Money Talk For ER Docs™

EP's are used to making reactive decisions. It's the nature of the job. The preparation, or proactiveness, comes in the form of education, supplies, machines, and a setting designed to make those spontaneous cases that come through the ER as prepared for as possible. It's tough to imagine a world without that preparation. Now imagine financial planning, where many EP's have little to no background...

Asset allocation and risk tolerance go together like two peas in a pod. But what's the best way to determine that stock-bond mix? Questionnaires and surveys are the industry norm, but do they truly reflect the risks ER Docs need to take to achieve their goals? On today's episode, we define risk, dive into what mix is appropriate for most ER Docs, and distinguish the difference between risk toleran...

We've talked about the power of diversification in the stock and bond markets, but what about expanding beyond? At first glance it makes sense:  you're adding even more diversification to your portfolio thereby spreading your eggs over additional baskets. But before you seek alternatives, like crypto, business ventures, real estate, art, and commodities, there are three qualifiers you need to eval...

It's that time again! Taxes. Benjamin Franklin was right over 200 years ago when he said, "Nothing is certain except death and taxes." But just because that's the case, doesn't mean filing has to be a pain. In this episode, we go over the important deadlines you need to know, discuss a few little-known tips, and review the most common questions we get every tax season.

A topic that is often overlooked until we bring it up with a client is when to get life insurance. It's a bit of a conundrum on the surface: When you're young and healthy, the risk of dying seems lower or you may not even have someone dependent on your income yet. But when you get older, your risk goes up, and so does the premium you'll be paying for a policy. In this episode, we'll discuss when t...

Last year felt like a blur for many. Before we were able to even process 2020, we were nearing the end of 2021. It was a year of uncertainty, anticipation, and hopes for a return to normalcy—and one that showed yet again the importance of trusting markets and remaining flexible. In this episode, we'll do a dive into the top economic and investment themes of 2021 and analyze what we can learn from...

The Omicron Variant has contributed to ER volumes being at all-time highs across the US. It wasn't too long ago, volumes were low. In either case, such volatility has left financial consequences – both positive and negative. In this episode, we explain this K-shaped divergence, both in the economy and internally within emergency medicine, and discuss why maintaining a financial plan in times of va...

A New Year means a clean slate. With that typically comes resolutions: exercise more, eat healthier, quit smoking… and dare we say prioritize your finances! But unlike other resolutions that may only last a month or two, there is a way to stay true to prioritizing your finances. And when done correctly, studies show it supports an overall happier existence. So in this episode, we'll discuss how to...

To this day, Emergency Medicine is one of the newest major specialties we have. As a result, we see rapid change happening, especially relative to other specialties. What were things like in the early stages of EM? In this episode, we'll take a dive into that history. From wages to hours, to responsibilities and flexibility – we'll try to answer the question: Were the good old days really better?

There's a fine line in the tax code that oftentimes requires some finessing. Some ER Docs aren't taking any deductions, some taking a few obvious ones, and others are taking everything and the kitchen sink. Rarely do we find EP's hitting that sweet spot on their own. In today's holiday-themed episode, we will introduce to you a mythical figure that can help you find that sweet spot. We'll also get...

Have you considered working for the VA? There are a lot of things to consider when it comes to answering that. Compensation, retirement (TSP and FERS), planned years of service, workload, career trajectory, and so on. So in this episode, we'll break each of those down, and hopefully, give you a better understanding if a short stint or a long career could be right for you.

You have spent 6-8 years becoming an ER Doc. You've taken on significant debt. You've sacrificed your social life. Your time. Sleep. All of this magnifies the emotions involved in dealing with money. And somewhere along the way, another party may have entered the picture: a significant other. They, too, have their own complex relationship with money. For that reason, many believe mixing love and m...

With the New Year quickly approaching, we tend to find ourselves a different type of busy with family obligations, gift shopping, and possible travel plans. Despite this, certain financial tasks need to be completed before the clock strikes midnight to not only save you headache come April of next year (AKA: tax-time), but to potentially save you tons of money as well. So let this episode serve as...

