Ross Anderson, CFP® and Daniel Messeca, CFP®
298 episodes listed below
Practical money talk with planning depth.
Check Your Balances pairs listener questions, market anxiety, and household money chores with calm financial planning talk. Ross Anderson and Dan Maseca keep the advice grounded in cash flow, taxes, benefits, investing habits, and the small choices that shape a plan over time.
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Check Your Balances is a personal finance and investing show with a planning-first center of gravity. Ross Anderson and Dan Maseca bring the rhythm of two people who have talked through real money problems many times before. The episodes rarely stay at the level of general encouragement. A spring cleaning theme becomes a review of recurring expenses, contribution rates, tax refunds, and the way uneven pay cycles can distort a household budget. That practical bent is the show’s strongest pattern. The hosts like a concrete mechanism. They explain why a central deposit account can smooth spending, why paying disability premiums personally can change the tax treatment of benefits, and why a young investor might be better served by steady dollar-cost averaging than daily portfolio checking. The conversations are calm, but not flat. Banter about holidays, broken cameras, skiing, brackets, frozen driveways, and live listener events keeps the show from sounding like a seminar. Then the topic usually tightens into advice with a clear constraint attached. Cash flow matters. Taxes matter. Employer benefit choices matter. Behavior matters when markets are noisy. The show also knows when a listener’s emotional problem is the real financial problem, as in mailbag questions about scarcity, spending permission, Roth conversion arguments, and the itch to act during volatility. Investment episodes reach beyond index-card basics without chasing hype. With Simon Erickson, the hosts move through SaaS pressure, quantum computing, AI-related demand, valuation, and the difference between business quality and stock price expectation. Anniversary and live-event episodes show a long-running relationship with an engaged audience. The show feels built for financially curious adults who already know the basics but still want sharper judgment. It is not flashy. Its appeal is the way it turns ordinary money friction into decisions someone could actually make on Monday morning.
Made for: The show suits financially curious adults who want applied guidance on investing, taxes, benefits, cash flow, and retirement behavior. It is especially useful for listeners who already save and invest but want better judgment around edge cases and tradeoffs.
What sets it apart: Check Your Balances stands out by turning familiar household situations into specific planning mechanics. The hosts keep market talk, listener mail, and benefits questions tied to taxes, behavior, and cash-flow consequences.
Managing your money doesn't have to be boring. Check Your Balances is your weekly financial co-pilot, hosted by two experienced financial planners. We deliver straight-talk strategies and expert-level advice to help you save, invest, and finally feel 100% in control on your journey to financial independence.
Based on 4 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Ross Anderson and Dan Maseca turn financial uncertainty into approachable conversations about planning choices, market behavior, and the habits behind money decisions.
Ross Anderson and Dan Maseca make financial planning sound like an ongoing conversation between friends who enjoy testing advice against real decisions.
A busted bracket becomes your cue to check which financial risks could wreck the whole plan.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A practical money reset built around spending, savings, and steadier cash flow.
Check Your Balances treats spring cleaning as a straightforward money reset. It walks through the basics: review spending, check whether savings and retirement contributions still fit, and decide if those amounts should change after a tax refund or another shift in cash flow.
Ross Anderson and Dan Maseca use NCAA brackets to frame a practical discussion of disability insurance, taxes, and cash-flow risk.
Ross Anderson and Dan Maseca use NCAA brackets as a simple way into a more useful question: what actually knocks a financial plan off course. The episode is at its best when it gets into disability insurance and the tax treatment around premiums, showing how out-of-pocket…
A steady mailbag that treats money habits as behavior, not theory.
Check Your Balances uses a monthly mailbag to work through two familiar money habits: wanting permission to spend and wanting certainty in a volatile market.
A calm market conversation that turns valuation talk into a usable investing framework.
Simon Erickson joins Check Your Balances for a grounded look at what is moving markets and how investors can think about the future. The conversation is at its best when it separates business performance from valuation, then tests that lens against a concrete example like…
Real-estate freedom, taught in plain numbers.
Spring cleaning becomes a money checklist.
Bracket busters set the hook.
Check Your Balances spends the March mailbag on two recurring retirement questions: how to loosen up when a household is saving 43% of gross income, and how to think about Roth conversions when markets are volatile.
Ross Anderson and Dan Maseca welcome Simon Erickson, founder of Seven Investing.
The hosts discuss capital gains distributions and mortgage refinancing while reflecting on their recent successful live show and listener interactions.
The hosts celebrate their five-year anniversary by sharing fun facts and reflecting on the show's history.
The hosts discuss scenarios where borrowing money for a 100-year term might make sense, blending financial advice with light banter.
Hosts discuss cold weather and a frozen driveway, then introduce a financial planning lesson inspired by the experience.
A personal finance podcast episode featuring a CPA discussing tax season preparation and changes in the tax landscape.
The hosts rant about the overstated joys of homeownership and annuities, offering financial advice.
The hosts discuss how to invest in a K-shaped economy and evaluate the value of market forecasts.
The hosts discuss a daily budgeting framework and share Thanksgiving experiences before diving into financial advice.
Two financial planners discuss whether financial plans are too focused on retirement and share personal anecdotes.
The hosts discuss whether now is a good time to refinance mortgages given dropping rates, with their usual banter and financial expertise.
The hosts interview David Gardner, co-founder of The Motley Fool, about his new book on rule-breaking investing strategies.
Host Ross Anderson interviews Callum Thomas about whether emerging market equities are undervalued, under-owned, and underestimated.
Host Ross Anderson questions whether he is the worst real estate investor ever after buying a home at a potentially bad time, discussing his market predictions and timing.