The Money Alchemist Podcast Podcast Por Ben Jones & Brent Gargano arte de portada

The Money Alchemist Podcast

The Money Alchemist Podcast

De: Ben Jones & Brent Gargano
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Join two dudes, Ben and Brent, to discuss current market events and savvy financial strategies to build wealth consistently over time.The Money Alchemist 2023 Economía Finanzas Personales
Episodios
  • The One Big Beautiful Bill Act: Tax Changes, Deficit Impact, and Your Financial Plan

    The One Big Beautiful Bill Act: Tax Changes, Deficit Impact, and Your Financial Plan
    Jul 19 2025
    Some beauty is skin deep. Reinforcing a modern political trend, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB) garnered only strict partisan support. Carrying the timbre of our nation’s President, its name either strikes a nerve with unbearable annoyance or tickles the funny bone. A dichotomy to define out times. One many have grown weary of. Now signed into law, few Americans are unaffected by its reach. Even fewer still understand the full scope of its consequences. The CBO estimates $2.4T – 3.3T will be added to the Federal deficit over the next decade while the White House claims a $1.4T deficit reduction over the same period with tariffs. The appropriate way to view such estimates is with extreme suspicion. Like the odds that an astronaut will land a hole-in-one from the wing of the International Space Station. The CBO thinks they can do it. The White House believes the earth and hole will be pulled into the gravity well of the ball. It’s all haruspication. No one accurately forecasted our national debt a decade ago, currently sitting at $37T and counting. Directionally, the CBO’s estimate is probably more correct given strong incentives for policy makers to deficit spend. But who cares about something as banal as the national debt, we want the beautiful eye candy. The OBBB does not disappoint in this aspect, delivering on promises of substantial tax relief for individual taxpayers. This comes as no surprise as it was a major cornerstone of the current administration’s campaign and the necessary showpiece for public support. Some of the major upgrades to the tax code include: Permanent extension of the lower Federal brackets passed as temporary relief for individual taxpayers in the TCJA (2017).Permanent doubling of the standard deduction with a doubling of the inflation adjustment for 2026.Permanent child tax credit of $2,200 per qualifying child (under 17), indexed for inflation.Permanent 20% deduction on Qualified Business Income (199A deduction).Permanently set the Federal estate tax exemption at $15M per individual with an inflation adjustment.Added the “Trump Account” for minors with a $5,000 annual contribution limit and one-time $1,000 Federal government contribution for babies born 2025 – 2028. Added an additional $6,000 per person deduction on top of the standard deduction for taxpayers 65 and older, subject to phase outs.Charitable contributions up to $2,000 (MFJ) can now be taken even if the standard deduction is elected.Temporary tax relief on income earned through tips and overtime from 2026 through 2028 (phased out at $150k Single / $300k MFJ)Temporarily lifted the state and local income tax (SALT) deduction limit to $40k for households with an AGI of $500k or less, reverting to $10k with 1% annual inflation adjustment in 2030. There are more obscure updates made to the tax code in the 800+ page bill signed into law, but we’ve covered the highlights. Much of it is still being digested by tax and legal firms and/or requires clarification from the IRS. While we love eye candy, the beautification process is both complex and painstaking. A principal that holds true in the application of this legislation. All the ‘beautiful’ parts of the law require effort and guess who gets to apply the makeup? You. True to form, policy makers have further complicated an already convoluted tax code. The real winners are financial planners and full-service CPA firms, although the net effect is lower taxation across the board for most taxpayers. So much for simplifying the tax code. To offset the projected cuts in tax revenue, lawmakers looked to niche tax increases and spending cuts, specifically in Medicaid. We need not cover one obvious source of additional tax revenue in 2025, tariffs, but other tax increases were included in the final Bill. For one, many university endowments will see their net investment income tax climb from 1.4% to as high as 8%. Still lower than personal tax rates but an increase, nonetheless. Second, AMT provisions were adjusted that will slightly increase the number of Americans subject to Alternative Minimum Tax. Chances are it will not affect you unless a significant portion of your compensation comes from ISOs. The ugly part of the legislation were the necessary cuts to welfare programs, Medicaid in particular. It’s important to not conflate Medicaid with Medicare. The two programs may share 6 out of 8 letters but are very different. There are no cuts to Medicare or Social Security as part of the OBBB, which are the programs many retirees depend on. The same is not true for Medicaid, which is the socially subsidized health insurance program for qualifying individuals living in the US. Qualification status varies by state given each manages their Medicaid programs separately using Federal funding. The OBBB establishes more strict qualification criteria than currently exist in most ...
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    1 h y 7 m
  • Are Financial Plans A Waste Of Time?

    Are Financial Plans A Waste Of Time?
    Jul 5 2025

    Planning isn’t predicting.

    Some things in life are more exciting than others. Most of us woke up on the 4th of July with a lighter step and enthusiastic anticipation for the day. Fireworks, need we say more? No one in their right mind sets a meeting with their financial planner to map out a savings strategy on such a day.

    Just because something isn’t intuitively engaging doesn’t make it a waste of time. Many things are like this: dental hygiene, exercise, study, failure, and constructive criticism to name a few. Financial planning falls in the unfortunate category of Important but boring.

    The necessity of financial planning is so distressing that there are over 300,000 financial advisors employed in the United States alone to advocate for it. Big money industry is a big money industry.

    If financial planning were a waste of time, there would be no market to outsource the process to a professional. Similarly, there’s no market for third-party food chewing services. Teeth come naturally while capital markets, central banking, and macroeconomics do not.

