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Safe Money Radio with Brad Pistole
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.
Safe Money Radio with Brad Pistole
Mastering ROTH IRA's for Retirement Success featuring Ed Slott
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You don’t build a great retirement by guessing the market’s next swing; you build it by owning your tax future. To mark our 800th show, we sit down with Ed Slott, America’s IRA expert, to map a clear path from tax-deferred uncertainty to tax-free control. We revisit the 2010 Roth conversion opening and draw a straight line to today’s unusually wide, still-low tax brackets that make strategic conversions a rare bargain. Ed explains why “tax laws are written in pencil” and how bracket-filling, not RMD minimums, is the mindset that protects your wealth.
From there, we tackle the Secure Act’s 10-year rule and how it reshapes legacy planning. If you’re counting on traditional IRAs to serve your children well, think again. Compressing distributions into a decade often collides with peak earnings and higher brackets, turning inheritance into a tax headache. We outline smarter tools: Roth IRAs for tax-free growth and withdrawals, and permanent life insurance for income tax-free wealth transfer, control, and larger net inheritances. This is where the single greatest income tax benefit in the code does the heavy lifting.
Finally, we get practical about peace of mind. Guaranteed income changes behavior and lowers stress, especially when markets feel like a casino. We walk through how annuities can create a reliable base for essential expenses, reduce sequence risk, and free you to invest the rest with confidence. Place those guarantees inside a Roth and you’ve upgraded to guaranteed, tax-free income you can tap when needed. If your goal is freedom from taxes, worry, risk, and bad advice, this conversation gives you a plan you can put to work now.
If you’re ready to keep more and share less, subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs a tax-smart retirement plan. For a free consultation, call 866-780-7233 or visit Ozarksretirement.com.
To learn more about Brad Pistole and the Ozark Retirement Group, please visit www.ozarksretirement.com
800th Show And Ed Slott Returns
SPEAKER_04Where the market goes down. Where the market goes down. Don't go down.
SPEAKER_00Welcome to State Money Radio with your host, Brad Pistol. Brad is a retirement income and tax planning certified professional, primarily serving clients in the Midwest, but he's sought after nationally for his expertise in helping people secure their retirement. Mr. Pistol is a licensed life insurance professional in approximately 20 different states, and he specializes in working with people who are near retirement and those who have already retired with wealth management, income planning, and asset protection strategies using life, health, long-term care, and annuity insurance products. And now, here to talk with you about securing your retirement, it's your host, Brad Pistol.
SPEAKER_02Well, hello everyone. Thank you so much for joining us today on Safe Money Radio. And I know I always say it's a really special show, but there's not been any show like this Joe before. So if you are listening right now, I want you to know that you can go to the podcast, just go to YouTube, and you can watch today. I have a very special guest on, our longest-running returning guest, America's IRA expert, Ed Slot. And he's here with us to celebrate our 800th episode of Safe Money Radio. Ed, can you believe it?
SPEAKER_03I don't know. I, you know, years ago, I don't know if you remember this, so you may I may have told you back 30 years ago I had a radio show and I did over 300 shows. And I and I I'll tell you why I stopped. Maybe it was just time. I wasn't even keeping track of it. The radio station was, and this is before there were like the computers and the podcasts. It was unusual to have a you know a financial guy on a radio, his own radio show on a major station. So uh somehow they got wind that it was my 300th consecutive shows, one a week.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
Ed’s Journey To IRA Tax Leadership
SPEAKER_03And uh it was around the time uh when Cal Ripkin was had his streak.
SPEAKER_02The big streak.
SPEAKER_03Maybe the early nineties, mid-90s, I don't remember, about thirty years ago.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_03And uh it must have been the station manager. I had nothing to do with it. There was a big article in our local paper, which is Big Paper News Day, and the title was The Cal Ripkin of Radio. And that was only 300 shows. So I looked at there and I said, Holy crap, 300 shows? All right, that's enough. That's what you're double than double that. And this is weekly, you do this?
SPEAKER_02I do this every single week, Ed, all the way back to 2010. So this is my 16th year, and we're about 15 and a half years into the show. So do the math on that.
SPEAKER_03Holy moly, congratulations, 800 shows. Yeah, and we've got I've only been on 700 of them.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, that's right. You definitely have been on a lot of them. And you probably have been mentioned in 799 of the 800. And the only reason that you weren't in the 800, I forgot one week. So we're we we're so grateful. Those of you listening right now, you know you you always request, hey, when's Ed gonna be back on? When is he gonna share stuff? They love your your one-liners and all your comments and the information, the knowledge you drop. So this is what I want to do. If you know, if this is the first time you're ever listening to the show or you're watching, well, congratulations. One of the sharpest minds on the planet is joining us today. And so, Ed, and uh for someone who's been living under a rock, tell everybody a little bit about yourself and what you've been doing for the last 30 years.
SPEAKER_03Well, I'm a CPA and I had a uh CPA tax planning and estate planning practice for 40 years with clients right here at the same desk for over 40 years. I stopped that recently and morphed over the last 30 years of that time into training financial advisors because what I saw from my own clients around, they weren't getting information on what was becoming their largest single asset, their IRA and 401k. They would go to their financial advisors. Now, back in those days, they weren't really called, they were mainly brokers and warehouse guys, they were called. There really wasn't a thing, financial advisors. They called them brokers. They say, Well, I only manage money, I make you money. And I would say to clients, but what good is making money if you don't keep it? All this money hasn't been taxed. So it was an open lane, it was a genre of tax planning that wasn't even, it didn't even exist at that point. So uh I picked up on that based on feedback from clients that had these accounts, and uh and I started doing that planning, and I was doing programs uh in in the area here for consumers, and advisors picked up on them and blah, blah, blah. Things uh led to one another, and all of a sudden, advisors, we started doing advisor training uh because I wanted advisors to be able to provide a full range of planning, and that morphed into, as you know, 20 years ago, the the group you're a member of, the tax planning group, uh, the highest quality tax planning group for as retirement accounts, as it as it pertains to retirement accounts, Ed Slot's Elite IRA advisor group. And you've been a member for many, many more than 10 years, I would think. Sixteen now. Is it 10 years now?
