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Your REAL personal finance questions answered by CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals, Scott Frank and Nick Covyeau. With all of the misinformation and jargon in the financial industry, it's no wonder most people are confused about how to best manage their money. Scott and Nick are here to give clear answers to the important questions they hear most often. If you're ready to use your finances to create a more secure financial future, this show is for you.
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Real Personal Finance connects retirement math and investment choices to the practical question of how someone wants to live.
Real Personal Finance turns consequential money questions into manageable planning decisions. Scott Frank works with Meg Bartelt or Nick Cavio in a conversational, one-question format, moving from the numbers to the life those numbers are meant to support.
Call in rich, then explain what you'd actually do with Tuesday.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A grounded case for treating gifting as part of the plan while it still matters.
The episode frames gifting as a question of timing, not just good intentions. Scott Frank and Nick Cavio keep it tied to the real pressures families face: retirement, home buying, childcare, and the limits of what a parent can give without strain.
A clear look at deferred comp as a retirement timing problem, not a simple tax decision.
Deferred compensation is handled as a planning problem with moving parts, not a clean tax yes-or-no. Scott Frank and Nick Cavio trace the math behind it: tax savings now and in retirement, bracket timing later, and how installment payments can fit into a broader retirement…
A practical year-end money checklist that stays grounded in real financial choices.
Scott Frank and Nick Cavio frame year-end money planning as a set of manageable choices rather than a looming chore. The episode moves through practical steps people may still weigh before the calendar turns, including the tax picture, 401(k) contributions, capital gains, and…
A straightforward benefits checkup that turns open enrollment into a money-saving decision.
This episode treats open enrollment as household math, not paperwork theater. Scott Frank and Nick move through HSA contributions, catch-up limits, Roth 401k options, mega backdoor Roths, and the different job an FSA takes once the calendar starts to matter.
Plain-English money talk that favors reality over tidy answers.
The episode treats money as a human problem, not just a tidy set of numbers. Scott Frank and Carl Richards spend most of the conversation on why people reach for clear answers, and why that comfort falls apart when life keeps changing.
A steady retirement reality check for anyone wondering whether they are actually behind.
Real Personal Finance frames a 41-year-old listener with about $95,000 saved as a useful reality check rather than a panic alarm. Scott and Nick keep the discussion anchored in plain household terms, especially the gap between pre-tax and Roth take-home pay and what it means…
A practical look at the shift from paycheck to retirement income.
Retirement is framed here less as an ending than as a shift in cash flow, and that is the more useful lens. Scott Frank and Nick Cavio spend the episode on what happens when the paycheck stops but the spending life does not.
A year-start reset for checking whether a portfolio is broader than it looks.
This episode opens with a straightforward year-start check on whether a portfolio still matches the story its owner tells about it. Scott Frank and Meg Bartelt move from the big picture to a sharper question: whether a mix of holdings is truly diversified, or just looks that way…
Paul Haavardsrud unpacks Canadian money stories, from ski-hill VIP pricing to French butter tariffs.
Real-estate freedom, taught in plain numbers.
Real Personal Finance breaks down the OBBBA by focusing on tax rates, retirement deductions, SALT relief, and the bill’s pay-fors.
Real Personal Finance breaks down how the IRS “pay taxes as you go” system works for salaried workers, people with RSUs, small business owners, and newly retired listeners.
Real Personal Finance asks why investors keep treating the S&P 500 like the full market when it is only 80% of the U.S.
Scott Frank of Stone Steps Financial and Nick Cavio of Swell Financial Partners frame the episode around a single question: where should saving start, and what comes next?
Scott Frank of Stone Steps Financial and Nick Cavio of Swell Financial Partners use a $750,000 condo example, a $150,000 down payment, and a 7% mortgage to show how to test whether homeownership actually fits a family’s cash flow.
Scott and Nick start with the market's bigger problem: uncertainty.
Scott Frank and Nick Cavio start by bringing the discussion back to control.
Scott Frank and Nick Cavio take on a late-career retirement question.
Scott and Nick take on the familiar question of whether $2 million is enough to retire early.
A certified financial planner answers a client's question about whether they will be okay if their high-paying tech job is eliminated, using a framework to assess single employer risk.
This episode explains how a large 401k balance can create a future tax problem and offers strategies to manage it.
Giving later is not automatically kinder.
Real Personal Finance hosts Scott Frank and Nick Cavio explain deferred compensation plans for tech and biotech executives.
Scott Frank and Nick Cavio start with a year-end planning question.
Personal finance experts break down open enrollment benefits strategy, focusing on HSA vs traditional PPO comparison, tax advantages, and lifecycle decision-making to avoid leaving money on the table.
Scott Frank, founder of Stone Steps Financial, hosts Carl Richards, the former New York Times columnist known for his simple sketches about money, and the two spend most of the episode on planning, uncertainty, and cash flow.
Scott Frank and Nick Cavio open with a listener question about retirement catch-up.
Scott Frank and Nick Cavio dig into that awkward first stretch of retirement when the paycheck is gone but the habits are still hanging around.
Scott Frank and Nick Cavio use listener Nathan’s question to explain 2025 retirement-plan limits, including the $23,500 employee cap for 401(k) and 403(b) plans and the $7,500 catch-up at age 50.
Scott Frank and Meg Bartelt of Real Personal Finance break down five annual investment-review steps, starting with account aggregation in tools like Monarch Money, Quicken, Empower, and Fidelity Full View.
Scott Frank and Meg Bartelt start with the familiar New Year scramble of getting the date wrong.
Financial advisors Scott Frank and Meg Bartelt discuss reframing personal finance around life design rather than tactics.
Certified financial planners discuss whether to rent or buy a home, considering financial and emotional factors.
Scott and Meg explain what a Roth conversion is and discuss when it might be beneficial or detrimental.
Hosts Scott Frank and James Canole introduce their podcast, which answers real personal finance questions to help listeners make better financial decisions.
Scott and James answer a listener's question about the risk of investing in the S&P 500 due to its heavy concentration in large tech firms.