's your discretionary income now, because of the tax break, you could use that money to for down payments to grow your portfolio or to do a flip.   Keith Weinhold  30:35   Now, Jared, I sort of think of the cash value that you're accumulating in this policy as safe money that grows at a slow to moderate steady rate, but if it rarely or ever loses value, can you tell us more about that and the rate of return expected in the policy?   Jared Garfield  30:52   Yeah, absolutely. With the IULs, it's going to depend a little bit upon the carriers and stuff like that, and whether you go with a mutual company and stuff like that. It can vary, but a lot of times people are going with things that are what we call indexed. So you can actually index it to the S and p5 100 if you think that we're going to have a bull market and the market's going to really go up strongly. You can index it to the market, and sometimes they'll have a participation rate where they'll say, "Okay, you can participate up to 12% So if the stock market does 17% the most you can make is 12% So you're giving up a little bit of upside, but that's still not nothing. I mean, that's not three or 4% You can still make you know 10 or 12% that year, but you're giving up the part above the participation rate. And the reason that you do that is if the market tanks and drops by 30 or 40% The worst you can do is 0% return. Zero is my hero because you didn't lose anything. So if you had a half a million sitting there, you don't go down to 250 and then wait eight years to get back to break even. Instead, you're still at half a million. And if the market goes up next year by 20% and you had a 10% cap. Then your half a million, you know, is now at 550,000. When everybody else, if it went up by 10% they're at half the amount that they had.   Keith Weinhold  32:13   You have a story or example of how you've helped somebody with this, because I know a lot of investors that are passionate about utilizing the cash value inside an insurance policy tell us.   Jared Garfield  32:28   Well, I've got one friend who's a developer, and he did like a $5 million policy. And every time he flip a subdivision or flip a house, and let's back   Keith Weinhold  32:36   up. Does a $5 million policy mean that's the death benefit?   Jared Garfield  32:40   Yeah, that's the death benefit. Thanks for catching that. That's the death benefit, but that also has a correlation to how much money you can dump into it. So if you have a $5 million policy, you can dump a lot more money in for the tax free growth. And the quicker you hit that death benefit amount, at that point you're self-insured, and so at that point you really don't have cost of insurance on administering the policy hardly at all, and so at that point, when you're what we call self-insured, the return on the investment becomes a lot better. But this particular developer was able to use this policy because he had so much cash value in, and if he sold a house, he'd take 40,000. If he sold 10 a year, he might take you know 400,000 and dump it into this policy, and so it made him bankable. And he was able to use the money to go out and do new subdivision developments because the bank would actually use the policy as the collateral to be able to give him loans at much lower interest rates.   Keith Weinhold  33:38   That's valuable. Tell us about that. I don't want to use the wrong words here, but then effectively with this example, are you borrowing against the funds in the policy? So therefore, you can get those dollars working for you somewhere else, all while simultaneously the cash value continues to compound and grow. Sort of another form of leverage.   Jared Garfield  34:01   Correct. What they basically do is they basically freeze part of the amount and say, okay, we're using this as the collateral and stuff like that to be able to do the loan. But if it grows and and makes 7% you're still making the money off of the money that's sitting in there. It's just collateralized as part of the loan. And some people will even use it to like go buy a car, like instead of buying a car and going getting a bank loan and paying 7% to the bank, they might borrow money out, go pay cash for the car from the life insurance policy loan, and pay 2% instead of 7% But they're paying it to themselves, and as long as they're paying the interest to themselves, if the money that they borrow out could potentially still earn the same money and earn 7% even though you had borrowed out. So it's doing two things for you at the same time, as long as you're paying that loan interest. But and that depends on the option that you take when you do your loan.   Keith Weinhold  34:54   We love leverage around here. Leverage trumps compound interest. In so many ways. Oh, I'm really glad that you told us some more about that using the funds in more than one way at the same time. Tell us more about what it costs for the investor, the costs of setting this up, and then what some of those trade-offs are, Jared.   Jared Garfield  35:18   Well, that really depends on the individual. I mean, everybody has to sit down and be able to decide what is acceptable for them. You know, a lot of times people will want to max fund the 401k that they're doing at least just to the amount that's matched. But then after that, this could be a great place instead of putting a whole bunch more money into a 401k. Some people will elect to say, "I'm going to put the matching portion into my 401k, but then I'm going to take my cash flow from my real estate and money that I could have contributed to other alternatives and put it into this because I want the liquidity. I want to be able to leverage this money and pull it out without any restrictions. That as long as I can pull out 80 to 90 percent, I could go buy a car wash, or I could invest in a business, or I could, you know, do whatever I wanted to. I could loan it to my kids for their college and make them pay me loans back to my policy. There gives you a lot of flexibility to do it. But the thing that we love about it is we'll do what's called an illustration, and it may end up if you start at the right time, it could be a six-figure passive income stream at retirement, and then if you have the real estate, because this helped you grow your portfolio, where without doing the strategy, you might have ended up with say 10 properties. We might be able to get you to 20 or 30 properties working together as a team with your real estate coaches and stuff like that. Then we can potentially grow your real estate portfolio, and what we want to do is 1031 exchange every seven to eight years. I don't believe in holding properties for 30 years.   Jared Garfield  36:47   I believe in exchanging them every seven to eight years because when the tax benefits have been used up, if you exchange to twice the size portfolio, you have better appreciation on a portfolio worth twice as much. But that new value, you still get the depreciation advantages, where the old value that was half, you know, the depreciation is used up. So you're you're getting new depreciation on the higher value assets, and then our goal would be that by the time you don't want to be involved in managing the property managers, that at some point you're going to have a 200 unit apartment complex with on-site management, and at that point you don't have any financial worries really because you're 1031 exchanging into those apartment complexes, but you have so much equity that you're still maintaining depreciation during your retirement years. When most people who have lesser plans don't have the tax advantages,   Keith Weinhold  37:41   I love that you said so much of that, and to you, the listener, Jared is licensed to do this, and our own in-house investment coach. You mentioned coaching. Naresh has the proper licensing as well to holistically help integrate this into your investor life. And for example, yes, we are rarely of the mindset that you would hold a property for all 30 years because after seven to 10 years, your leverage ratio gets worn down, and then additionally, if you're buying turnkey properties, oftentimes that's when capex expenditures start to enter into the picture. So yes, oftentimes we do these seven to 10 year holds.    Jared Garfield  38:23   I love that. Yeah, that's a really really good strategy, and and it always makes it to where you can grow so much bigger portfolio by not being taxed through that exchange. And you know, believe it or not, there's actually even ways when you have extra cash boot, they do allow if you notify them in advance. Sometimes you can take some of the cash boot on the exchange and roll it into some of the products that we utilize.   Keith Weinhold  38:47   For more specifics, I know you said it's based on one's individual situation, but how much does it cost to set up a policy? And then, are there any ongoing maintenance fees? Can you give us more specifics there?   Jared Garfield  38:59   So, there's small fees to administer the policy because you have people who are trading and doing different things and working within the policy for the funds. But usually, you can set policies up as low as 100 or even $200 a month. We don't usually recommend that because you want to max fund it. Usually, when you're doing these strategies, if you're just doing $100 or $200 a month, you're basically buying life insurance, but you're missing a lot of the benefits because what you want to do is to be able to max fund it. So what we like people to do is get as minimum life insurance. That's not in our advantage because we get paid based on the premium of the amount of life insurance you get. But you get the smallest amount of life insurance for the amount that you can max fund. I would much rather have somebody get a $500 a month policy that, let's say, they could put you know a thousanmd a month in or something like that, than to have somebody get $1,000 a month policy where they're paying a thousand a month but they can't max fund it because by max funding it you're maximizing the growth component of the cash. Value, and so it depends on how much you want. But you can go anywhere from $100 or $200 a month to we have clients that will dump $20,000 a month in because they really want to shield as much money as they can from tax growth.   Keith Weinhold  40:15   Tell us more about who the seven-figure solution is for and who it's not for.   Jared Garfield  40:20   Well, if you're living month to month and you don't have discretionary income, it's probably not a good solution. In that situation, you probably want to get term insurance and just make sure that you cover catastrophic things. But if you've got discretionary income and you've got an extra four to $500 a month that you could use to max fund, we figure most people need life insurance anyway, and the way that we teach it, when you mix it with real estate, rather than pulling it from your monthly budget, doesn't it make a lot more sense to let your tenants buy the houses for you, but also pay for a half a million or a million dollar life insurance policy for you, where the tenants are covering the savings for anything that happens at the property with capex or vacancy or damage, and at the same time covering life insurance and potentially a six-figure passive income that's tax advantaged at retirement. So I pull the money out from other assets and let the assets cover this asset.   Keith Weinhold  41:18   Oh well, Jared, this has been great. Before I ask you if you have any last things to tell the audience about the seven-figure solution, I invite you, the audience, to join us. It's going to be Jared and our own in-house investment coach, Nareesh, bringing you a live online event that you can join from the comfort of your own home next Thursday, the 27th at 8 PM Eastern. You can register now; it's free at grewebinars.com because there are a lot of moving parts, and it does take some time to wrap your head around this, benefiting from the cash value of an insurance policy. And this way you can have a Q and A, and you can get answers in real time at this event. It's called the Seven Figure Solution: Build wealth, reduce risk, and create tax advantage retirement income through real estate. Again, it is next Thursday, the 27th at 8p.m. Eastern, you probably have generated some questions inside your head while you're listening to this, and you can sure have them answered there as you're going to learn a whole lot more about it next Thursday. This could help a lot of people. Jared, do you have any last thoughts?    Jared Garfield  42:38   I think the only thing is that we like to work with the team. We like to work with your CPA. We like to work with your real estate investment coach. I used to be a coach and trainer for Robert Kiyosaki, who wrote Rich Dad Poor Dad, and he always talked about power teams. And so we want to be able to be a part of your power team and work with your other advisors to help you implement something. We're not here to give you tax advice. We want you to be able to work with your investment advisors and your CPAs, and just be a part of the team. But I would point out that over my career, I've owned hundreds and hundreds of single-family cash flow rentals, duplexes, fourplexes, apartment complexes. I've done some land development, and I implement these strategies myself. I had 17 Airbnbs, and so these are the strategies that I implemented as a full-time real estate professional. I felt like that this strategy of having a seven-figure solution could help you to avoid some of the pitfalls that I experienced in my 20s.   Keith Weinhold  43:32   So much all comes together for one pretty comprehensive solution. It's the intersection of growing your portfolio, getting tax advantages and having the death benefits of insurance and more all coming together next Thursday, so that you can learn more. Jared, it's been great having you back on the show.   Jared Garfield  43:52   Thanks, Keith. Always glad to join you.   Keith Weinhold  44:00   Integrate the seven-figure solution the GRE way, where we have this conscientiousness about leverage and cash flow. In this case, it's how to prudently leverage a life insurance policy. When it's time to tap your cash value, you take what is a policy loan, not a withdrawal, because you're borrowing against your cash value, hence using the funds in more than one place, and the IRS does not tax loan proceeds. This reminds me of a billionaire and how they borrow against the value of their stock. That way, they don't have to sell their assets. This is similar to what you can do with this. Another thing is that you know real estate investors are not used to a volatile ride because our asset values stay stable. You heard Jared mention the acronym IUL there. That's an indexed universal life policy. It's a real benefit. That says you tie yours to the S and P five hundred. Well, that index was down 18% in 2022, and that your cash value can have an upside ceiling and loss protection on the downside-an option that you'll care more about as you get toward retirement. In 2008, the S&P was down 37% so the math is cruel on value losses. In fact, it's even worse than it sounds because if you're down 30%, then you need a 43% gain just to get back to even. That is just math.   Keith Weinhold  45:39   There are some mistakes to avoid here, and you don't just want to set up your seven-figure solution off of a website. And it is based on products that you might have heard of from companies like Nationwide and Mass Mutual. I strongly encourage you learn more, see how it all goes together, learn how the seven-figure solution compares to other vehicles like a Roth IRA, 401k, 721 exchange, and 1031 exchange. This is very much about seeing your future. You've been listening to me here every week for almost 12 years, earning money from your day job, building your real estate portfolio, either from our investment coaching or on your own. This is how it all goes together. Next week with Jared and GRE investment coach Naresh. By attending live, you can have your questions answered in real time. One last time, you can sign up for the event for next Thursday, the 27th at 8 PM. Eastern, 5 PM. Pacific. Learn about something that's potentially really valuable to you: the seven-figure solution at grewebinars.com. Until next week, I'm your host Keith Weinhold. Don't quit your daydream.   Speaker 2  46:59   Nothing on this show should be considered specific, personal, or professional advice. Please consult an appropriate tax, legal, real estate, financial, or business professional for individualized advice. Opinions of guests are their own. Information is not guaranteed. All investment strategies have the potential for profit or loss. The host is operating on behalf of Get Rich Education LLC exclusively.   Keith Weinhold  47:26   The preceding program was brought to you by your home for wealth building, getricheducation.com  