SPEAKER_02No, it's 16 years now, Ed. I started in late 2009. It's crazy.
Why Tax Planning Beats Pure Investing
SPEAKER_03Oh, wow, wow. Wait, you're you're you're way there. So you've been studying this stuff, and yet, even today, what I just said is true. The average advisor doesn't want to bother. If you mention what about taxes, they they look at it like that's like kryptonite. I can't touch that. Yeah, you know, they go, that's somebody else's job. Well, if it's somebody else's job, get somebody else. Yeah. That's it. And the reason I created this group is to uh find advisors like you that said, I want that job. I want to do the whole job. I want to help clients keep what they've earned. Uh yes, we a good advisor can make you money, and lots of people do it, especially when the market's up. Uh, but many people, many advisors don't play in what I call the second half of the game. They don't have have a plan to help you keep what you've earned. Remember, most of this money, as you probably say every week on your show for 800 weeks, has not yet been taxed, but it will be. And today we have great things happening. The ABBA law, the one big beautiful bill act, ABBA, uh has extended low rates for uh well, let me stop there. It has extended low rates permanently. Now, I'll stop there because if you look up the word permanent in the dictionary, it has a way different meaning than the word permanent for tax law. In the dictionary, it means unchangeable, etched in stone, irrevocable, permanent. But for tax law, it means until a future Congress changes the rules. As you know, we have a saying among CPAs, tax laws are written in pencil. So we do have this opportunity, but I wouldn't get complain complacent like it's per like it really is permanent. We've got these few years of low rates, so it's the opportunity of a lifetime to pay the lowest tax, save a fortune in taxes, and bring more of your money into tax-free vehicles like Roth IRAs, life insurance, and buffer yourself or get guardrails for with guaranteed income from I'm worried about a very high market.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, absolutely. Well, friends, if you're listening right now, that's what we're gonna be talking about on the show today. We're gonna go back into the history. I want to talk about the Ed slot group back in 2010, some of the things that I learned and why I chose to work and align myself with this group. And we're gonna be going back over some of the old stuff from changes that have happened in tax code. So stay with us. Numbers 866-780 safe. You can call us anytime. I'm gonna have all kinds of Ed's books on the show today. We're gonna reference some different things he's done over the years that's helped me and my clients tremendously. But 866-780-7233, you can always call. Someone's always standing by to take your call. This is Brad Pistol, your host of Safe Money Radio. I'll be right back after this informative message. This is Brad Pistol, the host of Safe Money Radio, right here in the Ozarks for the past 15 plus years, and I'm so excited to announce the formation of the Ozarks Retirement Group right here in Ozark, Missouri. This team of advisors and financial professionals can cover all of your retirement income needs. We have financial experts who can help you with your Medicare, your Social Security Planning, your investment planning, tax planning, and of course, your safe and secure guaranteed lifetime income plan. We've been located in the same office complex for the past two decades, just one block east of Lambert's behind Simmons Bank. And no matter what your need is, we can help you. We are retirement income and tax planning certified professionals through the American College of Financial Services. Call us today for a free financial consultation. Our number is 866-780 SAFE. We are the Ozarks Retirement Group, and we are here to assist you with all of your retirement planning needs. Our number again is 866-780-7233, and there's always someone standing by to take your call. Hi, this is Brad Pistol, the host of Safe Money Radio for almost two straight decades. I'm a retirement income certified professional, and I love talking to you each week about developing your safe and secure retirement income plan. Now let's get back to the show. Well, friends, if you're just joining us, this is our 800th show. I'm going to be saying that. I should be ringing a bell today, Ed, ringing the 800th. I know, I know.
SPEAKER_03Every time you say it, I think of that emoji with the guy's head exploding.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Well, when people say, What do you do in your free time? And I say, Always, what free time? But then I say, I write radio shows, and my brain is constantly creating another podcast, another show. So, Ed, let's do this for fun. Let's go all the way back to so 2009's when I went to the first two-day IRA training group session. And I was a newbie. I didn't I knew hardly anything. Uh I tried to absorb as much of my father's information as I could because he was a lifetime advisor. But I went and I remember standing talking to Lauren Levine. We were talking, and I was like, tell me about this group. And she said, Brad, you you don't have a background in this in this business? No, I'm I'm brand new. She goes, You've got to join this group. And let me tell you why. And she started telling me about the intricacies of the group and what we did. And I was like, Gotta do it. Late 2009, early 2010. I'm I went to a two-day and I'm like, I'm joining. And at one of the very first meetings we had, you you said something, I write it down, it stays on my wall. You said, Doing what's in your client's best interest is always in your best interest. I swear to you.
SPEAKER_03Always do right by your client. Everybody wins.
SPEAKER_02Yes. And so I started picking up on that and all the other things about just every time we would go, of course, like you say, it's like drinking from a fire hydrant. I know. And I and I would leave so mentally worn out and go, okay, I learned this that I didn't know, and this that I didn't know, and this that I didn't know. I wonder how many other things there are that I don't know that, and so it just emphasized to me how important it was to be in this group. And so, Ed, I was in group 10, and I know we're we're we're meeting next week. We're having a group meeting. Do you know what group we're on? Well, that's right. We will have already met by the time they hear this in a few weeks. But do you know what group we're on and group members coming into the group team?
