Two in five Americans can't handle a $400 surprise expense, and the median emergency fund sits at a shocking $500-600. Our hosts, Joey Loss and Adam Van Wie, tackle America's savings crisis head-on by offering a practical six-step framework for families to build wealth systematically.

Gen Z has $400 saved, Millennials embarrassingly trail at $300, Gen X holds $500, and even Boomers over 61 manage only $2,000 on average. Against this backdrop, Joey and Adam lay out priorities that could mean the difference between prosperity and poverty.

Step one: emergency fund. Three to six months of expenses creates a buffer between you and credit card debt, which is currently averaging 23% interest. Adam shares his personal victory of watching his 401k halve in 2008, then maxing contributions every year since, on his father's advice. Consistent saving works.

Next, capture your full 401k match (it's free money), fund a Roth IRA if eligible, max your 401k ($23,500 under 50, $30,000+ over), then build a taxable account for flexibility. This three-bucket strategy—traditional, Roth, and taxable—creates what Adam calls a "tax menu" in retirement where you pick your annual tax bill.

For families with kids, 529 plans come sixth, but with warnings. Don't overfund them. Don't prioritize them over retirement. You can borrow for college; you can't borrow for retirement. Florida's prepaid plan gets special mention, guaranteeing lock-in-state tuition rates even if you move away.

The optional seventh step, kids' "liftoff accounts," brings up a debate about setting children up versus letting them struggle appropriately. Adam teaches investing through small UTMA accounts where his kids compete for returns. In fact, his son’s been crushing it with a prescient Fortnite-adjacent investment!

Key Topics:

• America's Emergency Fund Crisis (06:57)
• Emergency Fund as Credit Card Buffer (07:49)
• 401k Match Priority (14:20)
• Roth IRA Eligibility & Benefits (15:47)
• Maxing 401k Strategy (16:45)
• Taxable Account Flexibility (20:34)
• 529 Plans & College Savings (24:13)
• Kids' Liftoff Accounts Debate (30:17)

This podcast is brought to you by Joey Loss, CFP®, Adam Van Wie, CFP®, and Strivus Wealth Partners. Through Strivus, Joey and Adam provide financial planning and investment management services to clients across the country from their home base in Jacksonville Beach, Florida.

You can find show notes and transcript of the conversations here: Strivus Wealth - Wealth Unplugged.

Follow Joey & Strivus on Social Media:

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"If in our job, we got a retirement plan 88% wrong, I think we would rightfully lose our jobs, or at least I would hope we should."

In today’s installment of Market Chatter, Joey Loss and Adam Van Wie of Strivus Wealth Partners dissect the Bureau of Labor Statistics revision that wiped out 258,000 jobs—88% of the reported job creation from the past two months—and what this institutional failure means for Fed policy, market volatility, and your portfolio.

The timing couldn't have been worse. Wednesday, Powell stands firm on no rate cuts, despite two dissenters on his board (the first time since the 1990s). Friday, the BLS essentially admits: "Oops, those jobs we've been counting? Most of them never existed." The original forecast called for 100,000 new jobs; reality delivered around 70,000. But the real bombshell is that revisions have erased nearly 90% of previously reported job growth.

More than bureaucratic incompetence, this is market-moving mayhem. The Fed makes critical policy decisions based on these numbers. Investors gauge economic health through this lens. When your data is 88% wrong, everyone's flying blind. The CME Fed Watch tool went haywire, swinging 60% in both directions within 48 hours.

Joey and Adam pivot to portfolio implications. Growth stocks continue their mysterious dominance—up 17% last quarter, while some value funds actually lost money. Historical patterns suggest owning both, but timing the switch is a fool's errand. The Mag Seven defy gravity in every economic environment, while small caps languish in a 15-year slump.

There’s a silver lining, though. The democratization of investing through zero-fee trading has created an army of dip-buyers. Robinhood deserves credit—when you can invest $10 with zero fees into funds owning thousands of companies, wealth-building becomes accessible to everyone.

Looking ahead, expect volatility through September (traders returning from the Hamptons), but Q4 historically delivers Santa Claus rallies. With housing markets shifting from seller's paradise to buyer's opportunity and rate cuts now virtually guaranteed, positioning matters more than ever.

Key Topics:

• Fed Meeting on Rate Cuts & Two Dissenters (00:52)
• Market Reaction & Institutional Incompetence (03:32)
• Rate Cut Probability Swings (12:10)
• Housing Market Shifts (14:01)
• Diversification Matters (16:58)
• Zero-Fee Trading Revolution (18:52)
• Seasonal Volatility Patterns (22:51)

This podcast is brought to you by Joey Loss, CFP®, Adam Van Wie, CFP®, and Strivus Wealth Partners. Through Strivus, Joey and Adam provide financial planning and investment management services to clients across the country from their home base in Jacksonville Beach, Florida.

You can find show notes and transcript of the conversations here: Strivus Wealth - Wealth Unplugged.

Follow Joey & Strivus on Social Media:

• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Twitter (X)

Read our audio, video, and written content disclaimer here.

“When you understand taxes, there’s so much that you can do that when you add them together, they really do make a difference.”

Today, Joey breaks down 15 key changes in the new 900-page tax bill—what’s already in effect, what’s changing, and how it impacts your income, investments, business, and retirement.

First, the big picture: the U.S. deficit sits at $36 trillion. This tax bill, while aimed at economic growth, is expected to add another $5 trillion to the deficit in the next decade.

Joey walks through three possible deficit solutions—print money (hello, inflation!), raise taxes (bad for growth), or cut taxes and encourage spending. The bill leans into the third. Tax brackets stay low, tips and overtime see new exemptions, and universal deductions for charitable giving finally throw a bone to the 90% who don’t itemize.

Adjusted gross income (AGI) gets a break with smarter 529 rules and the new MAGA account—a $500–$1,000 government-funded growth account for each US Citizen born between 2025 and 2028.

Seniors win big with a bonus standard deduction that effectively erases taxes for those living on Social Security. Business owners can breathe easier with a now-permanent 20% QBI deduction. And if you’re living in a high-tax state, the SALT cap just jumped from $10K to $40K.

Caveat: EV credits vanish after September, so act fast. Meanwhile, the estate exemption stays at $15M per person, avoiding massive tax burdens for wealth transfers—at least for now.

Tax policy may be nerdy, but smart planning can meaningfully boost your nest egg over time. Don’t ignore the small stuff—it adds up.

Key Topics:

• U.S. Deficit & Economic Strategy (00:05)
• New Tax Brackets & Income Planning (06:58)
• Tips, Overtime & Investment Income (10:37)
• Universal Charitable Deduction (12:50)
• 529 Expansion & MAGA Accounts (14:40)
• Senior Deductions & Social Security (19:31)
• QBI Deduction & SALT Cap (21:54)
• EV Credit Expiration (25:50)
• Estate Tax Exemption Made Permanent (26:53)

This podcast is brought to you by Joey Loss, CFP®, Adam Van Wie, CFP®, and Strivus Wealth Partners. Through Strivus, Joey and Adam provide financial planning and investment management services to clients across the country from their home base in Jacksonville Beach, Florida.

You can find show notes and transcript of the conversations here: Strivus Wealth - Wealth Unplugged.

Follow Joey & Strivus on Social Media:

• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Twitter (X)

Read our audio, video, and written content disclaimer here.