Learn how to save for a home, pursue FIRE, and quiet money anxiety when every goal feels urgent at once. What does it really take to balance saving for a first home, building toward early retirement, and spending without guilt — when every goal feels like it needs to come first? Hosts Sean Pyles, CFP®, and Elizabeth Ayoola sit down with listener Hana from Portland, a super-saver putting away over $4,000 a month who still worries she's falling short. They dig into how much she actually needs for a down payment and closing costs, what makes a home a money pit rather than a sound investment, how to prioritize competing goals like the HSA, 401(k), Roth IRA, and house fund, and what it really takes to hit FIRE in 15–20 years — plus the money anxiety that makes even high savers second-guess every dollar they spend on fun. See how far your homebuying budget could take you with NerdWallet's free home affordability calculator: https://www.nerdwallet.com/mortgages/calculators/how-much-house-can-i-afford  Buying a home? Estimate the closing costs for a house of any value with this calculator: https://www.nerdwallet.com/mortgages/calculators/closing-costs  Mortgage Closing Costs: How Much You'll Pay https://www.nerdwallet.com/mortgages/learn/closing-costs-mortgage-fees-explained  First-Time Home Buyer Loans and Programs: A Beginner's Guide https://www.nerdwallet.com/mortgages/learn/programs-help-first-time-homebuyers  Want us to review your budget? Fill out this form — completely anonymously if you want — and we might feature your budget in a future segment! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScK53yAufsc4v5UpghhVfxtk2MoyooHzlSIRBnRxUPl3hKBig/viewform?usp=header Smart Money's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/@nerdwalletsmartmoney To send the Nerds your money questions, call or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373 or email podcast@nerdwallet.com. Like what you hear? Please leave us a review and tell a friend. *The show notes were created with the assistance of AI. They have been reviewed by our editorial team for accuracy and quality. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode Description That magazine you grab on your way into the commissary? It's been there for nearly 70 years — and there's a four-generation family story behind it. In this episode, Spencer sits down with Joe Mugnai, whose grandfather launched Family Magazine in 1958 to help military families stretch every dollar. Today it distributes 400,000 copies a month across commissaries worldwide. But Joe isn't just carrying the torch — he's building the next chapter: The Garrison Ledger, a free suite of always-accurate military benefit tools designed to cut through confusing government archives and give service members straight answers they can actually trust. Questions Asked Where did Family Magazine start in 1958, and how are you connected to it? Why turn a coupon flyer into a full editorial magazine? When your dad (Joe III) joined, was it his first job or was he reluctant to take over the family business? How did you come to join the company in 2011? How many copies of Family Magazine are distributed each month today? What can readers do if they can't find the magazine at their commissary? What is Family Media doing to pivot toward the digital age and reach military families online? What's an example of a question someone might bring to The Garrison Ledger, and how does it work behind the scenes? How is your approach different from using ChatGPT or Gemini for benefit questions? How does someone enter the $500 Family Media quarterly giveaway? Main Topics Covered The origin of Family Magazine in 1958 and the four generations of Joe Mugnai behind it Why the founder added editorial content (PCS, travel, pets, beauty) instead of a plain coupon book The magazine's scale today: 400,000 copies monthly, ~30,000 overseas, reaching commissaries worldwide The enduring value of the commissary benefit — especially overseas in places like Japan and Germany How coupons (BOGOs, manufacturer deals from Eggland's, Unilever/Dove) stack on top of commissary savings The challenge of constantly changing military numbers: BAH, base pay, TSP limits, Roth IRA limits, the JTR Why AI chatbots give confidently wrong answers — outdated training data and hallucination The Garrison Ledger: free military tools built to pull only from current, official government sources The TSP modeler and how a "single source of truth" prevents hallucinated answers Real-world accuracy in action, like temporary location-specific BAH adjustments The $500 Family Media quarterly giveaway — five $100 winners, and how to enter via the newsletter Links Mentioned familymedia.com garrisonledger.com Spencer and Jamie offer one-on-one Military Money Mentor sessions. Get your personal military money and personal finance questions answered in a confidential coaching call. militarymoneymanual.com/mentor Over 24,000 military servicemembers and military spouses have graduated from the 100% free, Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course available at militarymoneymanual.com/umc3 In the Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course, you can learn how to apply for the most premium credit cards and get special military protections, such as waived annual fees, on elite cards. Learn how active duty military, military spouses, and Guard and Reserves on 30+ day active orders can get your annual fees waived on premium credit cards in the Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course at militarymoneymanual.com/umc3 If you want to maximize your military paycheck, check out Spencer's 5 star rated book The Military Money Manual: A Practical Guide to Financial Freedom on Amazon or at shop.militarymoneymanual.com. If you have a question you would like us to answer on the podcast, please reach out on instagram.com/militarymoneymanual.

