How to Money – Episode #1096

“Ask HTM – Money Gears Mixup, Stewarding an Inheritance, & Turning to Gold!”

Hosts: Joel and Matt – iHeartPodcasts
Date: February 2, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Joel and Matt tackle a fresh batch of listener questions ranging from the right order of personal finance money moves (“money gears”), prudent handling of an inheritance, the real value (or risk) of turning savings into gold amid global headlines, and choosing between Roth and traditional 403(b) retirement accounts. Throughout, the hosts keep the advice accessible and practical with their hallmark humor and relatability, focusing on actionable guidance for everyday listeners.

1. Listener Mailbag: Questioning the Money Gears (Start at 08:29)

Main Theme:

Jonathan from Lincoln, NE questions the recommended order of operations in the hosts’ “money gears”—specifically, why they advise contributing to a 401(k) employer match before aggressively paying off high-interest debt.

Key Discussion Points:

• Employer match first, then credit card payoff:

  • “It’s our belief that if you are offered a match from your employer, funding your 401(k)—and up to the match, but not beyond that—takes precedence over paying down your credit cards.” – Matt (09:29)
  • “A 50% to 100% return, that’s typically what a match is, which is better than a 20% return which you’re getting on credit cards.” – Joel (10:50)

• Why not just attack the high-interest debt?

  • Employer match offers instant, significant returns—better than even the highest credit card rates.
  • True, carrying credit card debt is undesirable, but skipping the employer match leaves “free money” on the table that can’t be recaptured later.

• Nuances and Emotional Considerations:

  • “Personal finance is emotional, and there are not... purely rational decisions. If it was just all about the numbers, you wouldn’t have gotten into credit card debt in the first place.” – Matt (15:20)
  • For those under extreme debt stress, paying off cards first might make sense for peace of mind—as long as you do so with eyes wide open and you realize the match opportunity is gone once you pass the calendar year.

• Exceptions: Vesting periods

  • If a 401(k) match won’t be vested before leaving a job, skip the match and pay debt instead.

Notable Quotes:

• “The ultimate goal is to stop the biggest personal finance leaks that happen in your life.” – Joel (17:17)
• “Once you get past that match, essentially what you’re banking on only at that point are the returns that you’re expecting to see in the market... That’s when you want to focus on knocking out that credit card debt.” – Matt (12:31, 13:03)

2. Stewarding an Inheritance: Practical Steps for Artists (Start at 22:01)

Main Theme:

Jay, an actor and return caller, asks how to best manage his inheritance – now down to $30,000 from $60,000 – and whether he should keep using a brick-and-mortar bank or move his funds to CIT Bank.

Key Discussion Points:

• Ditch brick-and-mortar banks for online banks:

  • “The most important piece of advice I think we can offer is... take all your money out of Bank of America and put it into CIT.” – Joel (27:22)
  • “They [online banks] are fantastic. The online banks with essentially no fees, they are the best place to put your savings.” – Matt (24:59)

• Danger of Draining an Inheritance Slowly:

  • The hosts caution against “the leaky faucet” approach—slowly withdrawing from inherited money to cover monthly shortfalls and eventually seeing it disappear.
  • Referenced Justin from Price of Avocado Toast (Ep. 1040) as a cautionary tale of inheritance misspent.

• Building Sustainable Habits:

  • “What we didn’t really address [last time] were the boring, unsexy habits and the discipline that allow you to be able to achieve those goals... Essentially what we’re talking about here is putting together a plan, what it is that you should be doing with your money.” – Matt (32:01)
  • Emphasis on tracking spending, creating a budget, and avoiding gratification leaks.

• Income Diversification and Reality of Artistic Careers:

  • “A very small percentage of people who work in the industry are making tons of money. Most... live kind of a ‘give me my daily bread’ sort of existence, hoping for the next gig.” – Joel (26:01)

Actionable Advice:

• Move funds out of fee-heavy institutions and into high-yield/no-fee online savings.
• Set a firm budget, use tools like Monarch or YNAB if necessary, especially crucial for those with variable incomes.
• Prioritize sustainable, regular investing over one-time “big win” actions like dumping all funds into an IRA once.

3. Should You Choose Roth or Traditional 403(b)? (Start at 35:24)

Main Theme:

Nina from South Carolina asks about the new Roth after-tax 403(b) option at her nonprofit job—should she use it in addition to her current pre-tax 403(b) contributions?

Key Discussion Points:

• Who should choose Roth?