SPEAKER_03I think uh yeah, group 40, something like that. Okay. Remember, we created a new group. Uh I think we create at least one or two groups a year. It makes sense for 20 years now.
The 2010 Roth Conversion Breakthrough
SPEAKER_02Yeah. Yep. So group 40, and I'm in group 10. So it was new. Wow. And I remember, you know, we probably had a hundred members, 150 members then, and now we're what, up over 500 members right now? It goes up and down. Yeah. So so fantastic that there are advisors learning this stuff all over the country who want to separate themselves and stay on top of tax law, and that's where I want to jump in right now is let's for fun, because I remember how much of a landmark year 2010 was. I joined right at the beginning of 2010. Let's go back to some of the changes. One of the big things that happened in 2010 was the income limitation for Roth for conversions. And I know you talked about it, you did it.
SPEAKER_03Tell everyone what changed about Roth. Well, the biggest thing when you joined was the Pension Protection Act of 2006, which we were covering, made major changes. And uh the Roth IRA came out in '98, actually, the tax act of ninety seven, and it came out, but the original law said you could only convert if your i i income did not exceed 100,000. So if you exceeded 100,000, you couldn't convert. And I always wondered about that, and finally Congress caught on, and somebody must have told them, Well, why would you have this in here? Look at all the revenue we could bring in. So in 2010, they eliminated that rule, and they got a boatload of money. And I remember being in groups in 2010, and I begged people to take that deal. I just I remind people in every program. I just did a program last week, and I I told the people, I said, Look, I took that deal. I took that deal and I converted everything. And then I throw out this question to the audience. Some of them are CPAs that should know the answer. I said, I took that deal, I converted everything. How much tax did I pay? And they say, Well, you didn't give us the rate, the amount. I said, zero. And they look at me, what? Zero! I took that deal, and I begged people to take that deal. The deal was in 2010, if you converted in 2010, because as usual, Congress was desperate for money, you paid zero tax in 2010. You paid half in 11 and half in 12. So the upshot of this is the government gave everyone an interest-free loan to build a tax-free savings account. It was unheard of. And Congress got a boatload of money in, and they started thinking way different about Roth's. They started saying, we got can we get more Roths? What about Roth 401ks, Roth 403Bs? And each tax law amped up the Roth until Secure 2.0 put it over the top. Now you have Roth step IRAs, Roth simple IRAs, 529 to Roth catch-up, Roth catch-up rules, Roth matching rules, Roth Amania. Why? Because Congress sees that brings in money. In fact, what's new next year in 2026, which you already know, being a member of our group, and you're up on these things, will be the first time that Roth contributions, if you're in a 401k, are mandated for higher income employees. They must do the Roth. Now, I don't know if I agree with that because people like to have an option, you know, like it to be their decision. But it's not the worst thing. But this is the first crack in the iceberg, or whatever that's saying is, uh, the crack in the dam, where, you know, Congress really wants to push more Roth. So for those people, and this is the number one question I get, and I got it at your seminar too, uh, when I was out there in Missouri, uh, and I said, but what can I trust the government to keep its word that Roth uh Roth IRAs will always be tax free? And I said, Of course you can't trust them. You can't trust them as far as you can throw them. I just told you, tax laws are written in pencil. But my position is my it's only my opinion. They're never gonna touch the Roth because it brings in money. And lucky for us, they Congress are the worst financial planners on earth. They are short-sighted, they only look at the money coming in up front. The tax, that'll be some other Congress's problem with the debt and all that stuff. So I told people to take that deal, and uh that was a big deal. Now, again, I'm not an investment guy like you and a lot of advisors, I'm a tax guy. But just to show you the difference, I looked this up back in 2010, the Dow closed at about 11,000. Wow. Now, as of this recording, it's about it's more than 4x, four times that. All of that growth in my bargain basement Roth that I got to take a tax-free loan for from the government, uh, has grown four times more than four times all tax-free, all income tax-free in my Roth. I beg people to take that deal, and now you might say, oh, it's like when you buy a stock, you should have told me. Well, I'm telling you again now. Now we have the ABBA tax rates. We have low rates. You're gonna say the same thing in ten years. Oh, I wish I took Ed's advice and converted more and got it into tax-free. And as you know, Brad, I love tax-free because you keep more of your money. I don't like sharing. In fact, I just had a quick uh snack because I was doing a lot of programs today, and I had one of those yellow MM uh, the larger bags of MM peanut. Yeah, and it has the red ribbon around it. Do you know what the red ribbon says on that bit uh that little uh it's a share size? It's the larger size, it's a share size. Okay. I eat it all. I don't share. There we go. Well, I don't like to share my money with the government when it doesn't have to be that way.
SPEAKER_02And because that's why you're on the show, because you shared that with us back in 2010 and I was in the group, I keep laminated, and I've those watching can see this. I show people every time they come in my account when I converted it from a 403B, I'd rolled it over to an IRA. Ed said convert, take advantage of it, I took advantage of it. And I show literally, this one's held in a fixed index annuity, and I've and I've showed them how it's quadrupled in size. And like, how can that happen? And all tax-free? How can that happen? Like, well, I listened to really smart people who said get rid of the tax man now, and now I've now I've got all this money in tax-free growth, and so it's fancy.
Low Rates Now, Tax-Free Later Strategy
SPEAKER_03Now, in fairness, neither one of us knew we'd have we'd live through the greatest boom in the market in those years. Correct. So you can't always count on that. But in general, the market goes up over time. It goes up and down, but over time it goes up. And the reason I'm a believer in that system, because it's based on businesses that want to make money.