Think you have 10 years to empty an inherited IRA? That may not always be the case. In this episode of Wise Money, we break down the lesser-known 5-year rule, how beneficiary designations can change your options, and why regularly reviewing them matters. Plus, we answer listener questions about saving for a first home, Mega Backdoor Roth contributions, and Roth IRA 5-year rules. Season 11, Episode 52 Download our FREE 5-Factor Retirement guide: https://wisemoneyguides.com/    Schedule a meeting with one of our CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERS™: https://www.korhorn.com/schedule-a-call/  or call 574-247-5898.   Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/_anEkWnVCz4  Subscribe on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/c/WiseMoneyShow Listen on podcast: https://pod.link/1040619718   Submit a question for the show: https://www.korhorn.com/ask-a-question/   Read the Wise Money Blog: https://www.korhorn.com/wise-money-blog/    Connect with us: Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/WiseMoneyShow  Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wisemoneyshow/    Kevin Korhorn, CFP® offers securities through Silver Oak Securities, Inc., Member FINRA/SIPC. Kevin offers advisory services through KFG Wealth Management, LLC dba Korhorn Financial Group. KFG Wealth Management, LLC dba Korhorn Financial Group and Silver Oak Securities, Inc. are not affiliated. Mike Bernard, CFP® and Joshua Gregory, CFP® offer advisory services through KFG Wealth Management, LLC dba Korhorn Financial Group. This information is for general financial education and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations. All investing and investment strategies involve risk, including the potential loss of principal. Asset allocation & diversification do not ensure a profit or prevent a loss in a declining market. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. This video may discuss estate planning concepts but does not constitute legal advice. Please consult an attorney for advice specific to your situation. Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Center for Financial Planning, Inc. owns and licenses the certification marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and CFP® (with plaque design) in the United States to Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., which authorizes individuals who successfully complete the organization's initial and ongoing certification requirements to use the certification marks.

Divorce after 50 looks nothing like divorce in your 30s or 40s. Custody battles and parenting plans give way to a different kind of high-stakes negotiation, one centered almost entirely on money: retirement accounts, pensions, Social Security, and spousal support. And with gray divorce rates doubling since 1990 for people over 50, and tripling for those over 65, Karen McMahon believes this is a conversation more couples urgently need. In this episode of the Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast, Karen sits down with Andrew Hatherly, a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA), trained mediator, and founder of Transcend Retirement and Wiser Divorce Solutions. Andrew is also the host of The Gray Divorce Podcast, and after navigating his own midlife divorce, has made it his mission to help others understand exactly what's financially at stake before they sign a settlement. Karen and Andrew unpack why gray divorce carries a far higher financial risk than divorce earlier in life, since there's simply less runway to rebuild retirement savings after a late-life split. They explore why bringing a financial expert to the table, alongside an attorney and a divorce coach, is essential in any high conflict divorce, and especially critical when a marriage has spanned decades and retirement accounts, pensions, and home equity are all on the table. The conversation covers what men and women both need to understand about marital property, why "his" retirement account is actually a shared marital asset, and why spousal support calculations vary so widely from state to state. Andrew breaks down a critical but often-overlooked Social Security rule: spouses married 10 years or longer may be entitled to claim benefits based on their former spouse's earnings record, without reducing what their ex-spouse receives, and why couples approaching that 10-year mark should think carefully about timing. They also discuss the tax implications of dividing different types of retirement accounts, why a $500,000 Roth IRA and a $500,000 traditional 401(k) are not actually worth the same in a divorce settlement, and why remarriage can affect spousal support and estate planning decisions down the road. Karen and Andrew close with a candid discussion about what comes after the financial settlement is finalized, and why gray divorce, despite its financial complexity, can also become a powerful catalyst for reinvention, purpose, and a stronger, more intentional third act of life. Whether you're facing high conflict divorce, navigating gray divorce later in life, or are a man trying to understand your financial rights and responsibilities in divorce, this episode offers the financial clarity and strategic insight needed to protect your future and negotiate from a place of knowledge rather than fear. Andrew Hatherly is a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA), mediator, and founder of Transcend Retirement and Wiser Divorce Solutions. He is the host of The Gray Divorce Podcast and author of The Gray Divorce Phenomenon, a free guide available at transcendretirement.net. Connect with Andrew: Free Gift: The Gray Divorce Phenomenon, a free guide available at transcendretirement.net. Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewhatherley/     Podcast: https://www.transcendretirement.net/podcast Resources Mentioned in this Episode: Book a Free Rapid Relief Call: http://rapidreliefcall.com Free Divorce Support Network Gift: https://divorcesupportnetwork.com/jbdpod

Get the 200+ Page Optimal Living Daily Workbook (PDF) - Free. Want to turn today's episode into an actionable plan? Join the Optimal Living Weekly newsletter and I'll send you our 200-page digital workbook immediately. It's packed with the best takeaways from the show, formatted for easy reading and implementation at home. Get your free PDF workbook here: https://oldpodcast.eo.page/join Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3663: Chris Reining answers a reader who wants to reach financial independence by 50 and wonders whether a 401(k) is still worth funding. He walks through the tradeoffs of 401(k), Roth IRA, and taxable accounts, including the 72(t) rule for penalty-free early access and why an employer match is money you should never leave behind. He also shares the simple two-account approach he used before leaving his job at 37. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://chrisreining.com/should-i-stop-using-retirement-accounts-if-im-planning-to-retire-early/ Quotes to ponder: "there isn't a one-size-fits-all solution for financial independence and early retirement" "not taking advantage of a match is like not bending down to pick up thousands of dollars off your kitchen floor" "Align your life with what matters to your future self, and you'll start living a more meaningful life, right now." Optimal Finance Daily is a daily personal finance podcast where we narrate the best articles on financial independence, investing, saving money, and money management, read to you by a professional narrator so you can grow your wealth a little more every day. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listener Q&A where Andy talks about: How to sell and rebalance positions in a brokerage account when they have unrealized gains and you're trying to be tax-efficient about it ( 7:06 )His thoughts on a few different variable portfolio withdrawal strategies, namely Amortization Based Withdrawals ("ABW"), Total Portfolio Allocation Withdrawals ("TPAW") and Big ERN's CAPE-based approach ( 14:10 )Converting to a Roth IRA money you plan on spending in the near-term, instead of outright distributing it to your bank or brokerage account to be spent from there ( 23:18 )Whether doing Roth conversions or backdoor Roth contributions are ultimately the same thing from a tax planning perspective ( 28:02 )His thoughts on deciding which type of advisor and/or advisory fee model might make the most sense for you when considering the potential fees to be paid to an advisor over a lifetime ( 33:41 )At what point should you just take out unused 529 funds and pay tax and penalty on the gains, assuming you have no expectation they'll eventually get to be used for qualified education expenses ( 40:15 )Potential ideas for small or solo advisory firms to establish a succession plan in the event of the death or incapacitation of the advisor ( 45:26 )What to look for in an advisory relationship to help minimize the risk of the advisory committing fraud with your money ( 50:50 )Whether to live off cash for multiple years - assuming you have saved that much cash - or instead pull from your investment accounts ( 56:53 )His thoughts on Securities Backed Lines of Credit, or SBLOCs, from brokerage firms ( 1:00:35 )To send Andy questions to be addressed on future Q&A episodes, email andy@andypanko.comAndy's LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andypanko/Links in this episode:Tenon Financial monthly newsletter/blog - Retirement Planning InsightsYouTube channel - Retirement Planning Education (formerly Retirement Planning Demystified)Retirement Planning Education website - www.RetirementPlanningEducation.com

