Investing Reality Check
A classic TRM episode that starts with Tom’s ill-fated attempt to cross a flooded Snoqualmie River (spoiler: no walking on water) and turns into a timely lesson on market returns, diversification, and why comparing your portfolio to headline numbers is usually a mistake. Don and Tom unpack eye-popping 2025 performance across U.S., international, bonds, and small-cap value, warn against recency bias and overpriced active funds, and take several listener calls on Roth conversions, bad custodians, debt forgiveness taxes, and rollover mechanics. The show wraps with Don’s well-earned victory lap for Seasons Readings, now rubbing shoulders with Julie Andrews and Hugh Bonneville in Apple’s fiction charts.
0:04 Tom gets stranded by flooding after a questionable river-crossing idea
1:40 Flood damage reality check and sympathy for displaced homeowners
2:22 Market year-end context and “Dave Ramsey average” returns
3:32 Bond funds surprise with strong year-to-date performance
4:05 International and global funds crush expectations
5:46 Why your return may lag headlines: allocation, costs, and recency bias
6:20 Apples-to-apples portfolio comparisons matter
9:26 Active funds underperforming despite a strong market year
10:47 Global diversification pays off big in 2025
12:04 January prerecorded show tease and holiday logistics
13:25 Seasons Readings featured by Apple Podcasts—downloads explode
15:18 Fiction chart brag: sandwiched between Julie Andrews and Hugh Bonneville
16:25 Listener call: John Hancock IRA, forced conversions, and bad advice
19:06 Why liquidating inside an IRA is not a taxable event
20:17 Exposing high-cost, loaded funds and custodian nonsense
23:35 Listener question: Roth conversions, pensions, and IRMAA timing
26:36 Why “top tax bracket forever” is usually a myth
27:31 Listener call: debt settlement and taxable forgiveness income
30:13 When a 1099-C is a good deal anyway
31:56 Flood-era investment scams and terrible ideas
35:55 Clarifying direct rollovers vs. taking possession of funds
38:13 Roth IRAs for young earners—yes, even pizza money