Playbooks

Original explanations, each paired with a calculator you can trust.

Retirement & FIRE

Are You On Track for Retirement? How to Actually Run the Numbers

How to tell if your retirement savings are on track: project your nest egg, set a target from your income and a safe withdrawal rate, and size any shortfall.

June 2026

Auto Loans & Leasing

Should You Buy or Lease a Car?

How to compare buying and leasing a car fairly, what a money factor really means, and the hidden cost of leasing that the monthly payment never shows.

June 2026

Taxes

Capital Gains Tax Explained: Long-Term vs Short-Term Rates for 2026

How federal capital gains tax works in 2026: long-term 0/15/20 percent rates, why holding over a year matters, and the 3.8 percent net investment income tax.

June 2026

Debt Payoff

The Credit Card Minimum Payment Trap (and How to Escape It)

Paying only the minimum on a $5,000 card at 18% takes 29 years and costs more in interest than the balance. Here is why, and how a fixed payment escapes it.

June 2026

Debt Payoff

Debt Snowball vs Debt Avalanche: Which Pays Off Debt Faster and Cheaper?

The debt avalanche always costs less interest, but the snowball keeps more people going. Here is how each works, what they cost, and how to pick.

June 2026

Mortgage & Home

Extra Mortgage Payments vs Biweekly: Which Pays Off Your Loan Faster?

Extra principal and biweekly payments both pay off a mortgage early. Here is the real difference, what each saves on a $300,000 loan, and the fees to skip.

June 2026

Saving

How Much Should You Have in an Emergency Fund?

How to size an emergency fund in months of essential expenses, where to keep it, and how to build one even while paying down debt, with a worked example.

June 2026

Investing

How Much Should I Invest Each Month to Reach My Goal?

Work backward from a savings goal to the exact monthly investment you need, accounting for what you have already saved and the return you assume.

June 2026

Saving

Inflation, Explained: What a Dollar Really Buys Over Time

How inflation quietly erodes the value of money, how the CPI measures it, and what decades of price increases do to a dollar, with real BLS numbers.

June 2026

Retirement & FIRE

Roth vs Traditional: The One Question That Actually Decides It

The Roth vs Traditional choice comes down to your tax rate now versus in retirement. Here is the math, why equal rates tie, and the factors that break the tie.

June 2026

Taxes

Where Your Paycheck Actually Goes: Take-Home Pay Explained for 2026

Why your take-home pay is so much less than your salary, what each deduction is, and how federal tax, FICA, and state tax split up a 2026 paycheck.

June 2026

Investing

The Wheel Strategy: How the Options Income Cycle Actually Works

The wheel sells cash-secured puts then covered calls for premium income. Here is the full cycle, the real return math, and the downside risk it hides.

June 2026

Investing

How Compound Interest Works (and Why Most People Underestimate It)

How compound interest works, with a worked dollar example, the simple-versus-compound gap, the Rule of 72, and why starting early beats starting big.

June 2026

Mortgage & Home

Why Your Early Mortgage Payments Are Almost All Interest (and When That Flips)

How mortgage amortization works: why early payments are mostly interest, the point the split flips to principal, and what it means for extra payments.

June 2026

Real Estate Investing

Is Airbnb Still Worth It in 2026? What Separates Winning Hosts

How Airbnb ROI really works in 2026: why RevPAR and operator quality beat the market, the full expense stack after the 15.5% fee, and a worked example.

June 2026

Retirement & FIRE

Is the 4% Rule Still Safe? Bengen Now Says 4.7%, Morningstar Says 3.9%

Your FIRE number is roughly annual spending times 25, but the safe withdrawal rate is contested. Here is how to find yours and pick a rate that lasts.

June 2026

Real Estate Investing

Is the 1% Rule Dead? How Rentals Actually Make Money in 2026

Why the 1% rule is dead in 2026, the four ways a rental actually pays you, and how cap rate, cash-on-cash, and total return differ, with a worked example.

June 2026