Can you really retire off Bitcoin — even if the price drops 50%? Mark Moss returns to Coin Stories to explain why he believes you can, what most people misunderstand about volatility, and why becoming a forced seller can be more dangerous than a falling market. He also opens up about what happened inside Satsuma, the Bitcoin treasury company that ultimately unraveled. In this episode: How to retire off Bitcoin without selling it What really happened inside Satsuma Whether the Coldcard exploit changes self-custody Why Mark doesn't expect another 2008-style crash soon What could finally bring money back into Bitcoin Follow Mark at https://x.com/1MarkMoss  ---- Order Natalie's new book "Bitcoin is For Everyone," a simple introduction to Bitcoin and what's broken in our current financial system: https://amzn.to/3WzFzfU  ---- Borrow against your Bitcoin without selling it. Ledn offers Bitcoin-backed loans built for serious holders, with rates that get lower as your loan size increases. With Ledn's custodied loan product, your Bitcoin is held in custody and not lent out. Ledn has operated through multiple market cycles without a loss of client assets and publishes Proof of Reserves so you can verify what they hold. Get 0.25% off your first loan at ledn.io/natalie. Terms apply — see the site for details. ---- Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR) powers AI and Bitcoin mining infrastructure with 3 GW of secured global energy — and owns the entire stack, from equipment manufacturing to data centers to proprietary orchestration software. Learn more at https://www.bitdeer.com. ---- Abundant Mines is a fully-managed Bitcoin mining in the U.S. You own the miners. You keep 100% of the Bitcoin. Voted #1 mining company by peers. Get 1 month of free hosting: AbundantMines.com/Natalie ---- Natalie's Bitcoin Product Partners: Speed is my go-to Bitcoin Lightning wallet! Send, receive, or swap stablecoins and digital gold into Bitcoin in one app. Run a business? Speed powers Bitcoin payments for Steak 'n Shake, and it can do the same for you. Download at https://speed.app/natalie  and use code COINSTORIES10 for 5,000 free sats after your first transaction. Download Bitkey Today and use my promo code STORIES to get 10% off the new Bitkey. This episode has been sponsored by Bitkey: https://bitkey.world/STORIES Master Bitcoin self-custody and gain peace of mind with 1-on-1 training: https://www.thebitcoinway.com/natalie?utm_source=partner-natalie&utm_medium=podcast With BitcoinIRA, you can invest in bitcoin 24/7 inside a tax-advantaged IRA. Choose a Traditional IRA to defer taxes, or a Roth IRA for tax-free withdrawals later. Take control of your future with BitcoinIRA: https://www.bitcoinira.com/natalie  Natalie's Upcoming Events: The best time to plan for Bitcoin 2027 is right now. Early bird tickets are live — grab the lowest pricing available and use code HODL for 10% off: https://tickets.b.tc/event/bitcoin-2027?promoCodeTask=apply&promoCodeInput=HODL  Extra Services to Consider: One of the best decisions I made for both my heath and my bank account was joining CrowdHealth years ago. I never spend more than $200 on health coverage through my CrowdHealth plan and all my health events have been crowd-funded. Get started with a discounted plan at my link. : www.joincrowdhealth.com/natalie  ---- Disclaimer: The News Block and Coin Stories are for educational and entertainment purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Natalie Brunell is not a financial advisor. Some content may include sponsorships or paid partnerships, which are disclosed. Always do your own research and consult a licensed professional before making financial decisions. Bitcoin and digital assets are volatile — never invest more than you can afford to lose.

FREE INVESTING TRAINING: https://www.bgwprograms.com/registration-pageYou have been meaning to get to it. The Roth IRA, the 401k, the investment account. You know it matters. You have heard it enough times. But somehow, life keeps moving and that thing stays on the list.That is exactly what this episode is about. Andrea opens up about her own experience of invisible loss. Because every day you do not put your money to work is a day of invisible loss. Not dramatic, not obvious, just quietly happening in the background while you tell yourself you will get around to it eventually. In this episode, you'll learn:✅ What invisible loss is and why it sneaks up on you without a single big decision✅ Why every day you delay investing is quietly working against your future✅ How the pain of realizing the loss can actually become the catalyst to start✅ What momentum builders are and how to use them to get moving with moneyLet's connect:Website: www.buildinggenwealth.comInstagram: @building.gen.wealthLearn more about 1:1 Money Coaching: www.buildinggenwealth.com/moneycoaching

Choosing between a Roth and Traditional IRA comes down to one question: what tax bracket do you expect to be in when you withdraw. Our favorite Bookkeeping Mensch, Paul Rosenblum, breaks down the tax treatment, contribution limits, and Required Minimum Distribution rules for both, plus a quick look at how inherited IRAs work differently. A short, practical primer for anyone weighing retirement savings alongside their business finances.Schwab IRA calculator: https://www.schwab.com/ira/ira-calculatorsSend us Fan MailSupport the showAbout the hostPaul Rosenblum has been doing hands-on bookkeeping for over 30 years, starting with QuickBooks Desktop and adapting to the world of cloud-based QuickBooks Online. He shares practical, in-the-weeds lessons from real client files every episode.

Get the 200+ Page Optimal Living Daily Workbook (PDF) - Free. Want to turn today's episode into an actionable plan? Join the Optimal Living Weekly newsletter and I'll send you our 200-page digital workbook immediately. It's packed with the best takeaways from the show, formatted for easy reading and implementation at home. Get your free PDF workbook here: https://oldpodcast.eo.page/join Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3663: Chris Reining answers a reader who wants to reach financial independence by 50 and wonders whether a 401(k) is still worth funding. He walks through the tradeoffs of 401(k), Roth IRA, and taxable accounts, including the 72(t) rule for penalty-free early access and why an employer match is money you should never leave behind. He also shares the simple two-account approach he used before leaving his job at 37. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://chrisreining.com/should-i-stop-using-retirement-accounts-if-im-planning-to-retire-early/ Quotes to ponder: "there isn't a one-size-fits-all solution for financial independence and early retirement" "not taking advantage of a match is like not bending down to pick up thousands of dollars off your kitchen floor" "Align your life with what matters to your future self, and you'll start living a more meaningful life, right now." Optimal Finance Daily is a daily personal finance podcast where we narrate the best articles on financial independence, investing, saving money, and money management, read to you by a professional narrator so you can grow your wealth a little more every day. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Should you stop doing Roth conversions as part of your retirement planning after Senator Ron Wyden's new legislation targeting specific retirement accounts? David McKnight breaks down the key aspects of the proposal and what it actually means for the average American (and their retirement).  Show Notes In this episode, David McKnight looks at whether you should stop doing Roth conversions following Senator Ron Wyden's introduction of legislation for taxing Roth IRAs. For David, 99.9% of Americans should continue investing in Roth accounts with a high degree of confidence. One of the biggest misconceptions floating around is that Congress wants to start taxing everyone's Roth IRA.  However, that is simply not what Senator Wyden's proposal does, as its focus are so-called mega-retirement accounts. These are retirement accounts – whether traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, or Roth 401(k)s – that have grown to extraordinary sizes, often tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars. Senator Wyden's proposal only applies to taxpayers with very high incomes ($400,000 for individuals; $450,000 for married couples) and only if your combined retirement accounts exceed $10 million. In other words, if you don't have more than $10 million spread across your retirement accounts, the proposal doesn't apply to you. Do you exceed that threshold? Then, know that the proposal would require annual distributions from the excess amount. The rule becomes even more restrictive when balances exceed $20 million. David believes that the average American shouldn't be nervous about investing in Roth accounts – he shares four reasons why. Reason #1: Congress likes Roth accounts, because, from a Government's perspective, Roth accounts accelerate tax revenue. The second reason is the fact that Roth assets are still a relatively small piece of the retirement landscape. "Most retirement money in America is still sitting inside traditional tax-deferred accounts", he explains. Reason #3: the Government has always had an implicit agreement with America on Roth accounts. The fourth reason why David doesn't believe you should be nervous about investing in Roth accounts is that they're still your best protection against what's coming down the road. The national debt is set to grow by $2 trillion per year over the next 10 years and $3 trillion per year after that. According to a Penn Wharton study, once the country hits a debt-to-GDP of 200% in 2040, no combination of increasing taxes or cutting spending will prevent the nation's financial collapse. That's why, David is confident that around 2035 Congress will have little choice but to tax increases. Mentioned in this episode: David's national bestselling book: The Guru Gap: How America's Financial Gurus Are Leading You Astray, and How to Get Back on Track DavidMcKnight.com DavidMcKnightBooks.com PowerOfZero.com (free video series) @mcknightandco on Twitter  @davidcmcknight on Instagram David McKnight on YouTube Senator Ronald Wyden Penn Wharton (The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania)

