Safe Money Radio with Brad Pistole

Hosted by Brad Pistole

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Episodes

150

Latest episode

Jun 2026

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EN-US

About the show

Safe Money Radio host Brad Pistole is a nationally recognized Financial Professional who specializes in planning that protects principal from stock market volatility and creates guaranteed lifetime income. Listen here to receive insights from Brad and hear what he has to say regarding retirement income planning.

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60 recent

June 12, 202654 min

American College of Financial Services (Horizons Conference): Part 3

When the market moves, your account balance may swing, but the factor that can quietly rewrite your retirement is taxes. We’re back at the American College of Financial Services Horizons conference with three interviews that zoom in on the decisions that determine how much of your IRA you actually get to keep and how much ends up going to the IRS.First, we sit down with Ed Slott, America’s IRA expert, to unpack why Roth conversions have become so complex and so important. We talk about the SECURE Act as a true game changer, the end of the old stretch IRA for most non-spouse heirs, and how the 10-year inherited IRA rule can create a giant taxable “cliff” for your kids. Ed frames it clearly: Uncle Sam is a special kind of joint owner, and timing your tax payments when rates are low can be a powerful way to reduce future RMD pressure and build more tax-free income.Next, Jeffrey Levine breaks down the difference between tax preparation and tax planning, and why modern financial advice keeps moving toward proactive, forward-looking strategy. We dig into continuing education, the value behind the TPCP designation, and the real goal: the lowest lifetime tax bill. That includes the hidden costs tied to income like IRMAA Medicare premiums, phaseouts, and other triggers that can make your effective rate higher than your bracket suggests.We close with John Manganaro of The Daily Upside on the human side of retirement planning: caregiving, long-term care planning, widowhood, and why empathy and pacing matter when families are under stress. If this helped you think differently, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find smarter retirement planning.Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com

June 8, 202654 min

American College of Financial Services (Horizons Conference) 2026: Part 2

The most expensive retirement mistakes are rarely about picking the wrong stock. They usually come from blind spots: taxes you did not see coming, income tools you never learned, and assets you forgot to count. From the sold-out Horizons 2026 conference, I’m sharing Part 2 of a special interview series with four nationally known retirement planning voices: Jamie Hopkins, Dr. Wade Pfau, David McKnight, and Don Graves.Jamie Hopkins explains why most people are visual learners and how clearer visuals can make retirement planning simpler and more actionable. We also dig into “pay yourself first” as a foundation for retirement income security, plus a surprisingly powerful idea for the next chapter of life: retirement as your chance to rebuild community on purpose instead of living inside the “accidental communities” created by school and work. He also shares practical ways he teaches his kids real money skills using modern tools and hands-on experiences.Dr. Wade Pfau brings the conversation into advanced retirement tax planning, including how to think about Roth conversions through the lens of current income, spending needs, and lifetime tax rates. We talk about real-world “cliffs” like IRMAA Medicare premium surcharges and why paying the lowest lifetime tax can matter more than avoiding taxes today. David McKnight then walks through tax-free wealth planning concepts, including how an index universal life insurance policy may serve as a volatility buffer to help manage sequence-of-returns risk and provide additional long-term care options. Finally, Don Graves makes the case for housing wealth and reverse mortgages as a legitimate fourth bucket that can strengthen cash flow and create more tax-smart withdrawal choices.Subscribe to the podcast, share this with someone nearing retirement, and leave a review with your biggest retirement tax question so we can address it next.Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com

May 29, 202650 min

American College of Financial Services (Horizons Conference) 2026: Part 1

Retirement plans don’t usually fail because of a bad spreadsheet. They fail because of a life event. From the sold-out Horizons 2026 conference at The American College of Financial Services, we bring you three powerful conversations that hit the real pressure points in retirement planning: widowhood, longevity risk, taxes, Social Security, Medicare costs, and the emotional weight of major transitions.First, we sit down with Gene Chatsky of HerMoney.com and the Her Money Podcast to talk about why so many women end up managing money alone later in life. One statistic says it all: 80% of men die married, and 80% of women die single. We unpack what that means for financial independence, getting organized, and making sure both spouses understand where the money is and how the plan works before it’s urgent.Next, Lindsay Lewis (CFP, ChFC) shares what she’s seeing with widows and why the average widow is far younger than most people assume. We dig into the “three G’s” framework (grief, growth, grace), the need for a structured 30/60/90-day game plan, and the guardrails that can prevent rushed decisions. We also cover the wealth transfer to women, the advisor talent gap, and why AI can’t replace the empathy and trust people want from a real financial advisor.Finally, Heather Schreiber connects Social Security claiming strategy to coordinated retirement income planning. We talk about the temptation to file at 62, how permanent benefit reductions work, and how Medicare premiums and IRMAA surcharges can change your net income for life. If you want a tax-smart retirement paycheck that lasts, this conversation brings the pieces together.Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs it, and leave a review so more families can find help planning a safer, smarter retirement.Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com

