Five mistakes experts see people make with 529 plans

Smart tips for making the most of your 401(k)

There’s a lot of advice about handling a 401(k), but it can be mired in disclaimers and legalese. Come prepared to your financial advisor or accountant by watching this informative take on how to properly use a 401(k), from consolidating plans to some of the most common errors.

A parent explains 529 plans and why they decided to start one

The parent explains the basics of what a 529 is, its advantages, and how it works, breaking down portfolio options for investing in 529 plans using Vanguard as a provider.

The scope of 529 plans has expanded, but 529s still have some drawbacks

The tax-advantaged accounts can be used to pay for K-12 education, apprenticeship programs, and student loans, in addition to their original purpose: paying for college. But 529s have downsides, such as fees and penalties for non-qualified uses.

Contributing to a friend’s child’s 529 Account

A podcast listener asks about contributing to a 529 savings plan for their friend’s child. The hosts go over the basics of what a 529 is and how it works, and then give advice on how the listener can contribute, touching on how to have conversations about money with friends.

Many states offer a tax deduction for investing in their 529 plans

Different states offer different types of 529 plans (prepaid and savings), and they can require different minimum contributions. While some states offer tax deductions for residents who invest in their state’s plan, investors can choose to use a different state’s plan instead.

Listen to a podcast that answers common questions about alternative investments

This podcast episode starts with an explanation of what alternative investments are, then goes on to explain how people use them to diversify their financial portfolios and answer some common questions about alternative investments. Notably, the host interviews a certified financial planner about the topic.

Learn how to invest in index funds with this step-by-step guide

There are a few questions experts suggest answering before investing in an index fund, such as your goals for your investment and the index you want to track. This article walks you through those questions to help you get started.

Financial caregiving 101

In this podcast episode, a financial expert outlines how to prepare to financially take care of an elderly parent before they get sick or an emergency happens. This includes ensuring their payments are automated, getting access codes for their cell phones and accounts, and more.

The best investing advice for new college grads

While new college graduates typically don't have much money to invest, creating a plan for the money they earn from their first job can set them up for a promising financial future. This list of investing advice for new grads includes recommendations like enrolling in their company's retirement plan as soon as possible, prioritizing building an emergency fund, and more. Read the full list here.

Paperwork errors cost families millions in life-insurance payouts

This podcast episode reveals how human missteps by employers and insurance providers caused hundreds of families who paid life-insurance premiums to be denied millions of dollars in death benefits. A Wall Street Journal reporter breaks down how flaws in the system made this happen.

Addressing psychological barriers to building wealth

Almost half of adults in the US report owning no investable assets. For many, the barrier to entry is the belief that investing is too complex for them to get involved. Consulting with a financial psychologist, this article addresses the cognitive bias that causes so many people to miss out on financial opportunities, and offers tips on how to get past the anxieties and just begin.

College budgets, explained

In this episode of the FutureU podcast, higher education experts Jeff Selingo and Michael Horn explore why so many colleges seem to be struggling financially. Hear how college budgets actually work, and why so many are unsustainable. It’s a crash course in revenue, expenses, and the big shifts schools need to make to survive.

One financial planner says FIRE is a bad idea

Some financial professionals argue that those following the FIRE (financial independence, retire early) movement might be basing their math on too short of a timeline, leaving them without enough money if they live further into old age than expected.

Test your ETF knowledge

A 10-question quiz from the SEC allows investors to test their basic knowledge about exchange-traded funds and their investing counterparts, mutual funds. Here’s a sample question: Is the past performance of a fund a good indicator of future results? (Hint, the answer is no).

School choice vouchers have had mixed results

This podcast breaks down the arguments for and against vouchers and untangles what data suggests about them. While some states showed vouchers improving student learning, studies in Louisiana and Indiana showed that students who left public schools for private schools performed worse.

Retail investors are not professionals—they invest their own money

For retail investors, the stakes may seem higher and more personal. Critics say that this dynamic means that retail investors are more susceptible to behavioral biases that could lead them to make poor decisions when it comes to buying and selling assets. For instance, fear of missing out could cause a retail investor to buy a stock that is popular but not a financially worthy investment.

Investing in bonds comes with a few risks

Think: changes in interest rates that impact the bond’s value, or a bond issuer completely defaulting on a loan. There are steps investors can take to lower their initial and future risk when investing in the bond market, such as checking a company's bond rating before investing.

Financial advice from America’s founding fathers

Several of America's founding fathers—Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton—espoused various financial platitudes during their lives. According to the financial publication Kiplinger, much of their advice holds up in modern times. This article rounds up a few wise words from the founding fathers (and even one first lady) about compound interest, taxes, and education. For money-management tips from America's early days, click here.

