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Listen to Episodes of Talking Money®

Talking Money®, the live, call-in radio program airs every Saturday morning from 10:00 to 11:00 on WGTK 94.5 The Answer in Upstate South Carolina. Listen live or check out the podcast. Get the answers you need without the sales pitch.

Episodes by Topic: Portfolio Management

Investment Considerations: Bonds and Inflation


Air Date: November 6th, 2021

Mark Elam, Senior Investment Strategist at Ronald Blue Trust, joins Mike to discuss some important considerations to think about regarding your investments. They answer four listener questions:

  • Is it hard to create my own portfolio of stocks, ETFs, and Mutual Funds?
  • Is there a significant difference between owning a grouping of bond funds or owning a bond portfolio?
  • Considering recent legislation and the concern of rising inflation, should I be more conservative in my investments?
  • A couple currently in their mid-70s has their portfolio at 50% stocks and 50% in mutual funds. Is that reasonable?
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Dealing with Inflation


Air Date: August 7th, 2021

Before diving in to inflation, Mike offers some advice on shopping for a financial advisor: questions to ask and resources to use to check the portfolio they are showing you

Mike then answers questions regarding inflation, such as:

  • How has inflation affected things like buying a car?
  • How does inflation affect investments? Your lifestyle?
  • Typically, people only look at the risk of volatility when considering a stock, but they forget that is a temporary risk. Another, more important consideration is the loss of purchasing power. How does inflation affect this?
  • What is the importance of rebalancing your portfolio?

He also discusses ways to deal with inflation:

  • Reduce and pay off debt.
  • Give appreciated assets instead of cash.
  • Stay in stocks, but keep diversified as well.

To read the latest Economic Review mentioned in this program, click here.

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Government and the Economy


Air Date: January 23rd, 2021

Mark Elam, Senior Investment Strategist at Ronald Blue Trust, joins Mike to discuss how projected policies of the new administration may affect our economy.

Questions answered include:

  • How does the makeup of congress affect the economy?
  • Does all of this stimulus money drive inflation up?
  • It seems the US Dollar is getting weaker in the global economy, is that a cause for concern?
  • What about investing in things like gold?
  • Is there a bubble in the stock market? How does diversification help stabilize a portfolio in a stock bubble?
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