SPEAKER_02Yes, absolutely. Well, friends, if you're listening right now and you want to know about Roth conversions, what's the difference in a contribution and a conversion? And can I do one? And am I eligible and should I do it? That's what we do all day long, every day. I'm a tax planning certified professional. Ed was one of my teachers in the program. We'll talk about that later in the show. Call us anytime, 866-780-7233. Just ask for a free financial consultation or call anytime. Since I have to take a break, now would be a great time to call me for a complimentary copy of my best-selling book, Bulletproof, the Safe and Secure Retirement Income Plan. And I'll also give you a copy of my Safe Money kit. My number is 866-780 SAFE. That's 866-780-7233. Isn't it time to stop exposing your retirement to market risk? You're listening to Safe Money Radio with Brad Pistol.
SPEAKER_01Hey, it's Glenn Beck. Can you feel it? America's pride is on the rise again. And right here in the Ozarks, the same pride lives on in how we protect our families and plan for the future. That's where Brad Pistol, president of the Ozarks Retirement Group, comes in. Brad's a certified financial fiduciary, and most importantly, a trusted neighbor who's helped countless Ozark families find financial independence. Call Brad Pistol from the Ozarks Retirement Group at 417-581-9222. That's 417-581-9222 or Ozarksretirement.com.
SPEAKER_00You're listening to Safe Money Radio with your host, Brad Pistol.
SPEAKER_02Hi, this is Brad Pistol, the host of Safe Money Radio, right here in the Ozarks. I'm a retirement income and tax planning certified professional through the American College, and I'm so happy to be hosting this show for the past two decades. Thanks for joining us today. Now let's get right back to the show. Okay, Ed, let's do this. As we were talking about the 800th show of Safe Money Radio, we're going back to 2010. There's been some more changes. In 2010, it was the limitation on Ross, the income limitation. We've also, though, gone through Secure Act, Secure Act 2.0, RMD changes. That's confused the heck out of people. So let's do that. Let's let's talk about some of that.
ABBA Law, Secure Acts, And Complexity
SPEAKER_03What's changed in the last few years? Well, we had what I call a trifecta of taxation. We had the big Secure Act, and people are forgetting about that. They're so focused because then there was Secure 2, and now we have ABBA, and I keep saying ABBA because I don't know what else to call it. One big beautiful bill act. So we call it ABBA. All right. So now we have ABBA, and there's a ton of provisions in there, and that's where where it really goes off the rails in a good way for most of the but for most of the new deductions. But the problem with that is the challenge, there's too many moving parts, there's too many balls in the air. What I mean is you have new provisions. I mentioned one, the low rates, that are extended. Some are permanent, some are temporary. Some start this year, some start next year, some end in 28, some end in 29. And all of them are based on different income thresholds that you have to know. So there's just too many moving parts. So it kind of overshadowed the Secure Act, which was the big game changer. I did a program a few weeks ago in San Antonio, and for some reason, every time I'm there, I like to go visit the Alamo. I don't know why. I take the same picture every time. There it is, the alimony. There it is, the Alamo, right? And uh the you know the saying, remember the remember the Alamo. So I'm saying the same thing. Remember the Secure Act. Don't forget that. That was the game changer. The the uh one big beautiful Bill Act had no 870 pages, not one uh provision affecting IRAs, Roth IRAs, 401ks. But these deductions, if you can fit them into the overall plan, like uh kind of a uh messed up jigsaw puzzle because too many things to figure out, you can't do it in a vacuum. You can't say, I want that 6,000 senior deduction. You know, no, uh you may lose that if you do a Roth conversion and get it out at 24%. So you got to look at each provision and see where your priorities are. That's why they need to talk to somebody like you. And you mentioned our group, Ed Slot's Elite IRA advisor group, which has about 500 members. These are people committed like you, and you know many of our members have been in the group 10, 15, and 20 years.
SPEAKER_02Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03But uh, and you said that's great, and that is great. But you know what? I don't know how many financial advisors there are in the country, or people call themselves maybe 500,000. I really don't know. I'm just rounding it up. So 1% of 500,000 would be 5,000. Yeah. One tenth of one percent would be 500. That's what we have. Isn't it sad that only one-tenth of one percent of advisors have access to this kind of incredible tax planning that could save people a fortune of money? You want to make sure your advisor is in that one-tenth of one percent like you are, Brad, and our other members.
SPEAKER_02I see it every single day, Ed. I know you know that that I do. I I've had already through this morning, it's Thursday. Thursday morning, I've had 11 new client meetings, potential new clients. There's always four or five situations when I look at what they've got going on where I go, Well, why why did you make this decision? Why is this hell where it is? Why did you choose this? And they'll say, Well, that's what we were advised to do. And then I realize immediately, well, you you should not have been advised to do this. This was a mistake, and here's why. Whether it's their age or income limitation or something moving them into a different tax bracket, or it's just there's always a mess. And so what you're saying is so true. That's why I joined the group. I think I was adding up last night, I think there have been 14 or 15 other friends, colleagues of mine that have joined the Ed Slot group because I've encouraged them or they've said, hey, what's that group you're a part of? And even people locally have joined, and that's great. I can't serve everyone, and I'm glad that there are other competent advisors in the area who are training and doing learning the things that they didn't know that they didn't know. So I I'm so grateful for it. It's just been the greatest decision that I've ever made in my practice, and it seems like every year we break a new regiment. And for your clients. Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_03And for your clients, that's those are the big winners. They have access, and you know what? The what you learn in that program, you learn a lot, but you also learn what you don't know. Yes, and that's the difference. You have a lot of advisors out there that don't know that they don't know, and they're dangerous. You'll know what you don't know, and what you don't know, one of the biggest benefits, I think, of membership in our group is access to me and my team of IRA experts, that you could have a client sitting there, something comes up, you get them on the phone or email, and it's resolved. You get the right answer right away.