Many people think financial planning is mostly about investing and saving money. The reality is that some of the biggest financial decisions happen before you ever invest a dollar. In this episode of The Budgetdog Breakdown, I answer real listener questions about protecting your income with disability insurance, combining finances before marriage, understanding the backdoor Roth IRA, deciding whether to pay off your car early, and determining how much a wedding should really cost. We discuss why protecting your ability to earn is so important, how couples can create a shared financial system, why the backdoor Roth isn't as complicated as it sounds, and how to think about debt versus investing. Money isn't just about math. It's about making decisions that protect your family and align with what you actually value. Episode Timeline and Highlights 00:00 Why wealthy people rely on systems 00:18 The insurance most people forget 01:25 Combining finances before marriage 03:52 Understanding the backdoor Roth IRA 05:41 Paying off your car vs. investing 07:32 How much should a wedding cost? 09:39 Final thoughts Key Takeaways • Protecting your income is just as important as protecting your life • Financial transparency is essential in marriage • A backdoor Roth IRA is a legal strategy for accessing Roth contributions when income limits apply • Paying off debt provides a guaranteed return equal to the interest avoided • Major purchases should reflect your values, not social pressure • Financial systems make difficult decisions easier Quotables "Wealthy people aren't wealthy because they win every day. They use systems that make losing hard." "Protect your family in every single potential scenario." "Money isn't just about math. It's about behavior." "Are you doing what is right for you, or are you just keeping up with the Joneses?" The goal isn't to make every financial decision perfectly. It's to build a system that protects your family, supports your goals, and lets you spend your money intentionally.

There are two ways to get saving for your children wrong. You can undersave and leave your kids with student loans. You can oversave and hand a nineteen year old a pile of money with no strings attached. Physician families tend to worry about the first one and end up closer to the second. In our new episode, we discuss which accounts help keep you out of both ditches! We also answer your colleagues' questions A Surgeon in Arizona says, “My portfolio has drifted way off from where I set it a few years ago because stocks ran up so much. Do I actually need to rebalance, and if so, how do I do it without triggering a big tax bill?” A Hospitalist in Texas asks, “I've got a 401(k), a Roth IRA, an HSA, and a taxable brokerage account, and I have no idea what's supposed to go where. Does it matter which investments live in which account, or can I just buy the same thing across all of them?” A Gastro doc in Michigan writes, “Every time the market drops, I get the urge to sell and wait until things calm down. Is there ever a good reason for a long-term investor to move to cash, or is that always a mistake?” Are you ready to turn worries about taxes and investing into a plan for college and retirement? If you're evaluating your options and want to learn more, visit physicianfamily.com and click 'Get Started' or you can ask a question of your own by emailing podcast@physicianfamily.com. See marketing disclosures at physicianfamily.com/disclosures

Just when you thought America had invented every possible retirement account, along comes the Radish. Don and Tom dig into the proposed employer-funded savings plan, the man who helped create the 401(k), and whether workers really need another tax-advantaged vegetable in an already crowded garden.The practical answer is simpler: start saving now. A Roth IRA and one broad global stock ETF can do more good than waiting for the perfect account—or learning every acronym in the retirement alphabet.Listener questions cover diversifying beyond rental real estate, whether spreading accounts across custodians is useful cyber insurance, moving emergency cash from Ally to SGOV, Roth 401(k) matching, and Roth IRA withdrawal timing.00:37 Mountain music and backyard radishes02:40 The retirement-account alphabet04:36 What exactly is a Radish plan?09:04 Save now; simplify later11:53 Diversifying beyond rental real estate16:15 TSP, SEP IRA, and custodian cyber risk19:06 SGOV for an emergency fund21:26 Roth 401(k) matching and Roth IRA accessQuestions? Comments? Click!

More than 1,700 bitcoins have been drained from Coldcard wallets belonging to people who did everything right when it comes to self-custody. Alex Thorn, Head of Firmwide Research at Galaxy Digital, has been tracing those coins on-chain since the second day of the attack, working directly with victims. He joins me with the fullest accounting of the hack that exists anywhere: how much was actually taken, where that Bitcoin is sitting right now, and what the people who took it have and haven't done with it since. In this episode: Where the stolen Bitcoin is sitting right now and how many waves of attacks there have been What Alex expects the hackers who took it to do next How could this seed generation flaw stay hidden for five years? The volunteer "Red Team" effort that formed overnight, and what it's turned up so far The one thing every victim should do today, whether or not they ever see their coins again His read on the failed BIP 110 fork, and what he'd say to the people who backed it Follow Alex Thorn on X https://x.com/intangiblecoins - his DMs are open to help victims  ---- Order Natalie's new book "Bitcoin is For Everyone," a simple introduction to Bitcoin and what's broken in our current financial system: https://amzn.to/3WzFzfU  ---- Borrow against your Bitcoin without selling it. Ledn offers Bitcoin-backed loans built for serious holders, with rates that get lower as your loan size increases. With Ledn's custodied loan product, your Bitcoin is held in custody and not lent out. Ledn has operated through multiple market cycles without a loss of client assets and publishes Proof of Reserves so you can verify what they hold. Get 0.25% off your first loan at ledn.io/natalie. Terms apply — see the site for details. ---- Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR) powers AI and Bitcoin mining infrastructure with 3 GW of secured global energy — and owns the entire stack, from equipment manufacturing to data centers to proprietary orchestration software. Learn more at https://www.bitdeer.com. ---- Abundant Mines is a fully-managed Bitcoin mining in the U.S. You own the miners. You keep 100% of the Bitcoin. Voted #1 mining company by peers. Get 1 month of free hosting: AbundantMines.com/Natalie ---- Natalie's Bitcoin Product Partners: Speed is my go-to Bitcoin Lightning wallet! Send, receive, or swap stablecoins and digital gold into Bitcoin in one app. Run a business? Speed powers Bitcoin payments for Steak 'n Shake, and it can do the same for you. Download at https://speed.app/natalie  and use code COINSTORIES10 for 5,000 free sats after your first transaction. Download Bitkey Today and use my promo code STORIES to get 10% off the new Bitkey. This episode has been sponsored by Bitkey: https://bitkey.world/STORIES Master Bitcoin self-custody and gain peace of mind with 1-on-1 training: https://www.thebitcoinway.com/natalie?utm_source=partner-natalie&utm_medium=podcast With BitcoinIRA, you can invest in bitcoin 24/7 inside a tax-advantaged IRA. Choose a Traditional IRA to defer taxes, or a Roth IRA for tax-free withdrawals later. Take control of your future with BitcoinIRA: https://www.bitcoinira.com/natalie  Natalie's Upcoming Events: The best time to plan for Bitcoin 2027 is right now. Early bird tickets are live — grab the lowest pricing available and use code HODL for 10% off: https://tickets.b.tc/event/bitcoin-2027?promoCodeTask=apply&promoCodeInput=HODL  Extra Services to Consider: One of the best decisions I made for both my heath and my bank account was joining CrowdHealth years ago. I never spend more than $200 on health coverage through my CrowdHealth plan and all my health events have been crowd-funded. Get started with a discounted plan at my link. : www.joincrowdhealth.com/natalie  ---- Disclaimer: The News Block and Coin Stories are for educational and entertainment purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Nothing discussed in this episode is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold Bitcoin or any other asset. Natalie Brunell is not a financial advisor. Some content may include sponsorships or paid partnerships, which are disclosed. Always do your own research and consult a licensed professional before making financial decisions. Bitcoin and digital assets are volatile — never invest more than you can afford to lose.

