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Welcome! Bridget Sullivan Mermel and John Scherer talk introduce themselves and talk about why they started the channel, Friends Talk Financial Planning.
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Buying I Bonds Before Rates Drop? What's Best For You?
Buying Series I Bonds before the rates drops make sense for many people. The rate changes on May 1 for new purchases, but in 2023, you...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Apr 17, 2023
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How to Protect Yourself from Identity Theft | Better Safe than Sorry!
It seems like every day we hear about new scams and new scandals with people stealing our identity. On this episode, we’ll talk about...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Apr 1, 2023
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Banks Fail 2023 | FDIC Insurance Explained
If you're worried about what the Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank's recent closings, you'll want to understand exactly what money...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Mar 27, 2023
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Roth for Kids and Grandkids | Making it Easy and Legit!
Kids benefit from Roth, just like grownups do. Children benefit from Roth can be great places to save money and it can be especially...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Mar 20, 2023
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Number One Financial Skill for Retirement | Plus How to Make it Easy!
The number one financial skill for retirement means what you need to have mastered before you give up your job. It's not about...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Mar 13, 2023
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Annuities vs Bond Ladder | Which One is Right for You?
Annuity vs Bond Ladder. Since bonds and CDs are making money again, people are interested in bonds and CD ladders. We wanted to get more...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Mar 13, 2023
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Recession-Proof Your Finances | Us vs ChatGPT
Recession-Proof Your Finances: Which gives better advice on recession-proofing your finances? Experts or ChatGPT? That's what we decided...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Feb 27, 2023
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Mutual Funds vs Exchange Traded Funds | Which Do You Want?
Mutual Fund vs Exchange Traded Fund? There are basic differences you should know. We talk about why the two forms of investment have...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Feb 20, 2023
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How is Football Like Financial Planning? | Special Superbowl Episode!
Financial planning can be compared to playing football in many ways. Just as a football team needs both an offense and a good defense,...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Feb 12, 2023
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Individual 401ks | Save Tax While Saving Big for Retirement
Individual 401Ks, otherwise known as Solo 401Ks, are retirement plans is specifically designed for self-employed individuals and small...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Feb 12, 2023
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What's NOT in SECURE Act 2.0 | What Didn't Make the Cut
What's NOT in the SECURE Act hasn't gotten much attention as everyone, including @FriendsTalkFinancialPlanning, have been focusing on...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Jan 31, 2023
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Convert 529 to Roth | How's This Going to Work?
One of the new provisions o the Secure Act 2.0 is that 529 College Savings Plans are now going to be able to be rolled over into Roth...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Jan 22, 2023
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Don't Buy I bonds | Thought You'd Never Hear Us Say It!
Don’t Buy I Bonds. Here's 4 reasons why Series I Bonds might NOT be right for you, or right for you now. There are drawbacks to I Bonds...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Jan 16, 2023
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Secure Act 2.0 Summary | 4 Facts for 2023
Secure Act 2.0 Summary. The late December passage of the Secure Act 2.0 means that a lot of us missed it. Those of us paying attention...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Jan 10, 2023
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Financial Resolutions for 2023: You Tell Me Yours, I'll Tell You Mine!
Financial Resolutions for 2023. Both John Scherer and Bridget Sullivan Mermel are making them! And we're revealing them in this video....
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Jan 2, 2023
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Spending for Happiness | Easy Way to Improve Relationships
Spending for Happiness: There are some easy ways to spend some money and get more happiness. In this video we talk about the ins and outs...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Jan 2, 2023
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Year End Bear Market Tax Moves | Two ways to Benefit from Down Market
Year End Bear Market Tax Moves--The stock market has been down this year, and we're approaching year end. It's a great time to take a...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Jan 2, 2023
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Investment Management vs Financial Planning | Making Jargon Arrests!
Knowing if you want investment management vs financial planning is a key element in finding the right advice. In this episode, we gently...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Dec 23, 2022
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Emotional Hurdles of Retirement: Two Surprising Challenges
Two Emotional Hurdles of Retirement: Retirement is great, but can feel a lot different than you expect, especially at first. We see that...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Dec 22, 2022
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Smart Charitable Giving | 3 Pro Tips!
Smart Charitable Giving is relevant during this time of year. In this video, we talk about how to give money and save on taxes. Give...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Nov 29, 2022
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I Bonds News | Fixed Rate Explained | Blooper included!
I Bonds News: I bonds are one of our favorite investments. But now, with the new rates as of November 1st being down over 3% compared to...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Nov 20, 2022
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Stock Market Blame and Shame |The Truth About Who is Responsible!
When the stock market goes down, we can immediately think--I don't like this. Someone must be to blame! We proceed, finding a...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Nov 15, 2022
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QCD from IRA: Save Big on Taxes While Helping Charity
Understanding QCDs, or Qualified Charitable Contributions can save you big on your taxes. As a practical matter, there are important...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Nov 6, 2022
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Where to Park Cash | Don't Miss Out | Higher Interest Rates have Arrived!
CDs, or Certificates of Deposit, Treasuries, and TBills are paying higher interest than they have been in years. You can start earning...
Bridget Sullivan Mermel CFP(R) CPA
Oct 30, 2022
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