SPEAKER_02And it's weekly for me. Every week I'm emailing Andy Ives or Sarah. I've had Andy on the show this year, I've had Sarah on the show, I've had Jeffrey Jeffrey Levine on the show. Andy's uh Sarah's show is gonna air here in a couple weeks. And so just having all these technical consultants, all these IRA geniuses, it's it's priceless. And so, friends, if you're listening.
SPEAKER_03You know, there are there are companies, Brad, that are I don't know, a hundred times the size of you. And they don't have that expertise.
SPEAKER_02It it's it's just so priceless to me to if I'm ever in a meeting, I always will say this. If they ask me a question I haven't come across, I'll say, you know what? I don't know the answer to this, but I know who does know, and I can find out in about 10 minutes. And I do so that someone's always on call to answer our questions, and that's such a great experience. So friends, if you want to work with someone who is trained by the best of the best, Ed Slot's Master Lead IRA Advisor Group. I've been a member for 15 plus years. I work with a great team of people. Call us anytime. It's Ozarksretirement.com. You can call us at 866-780-7233. You can go on the website and you can just request a consultation right there on the website, ozarksretirement.com. 866-780-7233. We'll be back with some more great information right after this. Since I have to take a break, now would be a great time to call me for a complimentary copy of my best-selling book, Bulletproof, the Safe and Secure Retirement Income Plan. And I'll also give you a copy of my Safe Money kit. My number is 866-780 SAFE. That's 866-780-7233. Isn't it time to stop exposing your retirement to market risk? You're listening to Safe Money Radio with Brad Pistol.
The 10-Year Rule And Inheritance Shifts
SPEAKER_00Is your money sitting on the sidelines in a CD, savings account, or money market account earning less than it could? If you have your money in a bank, the value of your money is getting destroyed by inflation. Don't let low interest rates get you down. How would you like tax-deferred growth higher than what banks offer? Why let a bank pay you less when you can currently get three-year and five-year fixed annuity interest rates of almost 6% tax deferred? Some fixed annuity contracts even let you access as much as 10% of your account balance surrender penalty-free. Call us now for your short-term money solutions at 866-780 safe. That's 866-780-7233. Fixed annuities are backed up by the claims paying ability of the issuing life insurance company and are not FDIC insured. We have software to help you choose from hundreds of highly rated life insurance companies. Call us now at 866-780SAFE. That's 866-780-7233. Now back to more Safe Money Radio with your host, Brad Pistol.
SPEAKER_02Hi, this is Brad Pistol, a retirement income certified professional. And if you're wanting to learn how to keep your money safe and to last the rest of your life, you're listening to the right show. We are Safe Money Radio right here in the Ozarks. Now let's get back to the show. Okay, Ed, I don't know if you'll remember this or not, but everyone watching, listening, we're here with America's IRA expert Ed Slot, celebrating our 800th episode of Safe Money Radio. And it back in about 2015, one day I was standing there and I'm not too good with cell phones and all that stuff, and I was like, hey, I should ask Ed a question while we're right here. And I flipped my phone around and I held it up, and you we were standing there in between a break, and I said, Ed, what is the single greatest benefit to the tax code? And you told everyone what the single greatest benefit to the tax code is. And I don't know how many thousands of times that video has been viewed, but Ed, I want to ask you again, because you taught it to me in Stay Rich for Life in chapter 12, which is all of every one of my books.
SPEAKER_03There we go. What is the single 275 of this book? Page 275?
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_03Let's go. Let's go. So I wrote it, so I know most of the pages by heart.
SPEAKER_02So we're turning in it now.
SPEAKER_03Actually, it doesn't have a page number because it's a title page. So look for 274.
SPEAKER_02The power of life insurance. Right there.
SPEAKER_03That's what I call that chapter. The single greatest benefit in the tax code. And read what I wrote, it's the subhead.
SPEAKER_02Larger inheritances, more control, less tax. I love it.
SPEAKER_03That's what everybody wants. You know, I as I said, I for years, over 40 years, I did tax and estate planning for clients. And they didn't always I would always ask, just like you do, why are you here? What do you want to accomplish? What's your long-term goal? All of that. And it was always some version of those three: larger inheritances for my kids, more control because I don't trust my kids with a lot of money, and less tax. And it was always some version of that. And I found life insurance, I'm talking permanent cash value. I'm not a life insurance guy, I'm a tax advisor. But as I don't sell life insurance, I don't I've never sold any stocks, bonds, funds, insurance, annuities, none of that. But as a tax advisor, I say it all the time, uh the ta the the income tax exemption for life insurance is the single biggest benefit in the tax code and not use nearly enough. And now the Secure Act, which remember, remember the Secure Act, remember, don't forget it. That's the big one. The other stuff is just uh look over here, distraction stuff. Uh that's the big one that made IRAs a horrible asset to use for wealth transfer and estate planning because of the 10-year rule. All the money you think you have growing, and but and now we have more 401k and IRA millionaires than ever before, thanks to the market. All of that is growing, building, compounding a tax debt. We've got to bring that down. The Secure Act has has forced all that money out in a shorter window, 10 years, it's going to be a tax nightmare. I call it retirement tax time bomb, but it's going to be a tax torpedo, whatever you want to call it, a big tax hit when 100% of that has to come out at the end of 10th year after death. So what the Secure Act did, they downgraded IRAs, which I used to use as a greater IRA plan, stretch IRA, not available anymore, and upgraded indirectly Roth IRAs and life insurance. In fact, what they did is they probably incentivized us to do the better planning we should have been doing all along. Because IRAs were always hard to work with, but we've we stuck with we stuck with them because of the complicated rules. Look, we've been studying these rules for years. Uh but we we we stuck with them because they had the big tax deferral benefit going out 40, 50, 60, 70 years.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Uh you can't beat that. But that's gone. Now you have to change your plans, change the vehicle, and life insurance exemption uh for income tax uh hits all those checks, all those boxes.
