New Money New Problems Podcast

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ESLD 2026 Employee Benefits and Your Student Loans 

Qualifying Life Events

Eligible FSA Expenses

Eligible Dependent Care FSA Expenses

2026 Open Enrollment Guide: Health Plans, Insurance, FSAs/HSAs, and Retirement Contribution Limits

Brenton Harrison presents the New Money New Problems Podcast’s annual 2026 open enrollment guide, and noting a companion episode on The Escape Student Loan Debt podcast about benefits and federal student loan payments. He explains which elections generally can’t be changed without a qualifying life event (health/dental/vision, life, disability), discusses tradeoffs of high-deductible health plans and eligibility for HSAs, and describes dental and vision as “gift card”-style coverage. He breaks down employer life insurance (imputed GTL, supplemental/spousal/child coverage) and criticizes AD&D. He outlines key disability policy issues (replacement percentage, monthly caps, exclusions, and own-occupation protection). He highlights 2026 FSA limits ($3,400 with $660 rollover) and dependent care FSA limits ($7,500; use-it-or-lose-it), then covers HSA features and 2026 limits ($4,400 self/$8,750 family plus $1,000 catch-up). He reviews 401(k)/403(b)/457 rules and 2026 limits ($24,500 plus catch-ups), including 457 advantages and Roth-only catch-up rules for certain earners, and ends with IRA/Roth IRA/spousal IRA income phase-outs and active-participant considerations.

00:00 2026 Open Enrollment Guide
00:08 Podcast Intro and Purpose
01:31 Ratings Request and Student Loan Note
02:55 Health Dental Vision Choices
08:09 Life Insurance Essentials
12:24 AD&D and Disability Coverage
17:34 FSAs and Dependent Care
21:15 HSAs Triple Tax Benefits
24:39 401k 403b 457 Limits
28:40 IRAs Roth and Spousal Rules
34:01 Wrap Up and Next Steps

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Why The Holidays Aren't Great for Money Talks

A Place for Mom

Elder Care Locator

Benefits CheckUp

Low- and No-Cost Ways to Financially Assist Aging Parents (The Sandwich Generation)

Brenton discusses low- or no-cost ways for “sandwich generation” listeners—those supporting both aging parents and children—to begin organizing and assisting an elderly parent’s finances. He recommends planning effective, pre-scheduled money conversations (not during holidays) with clear outlines and required documents, creating secure shared systems for storing account locations and passwords plus physical safekeeping of key documents, and reviewing beneficiaries, transfer-on-death designations, and trusted contacts to simplify access and avoid probate. He warns against transferring property before death due to unfavorable cost-basis tax consequences versus receiving a step-up in basis after death. He also covers setting scam safeguards (education, spam filters, credit freezes), learning parents’ insurance details including Medicare parts and Medigap enrollment timing, finding senior-assistance resources, and completing power of attorney and simple estate documents using lower-cost services when appropriate.

00:00 Low Cost Elderly Care
00:07 Intro: the sandwich generation
02:32 1. Plan the conversation
05:37 2. Secure storage
08:46 3. Beneficiaries and trusted contacts
11:34 Cost basis and property transfers
14:07 4. Scam safeguards
16:37 5. Insurance and Medicare
21:26 6. Find assistance
22:13 7. Power of attorney
23:59 8. Wills and trusts

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Is $2M of Life Insurance for Under $50/Month Actually a Bad Deal?

In this episode, Brenton discusses Ethos Life, the online life insurance platform. He reviews the pros and cons of simplified issue policies that cap coverage, such as the reduced underwriting requirements in exchange for a narrower profile of people who qualify for affordable rates. He walks through key steps in buying life insurance—calculating needed coverage, choosing term length, comparing carriers and underwriting differences, understanding conversion privileges, and applying with a temporary insurance agreement. He then evaluates the pros and cons and how an online platform versus using an advisor and stresses professional guidance can prevent underinsuring or buying unsuitable terms.

00:00 Big Coverage Cheap
01:11 Why Ethos Exists
03:29 Simplified vs Guaranteed
06:17 How Much You Need
08:55 Picking Term Length
12:19 Comparing Real Quotes
14:43 Underwriting Gotchas
15:55 Conversion Privileges
19:05 Advisor Cost Myth
20:00 Applying and Beneficiaries
23:05 Full Underwriting Benefits
25:23 Accepting or Shopping
26:35 Final Takeaways

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From Cigars to Call Centers: Peter Roth on Pivoting, Cold Calling, and Resilient Entrepreneurship

Host Brenton Harrison interviews entrepreneur Peter Roth, who runs Scalify Call Centers (building remote outbound cold-calling appointment-setting teams for home services and real estate) and MDCWholesaleCigars.com (a long-running cigar wholesaler that recently expanded to B2C). Roth shares immigrating from the USSR as a child, his father’s necessity-driven entrepreneurship, and learning business through family ventures in Denver. After college he realized traditional jobs weren’t a fit and launched a cigar kiosk that grew into a successful cigar bar, later forced to close due to Colorado licensing limits, landlord conflict, and COVID timing. An HVAC remediation effort led to an HVAC partnership, then solar sales growth to 130 reps, where cold-calling call centers emerged as an effective lead engine and became its own business. He emphasizes networking, recurring-revenue models, “delusional” confidence/optimism, and recounts an employee’s attempted takeover via Slack ownership that cost clients and revenue but exposed operational weaknesses.