    Each of us is only given 24 hours in a day, 16 of which are waking and 12 are productive. Dedicate 8 of these 12 productive hours to work and this leaves about 4 hours per day to employ yourself as required.

    We don’t need to review the laundry list of life-chores, including laundry, to conclude that we Americans suffer from chronic time crunch. Financial planning just seems like one of those things that can wait, perhaps indefinitely.

    Some even go so far as to excuse it as a complete waste of time. It can be if a broken process is used. Mowing grass with an inoperable mower would certainly be a tragic waste of time.

    Because the effort of planning is no small time-investment, consuming valuable personal motivation stores, it’s important to adopt an effective process. Ben and Brent thought this would be a good topic to touch on.

    In news that may come as shocking to the listener: the Financial Planners do not think financial planning, done correctly, is a waste of time. The key is in process and execution, the focus of the episode’s discussion.

    ____________________________

    About your Hosts

    Ben Jones, CFP®

    Managing Director, National Wealth Management Group

    www.nwmgadvisors.com 

    Sign up for Ben’s newsletter at www.karastick.com 

    Follow him on X @thekaratstick

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-nwmg/

      __

    Brent Gargano, CFP®

    Founder & Advisor, Infinite Wealth Planning 

    www.infinitewealthplanning.com

    linkedin.com/in/brent-gargano-cfp®-2067b573

      ____________________________

    Editor:

    Trevor Gargano

    Email: Trevor@trevorgargano.com

    Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevor-gargano-72727b67/

    Website: TheDigitalQuarterback.com

    ____________________________

    Follow our socials to support the podcast; see extra clips and announcements!

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moneyalchemistpod/

    X: https://twitter.com/moneyalchpod

    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556458987483

      ____________________________

    Disclosure:

    Investment advice offered through National Wealth Management Group, LLC.

    All performance referenced is historical and is no guarantee of future results. All indices are unmanaged and may not be invested into directly.

    The information presented is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as a recommendation or specific advice.

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    1 h y 11 m
  • Fiduciary vs Finfluencer: When Consuming Financial Advice, Source Matters

    Fiduciary vs Finfluencer: When Consuming Financial Advice, Source Matters
    Jun 21 2025
    I will just say in general, I’ve said SO many times, 99% of you watching do not need a financial advisor. You need someone like me to teach you step by step how to invest for yourself”. So says Tori Dunlap, one of the many outspoken influencers brimming with financial opinions that cannot be contained. Like a bottle of Diet Coke shaken up by outside forces, the froth of conjecture can only go one way once an outlet is found. There is no dialogue, only a microphone and a sermon. A tough position from which to deliver advice on a uniquely complex topic like your finances. Money, as with health, is situation specific. There are fundamental truths for wealth building that are universally applicable for which nuance makes no difference. Axioms like ‘underspend your means’ and ‘invest with patience’ being two examples. For these axioms, the finfluencer impact on culture is quite valuable. Saving should be encouraged as should a low time-preference mindset. We need to be reminded from time to time to reinforce sound money behaviors that challenge our discipline. But make no mistake, the influencer’s advice may be worth less than you pay for it. It’s not as if these individuals are paragons of altruism responding to a higher calling. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have monetized channels. “You need someone like me…”, should be interpreted as “you need me”. I wonder why? With little to no access barriers, online financial advice has become the go-to source for many, especially our younger generations. Understandably so. Who wants to spend money on something that can be procured for free? Popular influencers demonstrate a degree of social proof as they flex their follower counts and video download statistics. Surely this translates to workable solutions for the masses! It works until the details you can’t decipher start to matter. And that’s if you’re lucky enough to follow a finfluencer that isn’t a complete charlatan. The risk of misadvice is higher online. There’s absolutely no consumer protections if you happen to follow advice disseminated by such channels as they generally fall under the Publisher Exclusion (Section 202(a)(11)(D) of the Investment Advisors Act of 1940). As proponents of financial wellness, Ben and Brent encourage the accumulation of knowledge to this end. They discuss the pros and cons of finfluencers, how what they do is different and how a good advisor can compliment your favorite influencer(s). The most important takeaway is to maintain an ability to think critically. Inspect any recommendation with too broad an application. Statements like “99% of you should …” are red flags. Having analyzed thousands upon thousands of individual scenarios, Ben and Brent can attest that no situation is alike. Your mom said you were special, and you are. Sources: On The Rise of Finfluencers https://www.aboutschwab.com/mss/story/the-rise-of-finfluencers https://www.wsj.com/personal-finance/stock-market-social-media-financial-influencers-c41c4456 Finfluencer Hot Takes https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=6IQsSuYagrI ____________________________ About your Hosts Ben Jones, CFP® Managing Director, National Wealth Management Group www.nwmgadvisors.com  Sign up for Ben’s newsletter at www.karastick.com  Follow him on X @thekaratstick https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-nwmg/   _____ Brent Gargano, CFP® Founder & Advisor, Infinite Wealth Planning  www.infinitewealthplanning.com linkedin.com/in/brent-gargano-cfp®-2067b573 ____________________________ Editor: Trevor Gargano Email: Trevor@trevorgargano.com Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevor-gargano-72727b67/ Website: TheDigitalQuarterback.com ____________________________ Follow our socials to support the podcast; see extra clips and announcements! Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moneyalchemistpod/ X: https://twitter.com/moneyalchpod Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556458987483 ____________________________     Disclosure: Investment advice offered through National Wealth Management Group, LLC. All performance referenced is historical and is no guarantee of future results. All indices are unmanaged and may not be invested into directly. The information presented is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as a recommendation or specific advice.
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    1 h y 1 m
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