SPEAKER_02We know Ed, I I've always owned a lot of life insurance because of you and Tom Hegna and other people who've really pounded that drum and helped me understand why. But it just this week, before we had our show today, I was emailing with my life specialist, the person I work with on all my personal policies. I took out two more, both permanent. My kids are gonna inherit way more money than they need and all tax-free. But when you talk to individuals, for the most part, as you know, there's this hesitation where they say, Life insurance, I don't need any life insurance, I've got a big IRA and I've got all this stuff. But you use the greatest example in Stay Rich for Life, chapter 12. You talk about leveraging your RMDs, leveraging, use it or lose it, playing with house money. What are you talking about as a strategic way to use your RMD to fund tax-free forever money for your family?
Life Insurance As A Tax Advantage Tool
SPEAKER_03Well, now I go even further because we did have the long deferral then. Yes, but now we don't. Now I say don't wait till RMD time. Get that money out now while we have low rates for a few years. We have this little window. It's as I said on the earlier part of the show, they're permanently extended. But we don't really know how long permanent will be until Congress comes to its senses, or I don't even know when they're gonna stop kicking the can down the road. But you don't want to get caught uh when the music stops. So I would say, even earlier, maybe in your 60s, start bringing that down. Here's an example. It came up uh from one of our advisors, had somebody at 60 years old. So they they were in that mentality from the wrong type of advisor, probably another accountant. They think they think short-sighted. What can I save you today? The point is to save a lifetime of taxes, even multi-generational for the kids and grandkids.
SPEAKER_02Yes.
SPEAKER_03And they said, well, by the time uh I hit RMD's age, which by then, if the law doesn't change, we'll be age 75. So I don't have to do anything to for 15 years, being age 60 now. I said, you are wasting 15 years of tax brackets. This thing is a growing building debt. You can leverage this now, get it out at low rates. And back then we didn't even have rates this low. Rates were higher, and I said it. Right now we have historically low rates. And another thing for people who get the book, if you want to see how good the rates are, go to page 28. I know you know what's on there.
SPEAKER_02Oh, yeah, the chart.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. There's the chart. It has the full history of tax rates from the 16th Amendment in 1913 right up to now. But the the big picture is that in the 60s the top federal rate was over 90% in the 70s, part of the 80s, 70%. We're talking the top rate is 37%, but forget that. Most people can transfer, get hundreds of thousands of dollars out at the top 24% rate. It's the deal of the century. Like I said, I beg people to take that deal in 2010. I'm begging people to take it now. So if you're 60, don't say, oh, I'll do nothing for 15 years and wait till RMDs are forced. Look at all the money I'll save. I'm saying get that money out, do Roth conversions, use it for life insurance. The younger you are, the better off you start. And get that money out when rates are low. The key to all tax planning, which I say at every meeting, is you know, Brad, it's so simple. My always rule always pay taxes at the lowest rates. Even before they're required. So get rid of this required minimum. I call it a minimum mentality because the M and R and D stands for minimum, but it doesn't stand for maximum. Minimum isn't good in most things, except maybe for a diet. Imagine, but other than that, imagine you go for a job in the interview. Yeah, I'd like to know how to do the minimum here. You know, it just won't work. What positions are open for the minimum effort? Right? You're not going to get far. So think maximum. How much can I get out using these incredibly large brackets at low rates? If you look even at the 25 rates, this year's rates, 2025, and they were just expanded for 26 through inflation factors. A married couple can get out almost$400,000 and stay in the 24% bracket only for the top dollars. The rest still get taxed at low rates. This is the deal of the century. If you don't do it, the problem expands. Your IRA continues to grow. We have known rates now. We don't know what they'll be in the future. This I call tax insurance, right? You're insuring against the uncertainty of what future higher taxes can do to that growing building IRA.
RMD Mindset Shift: Use The Brackets
SPEAKER_02Friend, you're listening to the expert, the master, who has taught me for many, many years. It's not how much you make, it's how much you keep after paying taxes that counts. Call us anytime. We can look at your situation, your portfolio, and look at the potholes that are there, the tax traps. 866-780 SAFE or go to Ozarchretirement.com. Since I have to take a break, now would be a great time to call me for a complimentary copy of my best-selling book, Bulletproof, The Safe and Secure Retirement Income Plan. And I'll also give you a copy of my Safe Money Kit. My number is 866-780 SAFE. That's 866-780-7233. Isn't it time to stop exposing your retirement to market risk? You're listening to Safe Money Radio with Brad Pistol. This is Brad Pistol, the host of Safe Money Radio, right here in the Ozarks for the past 15 plus years, and I'm so excited to announce the formation of the Ozarks Retirement Group right here in Ozark, Missouri. This team of advisors and financial professionals can cover all of your retirement income needs. We have financial experts who can help you with your Medicare, your Social Security Planning, your investment planning, tax planning, and of course, your safe and secure guaranteed lifetime income plan. We've been located in the same office complex for the past two decades, just one block east of Lambert's behind Simmons Bank. And no matter what your need is, we can help you. We are retirement income and tax planning certified professionals through the American College of Financial Services. Call us today for a free financial consultation. Our number is 866-780 SAFE. We are the Ozarks Retirement Group, and we are here to assist you with all of your retirement planning needs. Our number again is 866-780-7233, and there's always someone standing by to take your call.
