While college savings accounts like 529s provide some nice tax benefits, there are strings attached (including the dreaded 10% penalty for non-education related withdrawals).  In this episode of Grow Money Business we dive into how much parents should really be saving for their kids’ college education amid a changing landscape for education and student loans.  We also cover an interesting month in the markets and an article reviewing recent performance of single stock ETFs.

We’ve seen a massive amount of change in the federal government in the last month since Trump was inaugurated for his second term.  The threat of tariffs and inflation, DOGE’s dismantling of legacy government programs, and discussion of annexing Canada and Greenland has many people concerned.  This episode we cover the gamut from a financial perspective, including how investors should interpret what’s happening in Washington, whether we should be concerned about inflation in the near term, and how the markets have responded so far.

It’s been an interesting few weeks in the markets since President Trump’s inauguration. A Chinese company produced an AI chatbot that performs as well as U.S. competitors at a fraction of the cost. Nvidia’s stock lost 17% the following day after the company published its work, confirming the threat to Nvidia’s business model. We cover an article highlighting what this all means, review the outperformance of non-U.S. equities, and answer a listener question about whether they can retire early without having to touch their Roth accounts in this episode of Grow Money Business.

Should you be concerned that the market’s just made several all-time highs? This question comes up in various forms any time stock markets set new records. As tempting as it is to assume that what goes up must come down, the market doesn’t think that way. We cover this concept in detail in today’s episode, along with Vanguard’s recent 2025 market forecast and an update on how markets have done since the election.

A lot has happened in the markets over the last few weeks. In this episode we cover what’s new in the stock, bond, and crypto markets since the election, and to should expect from the Trump administration with regard to economic and tax policy.

This week on the show we field a listener question about whether their concern about government spending should be reflected in their investment portfolio. We also review an article about market efficiency / inefficiency, and provide an update on mortgage and long term bond rates.

Most Americans have at least some of their retirement savings sitting in workplace retirement plans like 401ks, 403bs, SEP-IRAs and the like. And when you leave a job, due to a retirement transition or not, many people wonder what they should do with the savings they’ve accumulated in the plans.

We’ve noticed that the more people tend to have in their retirement plans, the more reluctant they are to take action out of fear of making a mistake. In this episode of the podcast we’ll answer several questions about 401k rollovers:

· Should I keep my savings in the 401k or roll the funds into an IRA?

· Can I roll my 401k directly into a Roth IRA?

· My savings is in the Federal TSP. I’ve heard the plan is really good. Should I roll the funds into an IRA when I retire or stick with the TSP?

We’ll also review the logistics of 401k rollovers and how you can avoid major mistakes.

Downsizing from your large, long-held family home is a popular concept for retirees, but may not always be the best choice.  Even though smaller homes are less costly & easier to maintain, giving up your family's major meeting venue may not be the best choice.  This week we respond to a listener question on whether downsizing might be right for them, and cover Nvidia's recent earnings call and an article about the prevalence of gift card scams.

There are a ton of different ways to give to charity, but not all of them will help you on your taxes.  This week we cover a listener question about tax efficient charitable giving, and when it will or will not help you.  We also cover the recent interest reduction announcement and an article on the new etiquette of negotiating real estate commissions. 

Many retirees are concerned about the state of Social Security, and some of them even expect the program to crumble in the next few years. Does that mean you should get your money out now before it does? This week we respond to a listener question about by explaining what’s going on with Social Security, how long it’ll be before the Social Security trust runs out of money, and what will happen when it does. We also cover an article from Consumer Affairs about why car insurance premiums are rising so much, and review a very strong rebound in the markets.