Retirement tax planning isn't simply about following IRS rules or minimizing what you owe this year. Jeremy Keil answers three listener questions that demonstrate why focusing on one tax return at a time can lead retirees to miss opportunities to manage their taxes over the course of retirement. Jeremy breaks down two different five-year rules that can apply to Roth IRAs, including what happens when you complete a Roth conversion after having an existing Roth IRA for years. He then explains why taking only the required minimum distribution from an inherited IRA isn't automatically the best strategy under the 10-year rule, and how qualified charitable distributions may be available from inherited IRAs for eligible account owners. For disclosures and conflicts visit keilfp.com/disclosures.

When you're moving into retirement, you're most likely to be starting to ask yourself which investment accounts you should start drawing from first. There's really no universal answer—retirement withdrawal strategies are deeply personal and situation-dependent. But understanding the implications of each account type and the factors that influence withdrawal order can have a massive impact on your tax burden and the longevity of your assets.    You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in... [00:00] Retirement withdrawal strategy options [06:37] Roth IRA and taxable accounts [07:47] Tax implications for investment gains [14:12] Roth IRA conversion strategy [16:17] Real-life retirement income strategies [19:36] Importance of a withdrawal strategy   Understanding the Account Types and Their Tax Impact   The foundation of your strategic withdrawal plan begins with understanding how each investment account is taxed:   1. Pre-tax Retirement Accounts These include traditional IRAs and 401(k)s, SEP IRAs, and similar plans. Contributions offer a tax deduction, and growth is tax-deferred, but withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income. These accounts are eventually subject to required minimum distributions (RMDs), currently beginning at age 73 or 75, depending on your birth year. Withdrawals here not only increase your reported income but can also impact Medicare premiums and Social Security taxation.   2. Roth Accounts Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s are funded with after-tax contributions. Qualified withdrawals are tax-free and—if the original contributor owns the account, not subject to RMDs in your lifetime. This makes Roth accounts especially valuable for flexible, later-stage withdrawals.   3. Taxable Brokerage Accounts These are standard investment accounts not designated for retirement. Withdrawals of principal do not create taxable events; only realized capital gains, dividends, and interest are reported for taxes. One major benefit: capital gains rates can be lower than ordinary income rates and may even reach 0% for some filers. Withdrawals can be easy to manage for opportunistic or requirement-driven needs.   Questions to Consider with Personalized Withdrawal Planning Several personal factors play into the best withdrawal order: Are you retiring before 65 and in need of Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance? Do you want to minimize future RMDs or leave assets to heirs? When will you begin Social Security or receive pension income? What is your preferred tax bracket and desired lifestyle flexibility?   These questions should be revisited regularly, as changes in tax law, health, or legacy wishes can affect your strategy.   Real-World Withdrawal Scenarios Coordinating Withdrawals for ACA Subsidies Jonathan retires at 57, pre-Medicare, and must carefully manage his modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) to retain ACA health insurance subsidies. My suggested plan is to combine modest 401(k) withdrawals, reportable dividends, and money market interest to stay below the MAGI threshold. Additional cash needs are met from accounts, like the money market, which don't affect taxable income. This keeps his subsidy and aligns with income limits, demonstrating the need for multi-account coordination.   Reducing Future RMDs and Leaving a Legacy Walter and Amy, 62, want to avoid burdening their heirs with high-tax inheritance on pre-tax accounts. Instead of focusing solely on paying the least tax today, they prioritize Roth conversions while Social Security is delayed, taking advantage of lower brackets now to transfer wealth into tax-free vehicles. Over several years, they could convert hundreds of thousands into Roth IRAs, significantly reducing future RMDs while maximizing wealth transfer.   Minimizing Tax on Social Security Christian, 68, blends Social Security with distributions from non-taxable sources like his money market to avoid triggering federal taxes on his Social Security. Careful planning allows him to either keep Social Security tax-free or, with limited IRA withdrawals, incur only minimal tax.   The Importance of Ongoing Review and Professional Advice Your withdrawal strategy is not a "set-and-forget" plan. Tax laws, account balances, and individual goals will change over time. I suggest annual reviews and, ideally, working with a specialized financial advisor to continually adjust the plan for optimal tax efficiency and income sustainability. A thoughtful approach, tailored to your personal circumstances and updated regularly, will help you balance tax efficiency, income needs, and legacy goals.    Resources Mentioned Retirement Readiness Review Subscribe to the Retire with Ryan YouTube Channel Download my entire book for FREE    Connect With Morrissey Wealth Management  www.MorrisseyWealthManagement.com/contact Subscribe to Retire With Ryan