SPEAKER_00Now back to more Safe Money Radio with your host, Brad Pistol.
SPEAKER_02Hi, this is Brad Pistol, a retirement income certified professional. And if you're wanting to learn how to keep your money safe and to last the rest of your life, you're listening to the right show. We are Safe Money Radio right here in the Ozarks. Now let's get back to the show. Okay, there's we've got time for just a couple more segments, Ed, and I want to talk about something. I know we talk about it on every show. I love it. Last week I purchased four new financial products or move money around, two life insurance policies and two annuities that back in the day we had to say annuities because you had to whisper it. And now, but now I love them and they're they're great. I'm gotten a lot older from when I started the group from 37. I'm now 54 years old. So I'm going, hey, now I'm starting to think about my future, and no one's taking care of Brad but Brad. I have to plan for my own pension. And so, where does the annuity come into play for people who maybe they've been told in the past they they shouldn't do it, but now they hear all these experts, Wade Powell, Michael Finca, all these people are saying, hey, the research says guaranteed income is is a sweet deal, and you need to consider it.
SPEAKER_03Here's another always rule of mine. In retirement, income is always more important than savings, because savings can run out or be lost. And here's what I mean by lost. And this is not just me saying it. I am worried, and who knows? By, you know, we've taped these at a certain time, and by the time you're seeing them, it may be a few weeks later. But every day is an adventure in the stock market. I don't know if people want to live like that. Even the Wall Street Journal, I don't know if you saw there was an article. I don't have it here. I'm actually saved it, I think, to bring to the elite meeting. Uh the the with a picture of the 1929 crash. I don't know if you saw that big black and white picture of the 29 crash, and the title over the article, this is in the Wall Street Journal, said Party Like It's 1929. And this is in the remember what I'm saying, this is in the most pro-stock market publication you can have. The Wall Street Journal, ergo it's in the name, Wall Street, and they're worried. And then there was a companion article, uh, Test Your Financial Know-how or genius. I always fall for those stupid quizzes. And it was about the stock market. And you may know the answer to this because it's it's well-known history. But back in the 29 crash, we all know everybody lost their money, except for one guy who made all the money. You know who that guy was? I don't. Joseph Kennedy, JFK's father. Okay. Joseph Kennedy. And they asked a follow-up question, which is well known. How did he know to get out of the market before the crash? And the answer was, do you remember the answer to that? I don't. He got a stock tip, got a stock tip from the shoe shine boy on the steps of the stock exchange. Okay. And it wasn't the tip that made him get out. It was the fact that shoe shine boys were giving stock tips.
SPEAKER_02There you go.
Guaranteed Income And Annuity Guardrails
SPEAKER_03He said, if everybody's doing this, this whole thing's gonna crash. Now, today, what does that mean today? Today we don't have shoeshine boys. We have worse. We have influencers. Everybody on TikTok, and here they're all giving stock. You know, it's the same situation. If you're, I mean, if everybody's giving advice and that they even have futures on betting and sports betting colliding with the markets. It's and even the Wall Street Journal ran another article saying uh that the market is getting a bee like a casino, and they even had a picture of a casino with people at the craps table. This is in the Wall Street Journal. And so imagine this. All right, let's call the market, and this is what I'm leading up to with the annuities. Let's say it's a casino, the market, and all right, so you're at a casino and you're at the table, and you're winning and winning and winning and winning. Some more the chips are so high they're over your head you can't even see you're winning so much. At that point, what would any smart person do? Take a chip. They take some of those chips, not all, off the table, cash them in at low rates today, and put some of that at least into guaranteed income. This is where annuities come in. You have to have a buffer, a guardrail, a defensive mechanism against a potential crash. Now, I did this myself because I followed my mother's lead years ago. Uh you know, my father died very uh ye many years ago, but my mother lived into her 90s. She was like the energizer bunny. And she had an advisor, you know, before my time, obviously, who realized she's gonna go a long time. And she sold the house we grew up in, and he put her in four or five of these annuities. It turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to our family. Those checks came in no matter how old she got, no matter how sick she got, no matter how the market performed. And what she had was financial freedom. She, you know, I don't have any real data on this, Brad, but from what I've seen about people with guaranteed income, people with guaranteed income, they're just happier people. They don't worry about it. My mother never worried about anything. I couldn't believe it. Even right before she died, I was up to the hospital and I said, Ma, you only have like$600 in your checking account. She said, What do I get? I get five new checks every month. In her mind, she could spend like a drunken sailor because she had new money coming in every month, and I'll never forget that. And I followed that lead. I took annuities. Now, the only thing better than guaranteed income for life, which I love, not for everything, but you have to have some defensive mechanism because as I said, markets go up and down, they eventually go up, but sometimes you don't have enough time. Market returns over time unless you run out of time. So you have to have something. My basic rule is for your basic monthly living expenses. I think that has to be uh secured with guaranteed income. You don't want a situation can't pay the light bill, the market's down. So, I mean, so I took this, and I have the only thing better than guaranteed income for life with annuities is what I have. And you know this because I mentioned it to you at your at your to your group at your seminar there. The only thing better than guaranteed income for life is what I have, and if you've been listening to me, you know what I have. The only thing better than guaranteed income for life? Guaranteed tax-free income for life. Well, Ed, how did you do that? I followed my mother's lead, except I put my annuities, she didn't have Roths, it was before her time and all that. Uh, I put it in my Roth IRAs. I put, not for all of it, but for enough of it. So if I ever need the income, which I hope not. You know, I'm using it for the death benefit to the kids and all that. Sure. But if I ever needed that income, it would come out guaranteed and tax-free because it's a Roth. So what did this enable me to do with the rest of my Roth IRA? I could be much more aggressive with the stock portfolio, knowing I have a defensive mechanism in there. The greatest thing whatever you want to call it.