Do you know your DTI? That's your debt-to-income ratio. It's a common metric asked about when qualifying for a loan. We've been extrapolating data across hundreds of ER Docs over the years and want to spend this episode sharing our findings on this particular ratio. Where do you fall among your peers? And, how does your score correlate with other financial metrics? The results will likely surprise...

Getting a new car is exciting. At the same time, it can be pretty stressful, especially if your current car is on the fritz. Unless you're opting for self-transportation (walking or biking) or third-party transportation (rideshare, train, or bus), you have two main options in front of you: buying or leasing. But that decision can be a tricky one to navigate. In this episode, we go over the pros an...

If you were one of the many listeners who tuned in to a Top 3 most listened to episode of ours titled "Get Ready: Biden's Tax Proposal Is Out!", then you probably left off thinking your tax situation for 2022 would be changing. And that change would result in more taxes being paid than before. Well, the final updates to that proposal have been released. Spoiler: it isn't looking as bad as it may h...

How are you invested? It's a tough question that we find most ER Docs don't have a concise answer for. It makes sense: medical school and residency did not prepare ER Docs to be investment-savvy. And that's not necessarily a bad thing… as long as you know where to turn to receive good advice. Meaning, advice founded in academics. That's why, in this episode, we are giving an Investing 101 crash co...

Have you experienced lifestyle creep? It's almost impossible to answer "no" to that. When your income goes up, it's natural to spend more on goods or services. After all, that's the #1 incentive to work in the first place, for most – to be able to spend those earnings on things that provide enjoyment. But ER Docs are susceptible to a more extreme version of lifestyle creep than most other working...

In this special edition of the Money Talk for ER Docs™ podcast, we recap our 5 most listened to episodes over our first year of podcasting. We thought this would be a cool way to highlight what areas of personal finance ER Docs collectively are most interested in. Do you share the same pain points or interests as your peers? Enjoy and thank you for tuning in!

As you may or may not be aware, there is a $10,000 cap on certain deductions on your tax return. This really impacts those living in states with income tax as well as homeowners. But more and more states are releasing legislation that provides a workaround for this cap. The issue, at least for 2021, is action needs to be taken before year-end to make this happen. But the reward is potentially a tr...

ER Docs tend to think of their hourly rate in a very matter-of-fact way. Oh, it says "$225/hr in my contract," for instance. But this is a very literal sense of "hourly rate" and actually doesn't account for important variables, both financial and non. So in this episode, we highlight all the additional factors that we think go into determining a true hourly rate for ER Docs and why it's important...

You aren't going to want to miss this! Changes are afoot when it comes to our tax code. And very few of the major taxing areas go untouched by Biden's proposal. We're talking tax brackets, capital gains, the S Corp vs C Corp decision, and even the beloved backdoor Roth conversion. Ironically, ER Docs are right on the fence of these modifications being beneficial… or detrimental. So in this episode...

In preparing taxes for our clients, we find 9 out of 10 ER Docs donate, in some form, to charity. And statistics support that claim. But the traditional way of writing a check to a charity or two you believe in likely isn't the best way to give. More creative ways exist – ones that not only can benefit you better tax-wise, but that can result in the charity receiving more money than they would hav...

How do you actually retire? It's an odd question because it can be taken in many different directions. But it's a question we get a lot… and the overall desired response ER Doc clients and prospects are looking for is how to manage the logistics of retiring – meaning: Where do I get my money from to afford my expenses? How does it actually end up in my checking account? How often will it be pulled...

Most ER Docs don't realize how unique their income situation is. From our perspective, as advisors, it's quite special, and affords immense opportunity when planned for correctly. You would think with high income affords more flexibility. But high income for ER Docs, when combined with variability in that income, creates a unique catch-22: where mistakes are even more magnified while psychological...