The Rob Berger Show

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RBS 132: New iBond Rates for May 2024 May 20, 2024

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The treasury department released the new I Bond rates today. They came in at 4.28%, which included a fixed rate of 1.30%, unchanged from the previous six months. https://treasurydirect.gov/savings-bo...
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RBS 131: Rewards Stacking: How I Build Wealth with Credit Card Rewards Apr 26, 2024

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Several years ago, I stumbled upon a quote from Dave Ramsey about credit card rewards. I’ll never forget those 11 words. :
“No one ever says they got rich off of credit card points.”
As I read his words, I knew immediately that he was wrong. One could build wealth through credit card rewards. In this sense, credit card rewards aren’t special. Saving and investing small amounts of money from any source over time will turn into piles of cash. We just need to allow compounding to work its magic.
It was then that the idea of Rewards Stacking was born. Over the past four years, we’ve saved and invested all our credit card rewards. Our balance now stands at $37,834.55.
While that doesn’t make us rich (yet), it’s an impressive sum, particularly when you consider that it required no sacrifice on our part. It wasn’t about cutting back or working harder—just saving and investing the free money credit card issuers send us every month.
In this video, I’ll share exactly how we did it and, more importantly, how you can do it, too.
Rewards Stacking: https://www.allcards.com/rewards-stac...
Robinhood Gold Card (Referral Link): https://robinhood.com/creditcard/?ref...
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RBS 130: Fidelity vs Vanguard vs Schwab: My Take Having Used All 3 for 20+ Years Apr 19, 2024

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In this episode, we'll look at three of the largest investing platforms, Fidelity, Vanguard, and Schwab. I'll share 7 things based on using these platforms for 20+ years.

RBS 129: Robinhood 3% IRA Match: Gimmick or Gold Mine? Mar 29, 2024

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Robinhood is promoting up to a 3% match on IRA contributions, and for a limited time, a 3% match on IRA transfers. A viewer asked me if I thought this was a good deal. In this video I'll share my thoughts on the program, some of the things to look out for, and why I ultimately decided not to transfer my IRAs to Robinhood.
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RBS 128: 7 Surprising Facts I've Learned About Retirement Mar 15, 2024

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Retirement isn't always a sunny walk in the park. While I have no regrets that I retired in my 50s, it hasn't been without its challenges. Here are 7 lessons learned after four years of retirement.
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RBS 127: 5 Key Questions to Ask Your Investment Advisor Feb 02, 2024

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In this video we'll look at a portfolio a viewer sent in to me. It's from their investment advisor, and we will be asking 5 key questions about the portfolio that I would ask if an advisor put me in the same portfolio.
1. What's the target asset allocation?
2. Have you made any changes to the target asset allocation?
3. How do you pick the funds to implement the plan?
4. Why isn't a simpler, less expensive portfolio a better choice?
5. How do you invest your own money?
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RBS 126: Vanguard Cash Plus Account Compared To The Best Alternatives Jan 26, 2024

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Vanguard recently launched an FDIC-insured account called the Vanguard Cash Plus Account. We'll review this new account, compare it to other FDIC-insured options, and compare it to money market accounts.
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RBS 125: Dave Ramsey Says the 4% Rule is "Stupid"--8% "Perfectly Comfortable" Nov 27, 2023

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In a recent video answering a caller's question, Dave Ramsey described those promoting the 4% Rule as "stupid," "goobers," and "morons. He described the 4% Rule as stupid and said he's "perfectly comfortable" with an 8% withdrawal rate.
In this video, I'll describe his rationale and why I'm "perfectly comfortable" telling him he's wrong.
New Retirement: https://go.robberger.com/new-retireme...%
FICalc: https://ficalc.app/
Dave Ramsey Video: https://twitter.com/mbontrager5/statu...
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RBS 124: Is Buy and Hold Investing Dead? Nov 06, 2023

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Is buy and hold investing dead? A recent WSJ article suggests that the set-it-and-forget-it style of investing can't survive the current economic trends. I walk through my thoughts on the article, along with an important memo by value investor Howard Marks.
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RBS 123: How and Why To Build A TIPS Ladder In Retirement Oct 30, 2023

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Not long ago investors had to pay the U.S. government for the privilege of owning TIPS. The real yields, that is the yield after factoring in inflation, were negative. Last year, as a phoenix rising, real yields broke above 0%. Today the real yield on 10-year TIPS is about 2.50%. This offers some intriguing options for those in or near retirement.
Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, or TIPS for short, are U.S. government bonds whose principal amount adjusts for inflation. They are as close a sure thing as an investor can get. Of course, there is no free lunch. What an investor gives up with TIPS is the possibility of better returns with nominal bonds (should inflation end up lower than expected) or with more risky assets such as stocks. For many retirees, however, risk is a four-letter word.
So let’s explore two TIPS ladder strategies that retirees might want to consider. We'll walk through building a 30-year TIPS ladder and a 5-year TIPS ladder.
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