Common Curiosities: Retirement

In this episode, Michael, CFP®, EA tackles Q&A questions ranging from the new inherited IRA rules, why a reverse mortgage may not make sense right, key Roth IRA and 401(k) contribution rules, and juggling student loans, saving for a home, and building an emergency fund. Topics: 💭 How inherited IRA rules changed and what the 10 year rule really means 💭 Why tax bracket management matters when...

We hear it all the time. Roth this and Roth that. "Convert now before it’s too late" and many more. We think Roth conversions can be powerful in the right situations. But what most people don't talk about is that sometimes they may actually do more harm than good to your lifetime tax bill. In this episode of Common Curiosities Retirement, Michael CFP®, EA discusses the conversation a...

Should you take your Social Security at 62 or wait? Some say it's a "no brainer", but is there really a “no brainer” age to take your Social Security? There's many moving parts to consider. Your choice should impact your retirement income, taxes you'll pay, investment strategy, health costs, inheritance, and many more. Michael walks through this common retirement question. Mi...

In this episode Michael, CFP®, EA tackles three big listener questions. 1. How should we save for kids beyond a bank account, 2. Whether a 26‑year‑old really needs life insurance, and 3. How much life insurance should a family actually carry? Topic overviews: 💭 Investing money for kids 💭 Why a brokerage/Non-Retirement account could be a useful family planning vehicle 💭 Tax ideas that are availa...

We cover some big financial topics people often ask about in this episode. 1.) What families should know to get money from the government for their kids. 2.) How could certain strategies make your HSA work harder for you? 3.) Whether an influencer's retirement investment plan makes sense to professional and how it might actually hold up in the real world! Topics include: 💭 Why Michael tries to pu...

In this episode, Michael Custer, CFP®, EA, unpacks annuities in plain English, no sales pitch attached. While he admits they’re not his favorite financial tool, he takes a candid look at what annuities are and how they work. You have probably seen commercials, gotten dinner invites, or maybe even own one yourself. Annuities spark a lot of curiosity, and today we dig into what they really are, when...

The IRS rolled out new 2026 retirement contribution limits and, yes, more new rules! Who's excited?! Not a huge shocker, but we think some are good! They made some things more complicated though. From new income limits, new catch ups, a super catch up window that only exists from ages 60 to 63, and the mandatory Roth catch up for higher earners, it feels like the IRS is writing plot twists just to...

If you have ever seen those ads saying things like “be your own bank” or “the rich use this secret strategy,” today’s conversation might spark some curiosity. We talk through the Kyle Busch lawsuit and why this famous NASCAR driver is saying he was promised one thing with an index universal life policy (IUL) and now he's claiming he lost millions of dollars and wants to warn others. In recent...

If you've ever wondered "why do interest rates move and how does it impact me?” this episode is for you. We gave Michael CFP®, EA a challenge: can he explain how and why interest rates change? This impacts everyday lives so we're interested to know. How come so quickly a mortgage rate goes up? Could it come back down? We asked Michael to explain it so that a 10‑year‑old might get it!...

We’re addressing one of the most frequent mistakes we see among high‑income earners and a lesser‑known Roth IRA and Trad. IRA rule that even seasoned advisors are overlooking! The different income limits that can quietly trigger a 6% penalty every year if left uncorrected, catching families off guard far too often. Topics Covered 💭 💭 The Roth IRA income limits that trips people up 💭 What “phasi...

In this episode we kept the November sports theme alive. Lions jerseys and volleyball sweatshirts. A little friendly banter about who is a true Lions fan and who joined the party once the wins showed up. But once the sports talk wrapped up we shifted into a topic that comes up constantly for parents and soon to be parents. The 529 account! 529's have more flexibility than most people realize and t...

Coffee in hand and the dogs supervising. Jacqueline wants Michael to take a slow walk through the wild vocabulary of finance words that people will throw around like everybody was born knowing what they mean. We start right at the beginning. Stocks. Bonds. Why they are not the same thing. Why one makes you an owner and the other makes you a loaner. Why bonds move with interest rates even though th...