Is a Health Savings Account Right for You? Episode 395 – A Health Savings Account, or HSA, is one of very few financial vehicles considered “triple tax advantaged.” You can get a deduction going in, the money grows tax-free, and the money also comes out tax-free. But they're not for everybody as there are some major caveats. More SML Planning Minute Podcast Episodes Transcript of Podcast Episode 395 Hello, this is Bill Rainaldi, with another edition of Security Mutual's SML Planning Minute. In today's episode: is a Health Savings Account right for you? What would you say if someone told you about an investment vehicle where you get a tax deduction going in, the money in the account grows tax-free, and the withdrawals are tax-free when they come out? Such a product exists, but it's not quite that simple. An Individual Retirement Account or IRA doesn't work that way. You get a deduction going in, but you pay income tax when you take the money out. A Roth IRA lets you take the money out tax-free (with certain qualifications), but you don't get a deduction when you put the money in. A Health Savings Account, or HSA, is one of very few financial vehicles considered “triple tax advantaged.”[1] You can get a deduction on monies going in, the money grows tax-free, and the money also comes out tax-free. But there are some major caveats to understand. HSAs don't work for everyone. Only certain people can contribute, and when you take the money out, there are some conditions that need to be met if you want to take full advantage of the tax incentives. Here's how an HSA works. To contribute, you need to be part of what the Internal Revenue Service or IRS calls a “High-Deductible Health Plan.” The IRS defines a high-deductible health plan as one that requires an annual deductible. A deductible is the amount one must pay out-of-pocket for healthcare before health insurance coverage will share in the costs. In 2026, the minimum deductibles for a high deductible HSA health plan are set at $1,700 for coverage on yourself only, and $3,400 if the coverage includes your family.[2] Also, the out-of-pocket maximum cannot be higher than $8,500 for self-only coverage and $17,000 for family coverage. There are more rules. To contribute to an HSA, you can't be enrolled in another plan that is not considered HSA-eligible, nor can you be someone claimed as a dependent on someone else’s tax return. If you're not sure whether your plan qualifies, you will need to ask either the benefits administrator where you work or the plan provider. And for the record, Medicare does not count as a high-deductible medical plan. So, you can't participate in an HSA if you're covered by Medicare. As with almost any tax-advantaged investment vehicle, there are contribution limits. For 2026, you can contribute up to $4,400 for yourself, or $8,750 if your high-deductible plan covers your family.[3] And much like a 401(k), your employer can match your HSA contribution. In fact, in 2024 approximately 84 percent of employees covered by a qualified HSA health plan also received a contribution from their employers.[4] Note that the limits above are overall limits that include both the employee and, if applicable, employer contributions. Then there's the issue of distributions from the account. Distributions can be tax-free, but with some significant restrictions. To be tax-free, the distributions must be used for what the IRS calls “qualified medical expenses.” And what are qualified medical expenses? These might include hospital care, ambulance services, hearing aids, lab fees, dental and vision care, and other things. You can even use an HSA for health-care-related travel, massage therapy and substance abuse treatment.[5] [6] An HSA can be used for expenses both big and small. If your distribution doesn't meet the qualifications, any withdrawals after age 65 are considered fully taxable, like a traditional IRA or 401(k). Before age 65 there is also a 20 percent early withdrawal penalty. This means that, if necessary, you could treat an HSA as a secondary retirement plan. But of course, if you have qualified medical expenses that need to be paid, the taxation incentive would make them a better option. When it comes time to withdraw money as needed, you can either pay the provider directly from the HSA account (many providers offer the use of a debit card tied to the account) or pay the provider yourself and get reimbursed from the account.[7] Note that an HSA is different from a Flexible Spending Account or FSA. An FSA is another, albeit generally less popular, type of account designed to help with medical expenses. The employer generally owns an FSA, whereas the employee owns an HSA. But an FSA is also, in most cases, a “use it or lose it” type of account. At the end of the year (plus an optional grace period), you lose any money that's left over in your FSA.[8] Also note that in most circumstances, you can have a general-purpose FSA or HSA, but not both.[9] An HSA has no such restriction when it comes to how long it takes to use it. If you don't spend the money, it rolls over within the account. It belongs to you forever, even if you switch jobs. Of course, these sums, invested over several decades, can amount to a significant amount of money by the time you use them. Compounding plays a role here just like most other investment vehicles, only this time it may all be potentially tax-free. One final thought about HSAs. As we've mentioned before, the cost of health care for seniors can be staggering. According to Fidelity, a 65-year-old individual may need an after-tax total of $172,500 to cover the cost of health care expenses in retirement.[10] In the right circumstances, an HSA can be a tax-efficient way to fund some of those costs. [1] Fidelity Learn. “What is an HSA, and how does it work?” Fidelity.com. https://www.fidelity.com/learning-center/smart-money/what-is-an-hsa (accessed July 23, 2026). [2] Fidelity Learn. “HSA contribution limits and eligibility rules for 2026 and 2027.” Fidelity.com. https://www.fidelity.com/learning-center/smart-money/hsa-contribution-limits (accessed July 23, 2026). [3] Id. [4] Fidelity Learn. “What is an HSA, and how does it work?” Fidelity.com. https://www.fidelity.com/learning-center/smart-money/what-is-an-hsa (accessed July 23, 2026). [5] MetLife. “What Can I Use My HSA for in 2026?” MetLife.com. https://www.metlife.com/stories/benefits/hsa-qualified-expenses/ (accessed July 23, 2026). [6] Miller, Kathryn. “What clients miss about HSAs — and how advisors can help.” Financial-Planning.com. https://www.financial-planning.com/news/what-clients-miss-about-hsas-and-how-advisors-can-help (accessed July 23, 2026). [7] Fidelity Learn. “Spending with your HSA.” Fidelity.com. https://www.fidelity.com/go/hsa/how-to-spend (accessed July 23, 2026). [8] Healthcare.gov. “Using a Flexible Spending Account (FSA).” Healthcare.gov. https://www.healthcare.gov/have-job-based-coverage/flexible-spending-accounts/ (accessed July 23, 2026). [9] Fidelity Learn. “HSA contribution limits and eligibility rules for 2026 and 2027.” Fidelity.com. https://www.fidelity.com/learning-center/smart-money/hsa-contribution-limits (accessed July 23, 2026). [10] Fidelity Learn. “What is an HSA, and how does it work?” Fidelity.com. https://www.fidelity.com/learning-center/smart-money/what-is-an-hsa (accessed July 23, 2026). More SML Planning Minute Podcast Episodes This podcast is brought to you by Security Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, The Company That Cares®. The content provided is intended for educational and informational purposes only. Information is provided in good faith. However, the Company makes no representation or warranty of any kind regarding the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of the information. The information presented is designed to provide general information regarding the subject matter covered. It is not to serve as legal, tax or other financial advice related to individual situations, because each individual's legal, tax and financial situation is different. Specific advice needs to be tailored to your situation. Therefore, please consult with your own attorney, tax professional and/or other advisors regarding your specific situation. To help reach your goals, you need a skilled professional by your side. Contact your local Security Mutual life insurance advisor today. As part of the planning process, he or she will coordinate with your other advisors as needed to help you achieve your financial goals and objectives. For more information, visit us at SMLNY.com/SMLPodcast. If you've enjoyed this podcast, tell your friends about it. And be sure to give us a five-star review. And check us out on LinkedIn, YouTube and Twitter. Thanks for listening, and we'll talk to you next time. Tax laws are complex and subject to change. The information presented is based on current interpretation of the laws. Neither Security Mutual nor its agents are permitted to provide tax or legal advice. The applicability of any strategy discussed is dependent upon the particular facts and circumstances. Results may vary, and products and services discussed may not be appropriate for all situations. Each person's needs, objectives and financial circumstances are different, and must be reviewed and analyzed independently. We encourage individuals to seek personalized advice from a qualified Security Mutual life insurance advisor regarding their personal needs, objectives, and financial circumstances. Insurance products are issued by Security Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, Binghamton, New York. Product availability and features may vary by state.​ SubscribeApple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidPandoraby EmailTuneInDeezerRSSMore Subscribe Options

Financial Physics rule five asks the uncomfortable question every investor should answer: what is the worst that could happen? Don and Tom revisit leverage in 1929, the crashes of 2000, 2008, and 2020, and the practical defenses that keep a bad market from becoming a ruined plan.Then the questions turn to retirement planning: managing IRMAA while considering Roth conversions, weighing long-term-care insurance against self-insuring, and judging whether a $1.6 million portfolio can support a modest withdrawal despite a pricey advisor.Finally, they untangle the five-year rule when Roth 401(k) money moves to a Roth IRA—and confirm that Tom, not Don, is the resident grump.00:39 Financial Physics rule five: prepare for the worst04:35 Leverage, crashes, and the lost decade06:27 Risk near and in retirement12:23 IRMAA brackets and Roth conversions16:46 Long-term-care insurance or self-insure?22:30 Retirement withdrawals and advisor fees24:34 Roth 401(k) rollovers and the five-year clockQuestions? Comments? Click!

Welcome to the land podcast, a platform for people looking to educate themselves in the world of land ownership, land investing, staying up to date with current land trends in the Midwest, and hearing from industry experts and professionals. On today's episode, we are back in the studio with Mike Cantrall. We discuss: Why two years of house-loan rejections came down to being newly self-employed and a DTI formula. How Mike found a lender who looks at the whole financial picture instead of a W-2. The Roth IRA withdrawal that covered his down payment when income alone wouldn't get him approved. Going self-employed with no college degree, no plan, and two deer dropped off at a friend's shop. Why the pressure of working for yourself is what finally forced him to figure out land ownership. How he got pre-approved first, and had a landowner call him about 40 acres the very next day. Buying, improving, and selling his first farm inside four months — and why he skipped the 1031. Why he walked away from a 500-acre lease that cost about what a farm payment does. What a permanent CREP easement restricts, plus the DNR visit that comes with owning one. Why two used car payments a month is roughly the cost of a small farm. And so much more! Chapters: 00:00 Intro 01:00 Starting a Taxidermy Business 04:19 Financing Land While Self-Employed 10:46 Mindset for Land Ownership 13:56 First Farm Purchase Strategy 17:40 Leasing Versus Owning Land 22:25 Rapid Farm Transactions 30:31 1031 Exchange Lessons 34:43 Reflections and Lessons Learned 41:26 Future Plans and CREP 50:37 The Home Building Challenge 53:05 Final Advice and Outro Thanks again for all of the support from our partners—none of this would've been possible without them! Buck Land Funding: https://www.firstbankers.com/bucklandfunding Hawke Optics | Use Code WHTL for 15% off: https://bit.ly/hawkeoptics_ OnX: https://bit.ly/onX_Hunt Painted Arrow: bit.ly/PaintedArrow Latitude Outdoors: https://www.latitudeoutdoors.com/ Whitetail Master Academy https://www.whitetailmasteracademy.com Use code 'HOFER' to save 10% off at www.theprairiefarm.com Massive potential tax savings: ASMLABS.Net