  • “If you find yourself in that 12% tax bracket, I think it’s just a no-brainer to choose the Roth 403(b) option over the traditional.” – Matt (38:13)
  • Nonprofit workers often benefit from Roth accounts due to typically lower salaries.

• Tax diversification:

  • Splitting between traditional and Roth can help optimize taxes now and in retirement.
  • “Marginal tax rate targeting” is an advanced optimization strategy to maximize tax bracket efficiency (41:09).

• Roth IRA Pros:

  • If she’s not already funding a Roth IRA, “I would be looking to prioritize that, like maybe keeping the traditional 403B but then prioritizing the Roth IRA ... you are going to have more options, more flexibility available to you.” – Matt (42:04)

• Cost Differences:

  • Be mindful of expense ratios and fund options—some workplace plans are costlier than Roth IRAs held directly with a brokerage.

4. Is Now the Time to Buy Gold? (Start at 46:32)

Main Theme:

A listener from the Facebook group asks if they should pull all their savings and buy gold in light of “all the news about Greenland” and global uncertainty, noting gold’s all-time highs.

Key Discussion Points:

• Don’t react to headlines:

  • “Don’t let the headlines drive your investing. Which is something we have said for many, many years on the show.” – Joel (48:01)
  • Past geopolitical scares, like Y2K, serve as a reminder to resist knee-jerk investment changes.

• Gold is not a replacement for cash savings:

  • Gold is illiquid and not appropriate for emergency funds.
  • If one wants some gold, keep it to a small percentage (≤5%) of portfolio via a low-cost ETF, not via bars or coins.

• US/global events are rarely good reasons for radical moves:

  • “There would need to be changes that take place over the course of years... for me to change the way that I'm investing, which is currently 100% in US equities.” – Matt (50:33)
  • The spectacle of political posturing (“Trump taco moments”) rarely translates to meaningful, long-term shifts in investment strategy.

Notable Moment:

• Brian’s Facebook comment: “I would do what your parents did during Y2K. Nothing.” (48:02)
• Greg’s advice: “Turn off the news.”

5. Quick Hit: How to Get Your Free Credit Report (Start at 54:33)

Main Theme:

Bill asks about legally obtaining a free credit report.

Key Discussion Points:

• Federal Right:
  • Consumers are entitled to one free report per year from each credit bureau; since COVID, you can actually get weekly reports.
• The only official site:
  • “The federally mandated place to turn for your free credit report is annualcreditreport.com.” – Matt (54:56)
  • Ignore attempts by bureaus to steer you to their for-profit services.
• No need to get reports more than 1–2 times per year unless you’re correcting errors.

Notable Quote:

• “[The annual credit report website] looks like it’s from MS-DOS 1992... but it’s the legit place.” – Joel (55:12)

6. Beer Break: Incendiary Brewing – Coconut Maple Macaroon Wee Heavy (57:38)

Comments:

• Sweet, coconut/maple-forward, big “January/February” beer, best for sharing; reminiscent of a Girl Scout cookie.
• “Pour some waffles, baby.” – Joel (58:18)
• “Any more than [8oz], I don’t think I would’ve been able to finish.” – Matt (58:50)

Important Timestamps & Segments

• [08:29] – Jonathan asks about money gears mixup.
• [22:01] – Jay the actor returns for inheritance handling advice.
• [35:24] – Nina seeks guidance on Roth vs. traditional 403(b).
• [46:32] – Facebook question: Should I buy gold?
• [54:33] – Bill: How to get a free credit report.
• [57:38] – Beer review and listener fun wrap-up.

Memorable Quotes

• “Personal finance is emotional, and there are not... purely rational decisions. If it was just all about the numbers, you wouldn’t have gotten into credit card debt in the first place.” – Matt (15:20)
• “The ultimate goal is to stop the biggest personal finance leaks that happen in your life.” – Joel (17:17)
• “Don’t let the headlines drive your investing.” – Joel (48:01)
• “The bare minimum thing, I think Jay, would be to take all of your money out of Bank of America and to put it into CIT.” – Joel (27:22)

Tone & Takeaways

Joel and Matt keep their trademark balance between actionable financial advice and empathetic, human understanding. The episode repeats an essential mantra: Focus on sustainable habits, ignore the panic-inducing headlines, optimize for long-term gains—and don’t overthink sweet, barrel-aged beers!

For more info and resources: Visit howtomoney.com and check the episode’s show notes for links (including the official free credit report site: annualcreditreport.com).