Money Matters with Ken Moraif
Helping you make your money last as long as you do. Under the umbrella of Retirement Planners of America.
Episodes
258 episodes
How To Leave Money To A Disabled Child
If your child or loved one has special needs, how you leave them money matters. In this episode, Ken and Jeremy break down special needs trusts in plain English and why a direct inheritance can accidentally create problems with certain governme...
The Executor Vs The Trustee - What You Should Know
Most people think “inheritance” means money, property, or accounts. In this episode, Ken Moraif and Jeremy Thornton share why the most valuable legacy you can leave your children and grandchildren is something far more lasting: your values, you...
The Most Important Inheritance You Will Ever Leave
What’s the most important inheritance you can leave your kids and grandkids? Ken Moraif says it probably isn’t money, a house, or “stuff.” In this episode, Ken and Jeremy talk about the values, lessons, and life stories that actually shape futu...
Cutting Your Kids Out Of Your Will - How And Why To Do It Carefully
Can you leave a child out of your will, and if so, how do you do it without creating a family war later? In this segment, Ken and Jeremy break down the practical reality behind disinheriting a child, why communication matters, and what can trig...
Getting Ready To Retire Checklist
Getting ready for retirement is a lot easier when you use a checklist. In this episode, Ken Moraif walks through a practical retirement planning checklist that helps you organize the big decisions before you stop working, so the transition feel...
The Seven Mistakes IRA Owners Make
If you own an IRA, a few simple mistakes can quietly create bigger problems later, including unnecessary taxes, penalties, and outdated beneficiary choices. In this episode, Ken Moraif and Jeremy Thornton walk through seven common IRA mistakes ...
How To Take Distributions From Your IRA Without Paying The 10% Penalty
If you are considering retiring early or you need income before age 59½, the IRS 72(t) rule (also called SEPP, Substantially Equal Periodic Payments) may allow you to take distributions from a traditional IRA without the 10% early withdrawal pe...
Seven Deadly Sins Of Investing
Are you accidentally sabotaging your investments?In this episode, Ken Moraif breaks down the 7 Deadly Sins of Investing and explains how common behaviors like emotion, greed, impatience, disorganization, and fear can hurt your long term...
Estate Planning Tip: How to Leave Unequal Inheritances Without Family Wars
Can you leave more to one child than another without creating lifelong resentment? In this episode, Ken Moraif explains why heirs often interpret inheritance as “love units” and how unequal distributions can trigger family conflict, will contes...
Stop Guessing Your Risk: 4 Smart Ways to Protect Your Retirement Money
When you invest, you are in the risk game. The question is not whether you have risk, it is whether you are managing it on purpose.In this episode of the Retirement Planners of America Podcast, Ken Moraif breaks down four practical ways...
What's Up With Gold?
Gold is up big and the headlines are everywhere. Is gold an inflation hedge, a fear asset, or something else entirely? In this episode, Ken Moraif and Jordan Roach break down what is driving the move in gold, why central banks matter more than ...
Retiring Soon? COBRA, ACA Marketplaces & the Medicare Bridge Explained
Choosing health coverage in the years before Medicare can be confusing—and costly. Ken Moraif and licensed health-insurance pro Lynn Timm break down practical options: when COBRA makes sense, when an ACA (Affordable Care Act) Marketplace plan m...
Protect Your Medicare: How to Avoid Bad Switches, Spam Calls & Coverage Surprises
Medicare can be confusing when phone calls, mailers, and pop-up offers ramp up. In this episode, Ken Moraif and Medicare specialist Lynn Timm explain practical ways to protect yourself: how unsolicited plan “switch” calls happen, why beneficiar...
Gas Prices, Geopolitics & Markets: Venezuela/Iran Explained for Long-Term Investors
Geopolitics is back on the front page—Venezuela sanctions shifts, unrest in Iran, and fresh supply/demand puzzles for global oil. In this episode, Jordan, and Jeremy unpack what rising or falling crude could mean for U.S. gas prices, market lea...
The Minnesota Medicaid "Heist", What Happened?
Medicaid headlines can be confusing—and costly. In this episode, Ken talks with benefits expert Lynn Timm about how fraud can slip into large public programs and what states are doing to strengthen oversight. We also discuss practical steps fam...
Market Power, Monopoly Fears, and the Warner Bros. Battle
Is the streaming landscape on the verge of a mega-merger? In this episode, Ken Moraif (with Jeremy and Jordan) breaks down the Netflix/Warner Bros/Paramount bidding battle, why lawmakers are pushing antitrust scrutiny, and how consolidation cou...
The Risks of Buy and Hold
Buy-and-hold has a place—but retirement brings new risks like sequence-of-returns, required withdrawals, and tax considerations. In this conversation, Ken and the team break down how market downturns can affect lifetime income, why diversificat...
How Much Risk Should Retirees Take? The Smart Way to Decide
How much market risk do you actually need to reach your retirement goals? In this episode, Ken and Jeremy walk through the trade-off between return and volatility, how mix (e.g., 60/40 vs. 30/70) changes portfolio behavior, why diversification ...
Retirement Cash Flow Plan
Will your savings reliably support you through your retirement years?In this episode of the Retirement Planners of America podcast, Ken Moraif and co-host Jeremy Thornton walk through their Retirement Cash Flow Plan framework — a practi...
Lurking Tax Time Bomb!
Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) can impact taxes, Medicare premiums, and cash-flow in retirement. In this episode, Ken Moraif and Jeremy Thornton explain when RMDs start (age rules), how the penalties work, and practical ways retirees pla...
Strategies To Beat Inflation
Inflation eats into purchasing power—especially once pay raises stop. In this episode, Ken and Jeremy cover practical, level-headed ways retirees can plan for inflation without hype: from choosing where to keep cash, to timing Social Security, ...
The Most Important Decade Of Your Financial Life
Retirement has a “red zone”: the 5 years before and the 5 years after you retire. Decisions in this window can shape the rest of your financial life. In this episode, Ken Moraif and CIO Jordan Roach discuss why this decade matters, how major ma...
How To Avoid Taxes On Your Life Insurance
Many families are surprised to learn that while life insurance proceeds are generally income-tax free, they can still be included in your taxable estate if ownership and premium rules aren’t handled correctly. In this episode, Ken and Jeremy br...
How To Protect Your Estate From Taxes, Divorce, Lawsuits, And Bankruptcy For Up To 100 Years
Protecting an inheritance for children and grandkids can be done thoughtfully and within the law. In this episode, we unpack how dynasty (aka generation-skipping) trusts are structured, what they can and cannot do, and why some families use the...
Estate Planning: Part 4 How To Pass your House On to Your Heirs Tax Free
Thinking about how to pass your home to family the right way? In this episode, Ken and Jeremy walk through the Qualified Personal Residence Trust (QPRT)—what it is, when it’s considered, key trade-offs, and common pitfalls to avoid. You’ll lear...