Don flies solo from Florida while Tom continues his Euro-tour, tackling the deep flaws in Morningstar’s mutual fund and target-date fund ratings. He skewers their cozy relationship with high-fee fund companies and explains how commission-based funds keep getting top honors while cheaper, investor-friendly alternatives like Vanguard are buried down the list. Don also fields live calls about asset allocation, inherited IRA distribution rules, Roth IRA contribution strategies, and the all-too-real pain of annuity surrender charges—some as high as 12.5% in year one.

0:04 Don opens solo—Tom’s in Germany—and reflects on aging and the Maytag repairman

1:05 A brief history of Don’s 40+ year career in financial media and advice

3:05 Praise for Morningstar’s data, but heavy criticism of its ratings system

5:04 Morningstar’s bias: high-fee target-date funds getting gold medals

9:12 American Funds ranked above Vanguard despite massive commissions

11:01 Don breaks down absurd rankings: T. Rowe, PIMCO, J.P. Morgan all above Vanguard

13:37 Morningstar’s “medal” approach ignores cost—key to long-term returns

14:34 When paying more makes sense (hint: not fund fees)

16:41 Why commissions offer zero investor value

18:24 Share class shell games: A-shares vs. C-shares deception

20:40 Call: AVUV vs VT allocation—Don recommends 10% in AVUV

23:43 Weather sarcasm, caller hesitation, and the “Seattle call effect”

25:16 Tease: Surrender charges on annuities—what you don’t know can cost you

27:09 Annuities: “safe”… but how safe is 12.5% surrender in year one?

29:35 Call: 43-year-old saving $2,400/year in a Roth and wants to do better

32:39 Don’s advice: open an outside Roth, invest in VT, and take the risk quiz

34:39 Call: Inherited IRA RMD rules—Don corrects a past mistake

37:07 Why inherited IRA rules are a legal labyrinth—CPA strongly advised

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