In this questions from listeners episode we take on three big topics that come up often! Questions Michael, CFP®, EA & Jacqueline discuss: 💭 Could doctors write off scrubs, stethoscopes, and other medical essentials if they form an LLC? 💭 Can parents set up and fund Roth IRAs for their kids before the kids are official adults? 💭 They look at how taxes shift depending on whether a doctor is...

In this episode of Common Curiosities Retirement, we break down one of the most common debates we see on social media: What is the actual difference between the S&P 500 index and the Total Stock Market index? Influencers love shouting what one you should have, sho the past returns alone but what would a trained professional want to know about them? Michael a CFP®, EA and a professional investm...

If you have ever looked at your accounts and wondered, “Should I start pulling back the risk in my investments?” this episode is for you. Michael, CFP®, EA unpacks portfolio de-risking. We look at what happens when your time horizon shrinks, why the often forgot about sequence of returns risk can quickly wreck a person's plan, and how to think about shifting from growth mode to enjoy your savings...

In this episode, Michael and Jacqueline welcome a special guest: Michael’s grandpa Larry. Long before Dave Ramsey made his financial classes famous, Larry was already living it. He stretched a teacher’s salary to provide for his family, steering clear of debt like it had fangs, and had the foresight to invest early with a long‑term mindset. They discuss: 💭 Larry growing up in a low income family...

In this episode Michael CFP®, EA tackles one of the most emotional and confusing decisions in personal finance. Should you buy a home now with a higher interest rate or wait and hope for a lower rate later? Our listener is looking at a payment that could be 42% of their income today but if rates came down would be a smaller amount of their income. We talk through how to think about this without th...

Welcome back to Common Curiosities: Retirement where this time of year means two things in our house: Sports season is in full swing, and so are the financial questions popping up on social media. In this sporty moments episode, Jacqueline shows up repping LSU beach volleyball, Michael shows up repping his undefeated 8th-grade basketball squad, and together we break down a viral financial “hack” y...

Should you pay off your medical school loans ASAP or stretch them out? This is an especially important question for medical professionals, with many factors to consider! From different repayment options, to loan forgiveness programs, to tax implications. Not to mention the emotional satisfaction of making quicker progress on your debt. Which plan is right for you? Jacqueline, is currently in medic...

Ever feel like there are way too many retirement account names to keep straight? It’s almost like alphabet soup for your retirement planning. In this episode of Common Curiosities: Retirement, Michael, CFP® and EA is joined by his wife, who asks the questions many people may secretly have. Like what to do with extra money now, what about extra money I don't need now, how do these different account...

Ever wonder why your tax refund may change so much from year to year or why making a little more money doesn’t always feel like it pays that much extra? In this episode of Common Curiosities: Retirement, Michael CFP® and EA breaks down how our progressive tax system actually works, using everyday language (and a few buckets of water). We walk through side-by-side examples of a married couple earni...

If you’re a Michigan school teacher, you only get 75 days from your first pay period to choose your retirement plan and that one decision may shape your financial future for decades. In this episode, Michael CFP® and EA unpacks what those two options really mean. There's the Pension Plus 2 plan and the Defined Contribution plan. He discussed how they work differently when it comes to paychecks, ma...

In this episode, Michael is joined by his wife Jacqueline (who's wearing all his clothes, apparently) for a casual chat that starts with some of Jacqueline's questions she hears about money recently to get those questions answered. They cover: 💭 What an LLC actually does — and what it doesn’t do for taxes 💭 The difference between tax avoidance (smart) and tax evasion (illegal) 💭 What’s better:...

Gold has been shining bright lately (pun intended) and has hit all-time highs as 2025 is coming to a close. But what’s really behind the surge? In this episode of Common Curiosities: Retirement, we dig into some ideas of why reasons why gold’s up, and explore whether it still makes sense as part of a modern portfolio. Here’s what we unpack: 📝 Uncertainty and global tension — when people get nervo...

Markets are hitting record highs as we are ending 2025, but what’s really driving it? In this episode of Common Curiosities: Retirement, we take a curious look under the hood of today’s market momentum. We’ll unpack a few key forces fueling the climb including: 💭 Many strong corporate earnings that are beating expectations 💭 Interest rate cuts — after a few years of tightening interest rate incr...