SPEAKER_02Greatest thing my father did, he passed away three years ago, was he listened to me about annuities and life insurance because he didn't own any, and he was more of a market-driven person and all in, but he bought some life insurance. Thankfully, he bought three annuities and he did conversion. So he passed on tax-free, guaranteed lifetime income to my mother, who will live for 20 more years. She's the energizer bunnyhead, so it's it's great. And you might be listening right now and say, Well, how would this fit in my portfolio? You're listening to America's IRA expert, the tax guru, call us, we'll talk to you about this. 866-780 SAFE. That's 866-780-7233, or just go to Ozarksretirement.com. Friends, I want to thank you so much for joining us today. We're almost out of time. Just have a short few minutes, and hey, this has been a lot of fun. 800 episodes of Safe Money Radio. We're going to do a follow-up show. We're going to have a few guests on. We're going to have a clip from Ed on, and we're going to have Heather Schreiber's going to be on, uh, Dr. Wade Powell, a few other guests, and so, but we wanted Ed on for a whole show. He's the best of the best. And so I want to thank you. And I I want to say this. I I talked about this, you know, one of your shows, we talked, I've had you on to talk about retirement freedom. Your freedoms from four things. Uh freedoms from taxes, worry, risk, and bad advice. Um, why is that important? Why do why do people who are entering into retirement need to be focused on having freedom from taxes, worry, risk, and bad advice?
SPEAKER_03Well, think of it. People have saved and worked and invested their whole life so they could looking at that shining moment when I'm going to be retired, the last thing anybody wants to do is worry when they've done everything right. If you can take all the worry off the table, you'll have the best retirement ever. And the worry is taken off when you can get rid of taxes, worry about living too long and out, you know, living too long and running out of money, worrying about having proper insurance for yourself or your beneficiaries, worried about having money for health reasons. That can all be provided. You take that off the table, uh, you probably won't have too many medical problems because you'll be so happy.
SPEAKER_02Yes, that for sure. Well, friends, I want to say this as we wrap up. You know, in in 2025, a brand new program started through the American College of Financial Services, and I was already a graduate of the Retirement Income Certified Professional program that Ed was graciously one of the hosts, the teachers of and prov adjunct professors for. And so with the TPCP, when I saw Tax Planning Certified Professional, I thought, wow, this goes hand in hand with the Ed SLOT group with tax knowledge. Ed's going to be one of the teachers, Jeffrey Levine, who's been I've known for years, and so I'm like, I've got to do this. And so I jumped in from the beginning. I was finishing the courses before they even had the tests ready. I was like, let's go. And I was one of the very first graduates of TPCP. And so I I've heard Ed say this for years, and I want to share this with you. I know I do it all the time, so if you're a regular listener, you hear me say this all the time. But what people are always like, Why are you getting all these designations? I've got five designations now. The ongoing education is important because I've understood and learned what Ed says, the number one thing that will separate you from the retirement of your dreams is what, Ed?
SPEAKER_03Taxes. Taxes are the single biggest factor that will determine how much you keep and how much goes to the government.
Building Freedom From Taxes And Worry
SPEAKER_02You want to keep more and pay less. So, friends, if you think you've got a million dollars in your 401k and you think that's all yours, you need to call us. We will tell you, we'll give you a big box of Kleenex and explain. That 401k money is not all yours. Uncle Sam is your joint partner, and we will teach you how to get rid of him in the most tax-efficient manner. Ed, I want to thank you. 800 shows. We're out of time, but you've joined us so many times. You're such a great teacher. You've changed my life, you've changed the lives of so many people and clients. So, all of us who are listening, all of us who have been enjoying Safe Money Radio over 800 episodes, thank you so much for all the teaching you've done over all the years.
SPEAKER_03Congrats, Brad. This is amazing what you've accomplished. And the thing is, you're doing great things for your clients. You know, that's what I love about what we do. It's the ripple effect. The how many families are being changed financially, financial freedom, and financial security. That's what I love about it.
SPEAKER_02And they're teaching the next generation who teaches the next. That's why it's so important. And maybe one day we'll celebrate 1,600 episodes. Who knows? I'm gonna keep going and going and going. I look forward to a thousand. Thanks for joining us. Call us anytime, 866-780-7233. Go to the website, Ozarksretirement.com. Thank you, Ed. Thanks, Brad. Well, I'm about out of time, and I would like to thank you for listening to Safe Money Radio. If you're serious about your financial future, give me a call, and together, we'll get your retirement savings on the fast track to accumulation while reducing exposure to market losses. Thanks for listening, and until next time at the same time, I'm Brad Pistol, reminding you to stay safe so you can step into a secure future.
SPEAKER_00You've been listening to Safe Money Radio with your host, Brad Pistol. Find out how to contractually guarantee that your hard-earned money is safe while avoiding market loss so you can have the retirement that you deserve. Call Brad Pistol now for your complimentary safe money book and safe money information kit at 866. 780 SAFE. That's 866. 780 7233. The proceeding information does not represent tax, legal, or investment advice. Surrender charges apply to base contracts. Optional lifetime income benefit riders are used to calculate lifetime payments only and are not available for cash surrender or in a death benefit unless specified in the annuity contract. Fees may apply. Guarantees are based on the financial strength and claims paying ability of the insurance company. No information presented today should be acted upon without meeting with a qualified and licensed professional. Obviously, by calling us now, you are just taking the first step towards protecting your retirement. It's important that you read all insurance contract disclosures carefully before making a purchase decision. Rates and returns mentioned on this program are subject to change without notice.
