Smart Money Questions

April: National Distracted Investor Awareness Month

They say these days that there’s a holiday of every day of the year. It’s kind of true. In fact, the month of April, for example, is home to Bowel Cancer Awareness Month, Fresh Florida Tomato Month, Fresh Celery Month, Multiple Birth Awareness Month and National Soft Pretzel Month (sorry hard pretzels, you guys have to wait until the overall National Pretzel Month in October). What does all this have to with finances? Well, April is also National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, which gave us the idea to discuss some of things that distract us financially. And since every single other thing in existence gets a holiday, we’ll make up our own to discuss on this week’s podcast. It’s National Distracted Investor Awareness Month. We’ll reveal the distractions that often peel our attention away from being good investors and savers and give you tips on how to stay on track.

Mailbag: Downsizing, Big vs. Small Companies, And Forced Budgeting

Great questions on the podcast this week from Mark, Lynne and Carrie. Mark has questions about how to properly finance the decision to downsize to a smaller house. Lynne is wondering about working with big financial companies vs. independent advisors. And Carrie says an advisor is forcing her and her husband to live on a budget. It's a requirement for them to work together. She wants to know if that's normal and if Matt has seen other examples like this where advisors place certain "rules" on the client/advisor relationship.

Mailbag: International Conflicts, College Loans, Lots of Little 401ks, And When To Finally Meet With An Advisor

We'll answer your questions this week in our mailbag edition of Smart Money Questions. Stella has a question about how international conflicts might impact the markets. Steve needs help figuring out how to pay for his son's college. Should he stop contributing to retirement for a few years to cover the tuition payments? Aaron has a bunch of smaller 401ks sitting around and wants to know what to do with them. And Lauren asks a great question about picking the right time to meet with an advisor. Do you wait until your 6 months away from retirement? Is 5 years away from retiring too soon to meet with an advisor? Matt will walk us through the answers to all those questions.

His And Hers Retirement Planning

If you’re married, then this will come as no surprise. It takes two to complete a successful retirement plan. On this podcast, we’ll look at how husbands and wives have different financial goals and how that creates conflict. We’ll, of course, also explore how to resolve that conflict to establish a solid financial plan.

Storytime: Collaborating With Other Pros

The quarterback on a football team is often considered to the most important person on the field. But they can’t always get the job done by themselves. Sometimes, they need to hand the ball off or throw it to a teammate to make progress down the field and ultimately score a touchdown. Your financial advisor should serve in a similar capacity. They’re the most important person in your overall planning situation, but they should also know when it’s the right time to bring in other professionals to help put together the best possible plan for you.

Mailbag: Home As A Retirement Plan And Spousal Dispute Questions

Let's answer your questions about being a good steward of an inheritance, using your home as a retirement plan and how to handle a spousal dispute when it comes to leaving money behind for the kids.

Chocolate, Thunderstorms, Mortgages, And Target Date Funds

We'll answer listener questions about paying off a mortgage in the next two years and whether retirement planning is as easy as investing in target date funds. Plus, we'll see what Matt learned at his recent chocolate-tasting event and Walter will tell us what financial lessons you can learn from his (former) fear of thunderstorms.

The Financial Lies We Tell Ourselves

You know it’s not a good thing to lie to yourself in any aspect of life. So, let’s “keep it real” and go over some of the common financial lies we tell ourselves and explore why it’s dangerous to approach retirement planning with these mindsets.

Carrie's Question: What's Going To Happen To Tax Rates?

Carrie in Florida asks, "What’s going to happen with tax rates in the future? I’ve always assumed they’ll be going up for the rest of my life, but now I’m thinking maybe they’ll go down given recent decisions at the White House. What do you think?" We'll attempt to answer her question and give you some other things to think about when it comes to tax planning and retirement.

Mailbag: How To Invest Through Retirement And How To Handle Lump Sums

Many of the smart money questions that we feature on the show are from our very own listeners. On this episode, Matt will answer some listener questions about longevity planning, handling lump sums, and more.