May 22, 202654 min

Why More Retirees Choose Safety Over Big Returns

You can be a thrill seeker and still buckle your seatbelt, and that simple truth is the best metaphor for retirement planning I know. With Peak 65 here, more families are reaching the “now what?” moment at the same time, and the questions are getting sharper: How do we protect the nest egg we built, create reliable income, and avoid getting forced into the wrong move when the market is down?We walk through a Kiplinger report that says the definition of investment success is changing. Returns still matter, but retirees are increasingly measuring success by durability, flexibility, and confidence. That shift impacts how we think about safe money strategies, asset allocation, and asset location. When every goal sits inside one market-driven bucket, sequence of returns risk can turn a normal downturn into a permanent problem, especially if you are withdrawing for income and paying taxes at the same time.From there, we tackle annuities head-on using research from Dr. Kevin Lynch, including the core problem annuities are designed to solve: you cannot guarantee a finite portfolio lasts an infinite number of years. We break down the five major retirement risks, explain mortality credits in plain English, and show why guaranteed lifetime income can function like a personal pension. We also lay out who tends to benefit most, from retirees without pensions to people who want an income floor that reduces panic selling and supports better spending decisions.If you want a plan that’s built to hold up in real life, listen now, then subscribe, share the episode with a friend nearing retirement, and leave a review. What part of retirement feels most uncertain to you right now?Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com

May 15, 202656 min

Social Security Timing with Expert Heather Schreiber

If you’ve been told “just take Social Security at 62” because the system is running out of money, pause. We sit down with Heather Schreiber, our go to Social Security and retirement income planning expert, to unpack what insolvency actually means, what it doesn’t mean, and why fear based claiming can permanently shrink your paycheck. The core message is simple: Social Security is not a stand alone decision, it’s a lever that affects taxes, Medicare premiums, and the surviving spouse’s income.We also go deep on why women in finance and women in retirement planning deserve special attention. Gray divorce is rising after age 50, women often carry more caregiving breaks in their work history, and they typically live longer than men. Heather explains “Social Security autonomy” and why building your own benefit matters, especially if a marriage ends before the 10 year mark for ex spousal eligibility. We talk survivor benefits in plain terms and why the higher earner’s claiming age can shape the household’s income for decades.Then we connect the dots to tax planning: traditional 401(k) and IRA balances, required minimum distributions (RMDs), Social Security taxation, and IRMAA Medicare surcharges. If you claim early and delay withdrawals from pre tax accounts, you can accidentally create a future tax torpedo that raises your taxes and premiums when you can least afford it. Coordinated income planning, Roth strategy, and early retirement “gap years” planning can change the outcome dramatically.If you want a clearer plan for when to claim and how to structure retirement income, subscribe, share this with someone who’s close to retirement, and leave us a review so more families can find it.Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com

May 8, 202654 min

How A Finance Professor Built A Retirement That Lets Him Sleep Well At Night

You can know all the rules of money and still get blindsided by retirement. Brad sits down with Dr. Kevin Lynch, a former CFP program instructor with 20 professional designations, to talk about what happens when the paycheck stops and the decision becomes real. Kevin explains why he didn’t “need” an advisor, but absolutely wanted one, because managing your own money brings emotions to the surface in a way textbooks never can.We unpack the planning framework that helped him sleep well at night: coordinating Social Security with annuities to create guaranteed income that covers the household basics, so the investment portfolio can stay invested even when the market turns ugly. Kevin shares what it felt like living through major drawdowns, why “don’t just do something, stand there” can be the most profitable move, and how building income guardrails changes your relationship with risk, news, and uncertainty.Then the conversation widens into the part most retirement planning misses. After 90 days of doing almost nothing, Kevin discovers that “every day is Saturday” is only fun for a while. He tells the story of returning to faith, becoming a licensed chaplain, earning a Doctor of Ministry at 75, and building a nonprofit mission to teach practical personal finance in a church setting. We close with one piece of marriage advice that hits hard: plan retirement with your spouse, not just for your spouse.Subscribe for more real retirement stories, share this with someone nearing retirement, and leave a review if it helped you think differently. What are you retiring to, and what would help you sleep well at night?Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com