There is no perfect portfolio. A Bogleheads study looking back over 20 years found no diversified portfolio beat a similarly risky one by more than 1–2% per year — and that edge usually gets eaten up by advisory fees, behavioral errors, and poor tax management anyway. Stop optimizing. Spencer Reese walks through 10 reasonable asset allocations for military service members, from the simplest set-and-forget option to the one he uses himself. The goal isn't the best portfolio — it's a low-cost, automated, diversified, and simple (LADS) portfolio you can hold through good times and bad, applied consistently across your TSP, Roth IRA, and taxable brokerage account. The 10 portfolios: Lifecycle (L) fund — under 10 basis points, rebalanced automatically 100% global market cap weighted stocks — VT, or 48% C / 12% S / 40% I The Warren Buffett 90/10 — S&P 500 plus short-term government bonds Pure S&P 500 — 100% C fund, and what you give up The Simple Path to Wealth — JL Collins' total US stock market approach The 50/50 two-fund portfolio The Bogleheads three-fund portfolio The classic 60/40 — and how it maps to the 4% rule Rick Ferri's Core Four — three-fund plus a REIT Spencer's personal allocation — 60% US / 30% international / 10% bonds Also covered: Why your asset allocation applies across every account, not fund by fund Fads worth avoiding: small cap value tilts, crypto, long-term bonds Why REITs belong in a Roth IRA, not a taxable account How Spencer shifted from 100% stocks to adding bonds after reaching financial independence Rebalancing: every two or three years is plenty "The enemy of a good plan is the dream of a perfect plan" — Clausewitz Got value out of this episode? Send it to someone in your unit and leave us a five-star review on Spotify or Apple. It's the best way to help other service members find the show.

Life insurance is about far more than a death benefit. In this exclusive interview, Caleb Guilliams sits down with industry legend Van Mueller to explain how cash value life insurance can be used throughout your lifetime to create liquidity, protect your wealth, supplement retirement, reduce financial risk, and leave a lasting legacy. He also gives his agent playbook on how to actually show people the value of life insurance.Watch the Interview on Youtube for Visuals - https://youtu.be/fwUbh2BiWBsWant to See If Whole Life Insurance Can Improve Your Financial Plan? Schedule Your Clarity Call Here: https://bttr.ly/bw-yt-aa-clarityWant Us To Review Your Permanent Life Insurance Policy? Click Here: https://bttr.ly/yt-policy-reviewWant Free Whole Life Insurance Resources & Education? Go Here: https://bttr.ly/yt-bw-vaultLearn More About BetterWealth: https://betterwealth.comChapters:0:00 - Introduction5:17 - Early Career Challenges9:05 - Turning Point and Career Shift14:50 - AI and Human Relationships16:00 - Learning Life Insurance Sales20:45 - The Power of Practice24:35 - Getting More Appointments27:56 - Prospecting Strategy32:56 - Living Benefits of Life Insurance37:26 - Streamlined Sales Presentations38:31 - Avoiding Fact-Finding Friction40:33 - Casual Networking Techniques43:58 - Value of Cash Value Insurance48:43 - Questions for Younger Clients51:30 - The Importance of Asking Opinions53:13 - Financial Professional vs. Advisor56:05 - Handling Market Volatility59:19 - Opportunity vs. Pain Points1:00:48 - Designing Retirement Strategies1:02:46 - The Concept of Trust1:04:40 - Explaining Interest Rate Strategies1:10:33 - Practicing Like a Pro1:14:00 - Efficiency in Financial Planning1:16:05 - Belief in Life Insurance1:19:04 - Roth IRA and Tax Strategy1:22:24 - Managing Economic Uncertainty1:23:40 - Addressing Competitors and Critics1:27:27 - The Cost of Self-Insuring1:28:48 - Career Lessons and PhilosophyDISCLAIMER: https://bttr.ly/aapolicy*This video is for entertainment purposes only and is not financial or legal advice.Financial Advice Disclaimer: All content on this channel is for education, discussion, and illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as professional financial advice or recommendation. Should you need such advice, consult a licensed financial or tax advisor. No guarantee is given regarding the accuracy of the information on this channel. Neither host nor guests can be held responsible for any direct or incidental loss incurred by applying any of the information offered.

BIP 110 has divided the Bitcoin community more than anything I've covered in years, and a lot of the argument has played out as people shouting past each other online. Matt Kratter of Bitcoin University, one of the proposal's most vocal supporters, joins me to break down Bitcoin's civil war. Matt makes his case, I push back where I have questions, and we talk about why this debate has gotten as heated as it has.  In this episode: What BIP 110 would actually do, and why supporters say it would stop spam on the Bitcoin network What a chain split would look like, and Matt's honest answer on whether he expects one The arguments against BIP 110, including whether the data simply moves elsewhere Why the debate turned so personal, and what Matt says to people it's driven away ---- Order Natalie's new book "Bitcoin is For Everyone," a simple introduction to Bitcoin and what's broken in our current financial system: https://amzn.to/3WzFzfU  ---- This episode is brought to you by our title sponsor, Ledn. Ledn has operated through multiple market cycles without a loss of client assets, and publishes Proof of Reserves so you can verify what they hold. Ledn is the home of Bitcoin-backed loans for serious holders. Rates scale with loan size — the larger the loan, the lower the rate — and with their custodied loan product, your Bitcoin is held in custody and not lent out. Get 0.25% off your first loan at ledn.io/natalie. Terms apply — see the site for details: https://www.Ledn.io/natalie ---- Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ: BTDR) powers AI and Bitcoin mining infrastructure with 3 GW of secured global energy — and owns the entire stack, from equipment manufacturing to data centers to proprietary orchestration software. Learn more at https://www.bitdeer.com. ---- Abundant Mines is a fully-managed Bitcoin mining in the U.S. You own the miners. You keep 100% of the Bitcoin. Voted #1 mining company by peers. Get 1 month of free hosting: AbundantMines.com/Natalie ---- Natalie's Bitcoin Product Partners: Speed is my go-to Bitcoin Lightning wallet! Send, receive, or swap stablecoins and digital gold into Bitcoin in one app. Run a business? Speed powers Bitcoin payments for Steak 'n Shake, and it can do the same for you. Download at https://speed.app/natalie  and use code COINSTORIES10 for 5,000 free sats after your first transaction. Download Bitkey Today and use my promo code STORIES to get 10% off the new Bitkey. This episode has been sponsored by Bitkey: https://bitkey.world/STORIES Master Bitcoin self-custody and gain peace of mind with 1-on-1 training: https://www.thebitcoinway.com/natalie?utm_source=partner-natalie&utm_medium=podcast With BitcoinIRA, you can invest in bitcoin 24/7 inside a tax-advantaged IRA. Choose a Traditional IRA to defer taxes, or a Roth IRA for tax-free withdrawals later. Take control of your future with BitcoinIRA: https://www.bitcoinira.com/natalie  Natalie's Upcoming Events: The best time to plan for Bitcoin 2027 is right now. Early bird tickets are live — grab the lowest pricing available and use code HODL for 10% off: https://tickets.b.tc/event/bitcoin-2027?promoCodeTask=apply&promoCodeInput=HODL  Extra Services to Consider:   One of the best decisions I made for both my heath and my bank account was joining CrowdHealth years ago. I never spend more than $200 on health coverage through my CrowdHealth plan and all my health events have been crowd-funded. Get started with a discounted plan at my link: www.joincrowdhealth.com/natalie  ---- This podcast is for educational purposes and should not be construed as official investment advice. Ads in this episode are baked-in and may reference promotions or offers that are no longer available at the time of listening.