7 things to know about inherited IRA rules

An inherited IRA is any kind of IRA or 401K plan you inherited from someone after they’ve died. Since there are different tax advantages for each type of retirement account, the rules you have to follow widely differ based on the account, your relationship to the deceased, and how you want to use the money. Here are the seven things you must know to navigate an inherited IRA.

Pension plans investing over 60% in stocks had the highest real returns in 2024

In order to ensure that retirees received all the retirement funds a company or other institution may have promised them, pensions were often limited to investing in run-of-the-mill assets like government securities, investment-grade bonds, and blue-chip stocks. But as market conditions have evolved, pensions are increasingly being invested in a wider range of assets, including alternative investments.

Tax policy can have a direct impact on the national debt

Past presidents' changes to tax codes have inflated the deficit. An expert on the topic explains the interplay between policy and the national budget while debunking 10 tax-related myths in this podcast.

Early-stage investors say ‘no’ to the vast majority of funding pitches

Angel investor Alicia Syrett details the top reasons investors turn down entrepreneurs. For example, the entrepreneur didn’t do their homework by, for instance, not researching the investor.

A deep dive into Enron, one of the largest accounting scandals in history

Investing comes with great opportunities for reward, but it also carries great risk. Investors learned that the hard way when Enron collapsed. Everyone lost money—from the largest institutions on Wall Street to mom-and-pop investors who bought S&P 500 index funds. This series from American Scandal starts with a close-up into an investment manager at Enron who started to unravel the accounting scandal happening behind the scenes. Listen here.

Mutual funds come with a few fees

Since many mutual funds are actively managed, investors will have to pay regular fees to fund this service. Plus, there are exchange fees, purchase fees, marketing fees, and many more.

Visualizing 11 cognitive biases that influence how you think

Humans are hardwired to make mental mistakes called cognitive biases, affecting the way we view our world. Among the most common are confirmation bias (seeking only evidence that affirms your views), authority bias (overweighting things said by authority figures), groupthink (assimilating ideas to avoid conflict), and more. This quick chart gives an overview of some of the most notable ways we mislead ourselves.

Hedge funds, the private investment firms that trade a wide swath of financial assets, make money by imposing steep fees on investors and from the fund's investment performance.

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

Play the role of a student in a game where you try to navigate college and remain debt-free, selecting different income levels, high school experience, race, ethnicity, and more.

Children are now three times more likely to say they want to be a YouTuber when they grow up than an astronaut, with some even attending 'YouTube camps' that teach kids how to create content for the platform.

Watch this video that uses Lego bricks to explain how venture capital works.

Warren Buffett's former professor Benjamin Graham is known as the 'father of value investing,' a strategy in which investors seek to buy stocks trading below their intrinsic worth.

A Yale student wrote a profound essay about the consulting industry's influence on elite college students that was published in a book of her writing after she died in a post-graduation car accident.

SpaceX's S-1 or 'prospectus' revealed many previously unknown details about the company, including its unprofitability despite doing $18.7B in revenue in 2025, exactly how many voting shares Elon Musk will have in the company (roughly 85%), and more.

US housing costs have risen by roughly 175% between 1991 and 2026—but a growing number of Gen Zers are becoming homeowners anyway. In 2025, 4% of homebuyers were Gen Z, up from 3% the year before.

The first steps to rebuilding your credit score include getting to know exactly what's on your credit report and figuring out how far you are from the '700 club,' or 'good score' range.

Listen to an in-depth conversation on the links between Parkinson's disease and herbicide exposure and the challenging pace of scientific investigation.

Despite being favored by 87% of Americans, Congress does not have term limits.

Dozens of S&P 500 stocks, including Coca-Cola and Walmart—known as the dividend aristocrats—have increased dividends every year for 25 years

See a ranking of the best (and worst) Federal Reserve Chairs since 1914 out of the 16 men and women who have held the office since.

Calculate how much of your tax dollars go to each federal program based on your income, filing status, and number of children

Indefinite cloning of some endangered species may not sustain their longevity because cloning success rates decrease as genetic mutations accumulate.

Explore an interactive map built from more than 100,000 survey responses on where people find joy in their lives

How the most famous Ebola book, The Hot Zone, which sold 3.5 million copies and was translated into 30 languages, got aspects of the disease so wrong.

Radioactive elements can introduce software errors because the ionizing radiation they produce can detach electrons from atoms, and computer code relies on the distribution of electrons.

Researchers believe the brain consolidates memories, processes emotions, and plans for the future during dream states

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.

Memecoins are a type of cryptocurrency—a form of digital currency with a wide variety of uses—created around popular 'memes,' or viral internet jokes.

See this overview of the firework rules across all 50 states, ranging from a complete ban on non-professional fireworks in Massachusetts to states with more lax rules like Indiana.

US intelligence allegedly pursued more than 600 schemes to assassinate Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro.

Lesser-known phobias include turophobia, or the fear of cheese, and nomophobia, the fear of being without your cell phone.