May 1, 202650 min

Roth Conversions Explained With The Five-Year Rules

“Convert or not convert?” sounds like a simple yes-or-no question until you run headfirst into the Roth IRA rulebook. We break it down in plain English, starting with the real difference between tax-deferred retirement accounts like traditional IRAs and 401(k)s and tax-free retirement accounts like Roth IRAs: it’s all about when you pay taxes, how withdrawals are taxed, and what that means for your retirement income plan.From there, we get specific on the rules that trip people up most: Roth income limits, IRA contribution limits, early withdrawal rules, and required minimum distributions. We also clear up one of the biggest misunderstandings out there, the idea that “Roth means no RMDs” in all situations. The owner has more flexibility, but beneficiaries can still face distribution requirements, especially under the inherited IRA 10-year rule.The heart of the conversation is the two different Roth IRA five-year rules and why they matter for both taxes and penalties. We explain the two “five-year clocks,” how ordering rules work (contributions first, then conversions, then earnings), and why tracking your own conversion history is critical, especially if you move accounts between firms. We finish with practical listener-style questions, common Roth misconceptions, and how to think about Roth conversions as part of a larger tax planning and estate planning strategy.If you want fewer surprises from Uncle Sam and more control over future taxes, subscribe, share this with a friend nearing retirement, and leave a review with your biggest Roth conversion question.Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com

April 24, 202648 min

Stop Betting Your Retirement On Perfect Timing

The market can drop hard, surge 1,125 points in a day, then whipsaw you again and that’s a nightmare if you’re retiring right as you start taking withdrawals. I talk straight about what I’m seeing at the end of Q1 2026, including a real panic call from someone who trusted online reviews, handed over their life savings, and watched their account fall fast because their portfolio didn’t match their risk tolerance. That story isn’t about “bad people.” It’s about bad timing, poor risk analysis, and the retirement reality that losses early on can do damage you never recover from. We break down sequence of returns risk in plain English and why the five years before and after retirement are the danger zone. Then we zoom out to the bigger trend: record annuity sales and growing demand for guaranteed lifetime income. I explain why retirees often spend down lump sums far faster than they expect, why dependable monthly income lowers anxiety, and why I believe your plan should cover the basics with Social Security, pensions, and annuities before you take market risk with the rest. I also react to Warren Buffett’s comments about today’s stock market feeling more like a casino, plus his massive cash reserves and what that might mean for everyday investors. Finally, I share my own annuity numbers and the “sleep insurance” mindset behind building guardrails that help you avoid panic decisions. If you care about retirement planning, tax-smart income, and protecting your nest egg from volatility, subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review so more families can find it.Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com

April 17, 202648 min

Seven Smart Reasons To DELAY Social Security

Social Security isn’t a “pick a date and hope” decision, it’s a lifetime income lever that can change your retirement and your spouse’s future. We’ve heard all the noise: claim at 62, Social Security is going broke, take it and run. We slow it down and replace the rumors with rules, math, and planning you can actually use.I’m Brad Pistol, and I explain why Social Security behaves like one of the best forms of guaranteed lifetime income. Delaying can add roughly 8% per year in delayed retirement credits up to age 70, which can turn a permanently reduced check into a much larger monthly paycheck. We also connect claiming timing to Medicare premiums, because many people file early simply so Part B and other costs get deducted automatically, then we ask the harder question: is convenience costing you long-term income?We dig into the details that decide whether delaying makes sense: your health and family longevity, the earnings test if you’re still working (including the 2026 limits), and how taxes can surprise you through provisional income and Social Security taxation thresholds. I also lay out why delaying can reduce future required minimum distributions (RMDs), help avoid unnecessary taxes, and potentially lower Medicare IRMAA surcharges later. Finally, we focus on spousal and survivor benefit planning, because the higher benefit often becomes the survivor’s check, and many couples face a real probability that one spouse lives well into their 90s.If you want a clear Social Security claiming strategy based on your numbers, listen now, then subscribe, share this with a friend who’s turning 62 or 65, and leave a review so more families can find it.Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com

April 10, 202653 min

7 Reasons to Claim Social Security EARLY!

The internet is packed with confident Social Security advice, but a lot of it collapses the moment you apply the real rules. We dig into why the “just claim at 62” message spreads, what parts of it are true, and where it can flat-out mislead you, especially for married couples trying to coordinate benefits. With Peak 65 underway and millions of Americans hitting Medicare and retirement decision points, getting this right can mean the difference between stable retirement income and years of avoidable stress.We break down Part 1 of a two-part guide: seven reasons you might consider claiming Social Security early. That includes funding your go-go years, making a decision based on health and family longevity, and understanding how spousal benefits actually work when someone files before full retirement age. We also unpack why “break-even math” is not a complete strategy, and why your start date should connect to a bigger retirement income plan that accounts for real life, not perfect forecasts.Then we go into the part many people miss: taxes and Medicare. Social Security taxation hinges on provisional income, and once required minimum distributions (RMDs) begin, the combination of IRA withdrawals and benefits can push you into higher tax exposure and IRMAA Medicare premium surcharges. If you want a claiming strategy that holds up under scrutiny, you need to see how Social Security, tax planning, spousal planning, and survivor benefits fit together.If you found this helpful, subscribe for Part 2, share this with someone nearing 62, and leave a review with the one Social Security question you want answered next.Send us Fan MailTo learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com