00:00 Show Introduction
01:27 Meet Peter Roth
03:04 Immigrant Roots
06:40 Growing Up Denver
08:00 Choosing Entrepreneurship
11:39 Launching Cigars
14:06 Cigar Bar Shutdown
17:18 Pivot To Call Centers
18:40 HVAC Detour Begins
20:56 Building Sales Team
22:23 Adding Solar Upsells
23:03 Selling HVAC Pivot
23:32 Scaling Solar Sales Team
24:29 Accidental Call Center Breakthrough
25:33 Demand for Call Center Services
28:04 Outbound vs Inbound Explained
29:18 Best Niches Homeowners Real Estate
30:32 Transferable Entrepreneur Skills
34:46 MRR Over Projects
35:56 Employee Coup Crisis
38:58 Rebuilding With Perspective
42:07 Networking Lessons Learned
44:58 Optimism Relationship Superpower
45:52 Podcast Wrap Up

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New Payment Guidelines Details

Repayment Assistance Plan Explained

Two Federal Student Loan “Deadlines” SAVE 90-Day Notices and the Auto-Pay Interest Discount Extension

In an off-schedule New Money, New Problems/Escape Student Loan Debt episode, Brenton Harrison explains two federal student loan “pseudo deadlines” and related policy changes. First, some SAVE plan borrowers received a July 1 notice starting a 90-day window to switch repayment plans; those who don’t switch risk being moved to a potentially unaffordable Standard Repayment Plan, and Brenton recommends using studentaid.gov, reviewing whether IRS tax access should be granted or revoked, and using alternative income documentation when needed. He emphasizes the real deadline depends on each borrower’s notice date, with some not receiving notices until as late as spring 2027. Second, a hard September 30 deadline to enroll in auto-pay for a temporary 1% interest rate reduction was extended to December 31, 2026; he discusses savings, servicer autopay errors, and why autopay may help ensure forgiveness credit given new rules. He also warns that borrowers receiving RAP interest subsidies and principal reductions should not pay extra due to Department of Education processing limitations, and urges careful documentation and staying current on Department of Education announcements.

00:00 Two Key Loan Deadlines
00:49 Podcast Crossover Update
02:36 SAVE Plan 90 Day Clock
04:20 Switch Plans on StudentAid
06:35 Why Today May Not Matter
07:50 Autopay Discount Extension
12:01 Why Autopay Protects Credits
13:31 RAP Subsidy Explained
15:59 Dont Pay Extra Warning
17:14 Document Everything Next Steps

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For long-term investors, years where the stock market goes down can represent an opportunity, not an obstacle. In this episode, we prove it to you.

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Check out our episode on PMI

National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators

Retirement Savings Lost and Found Database

Workers Owed Wages Database

Mortgage Insurance Premium Refund Database

Find Your Money Online: Unclaimed Property, PMI Refunds, Unpaid Wages & Lost 401(k)s

Brenton opens the New Money, New Problems podcast by sharing recent heavy travel and an upcoming trip to São Paulo, Brazil to speak on building a digital footprint and niche as a financial advisor, thanking listeners for enabling the opportunity. He then explains legitimate ways to find money owed to you online, organized by where you’ve lived, worked, and how you live. He highlights state unclaimed property divisions for refunds like utilities or insurance reimbursements, noting claims may be larger than displayed and can include overlooked life insurance benefits. He discusses removing or refunding mortgage insurance premiums (PMI), including requesting removal at 80% loan-to-value, using appraisals after home value increases, or refinancing. He covers searching for unpaid wages and locating forgotten employer retirement accounts via a Department of Labor site, and suggests reviewing subscriptions with tools like Rocket Money or Monarch and reselling valuable unused clothing or shoes.

00:00 Free Money Intro
00:45 Host Update Thanks
02:43 Unclaimed Property Basics
05:49 PMI Refunds Removal
10:59 Unpaid Wages Old 401k
13:59 Subscriptions Reselling
16:23 Wrap Up Next Week

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Estate Planning Starts Sooner Than You Think: Wills, Trusts, Incapacity, and Protecting Family Wealth

EPISODE RESOURCES

The Law Office of Sheuvaun Vernon

Connect With Her Online!

Host Brenton Harrison welcomes estate planning attorney Sheuvan Vernon (The Trusted Esquire), founder of the Law Office of Sheuvaun Vernon serving New York and New Jersey, to discuss how estate planning begins earlier than most people expect and intersects with every life stage. Using public examples like Chadwick Boseman and Nipsey Hussle, they explain common misconceptions (estate planning is only for older people, only a will is needed, trusts are only for the rich) and emphasize planning for incapacity through HIPAA authorizations, healthcare proxies, and powers of attorney. They outline needs across ages: at 18, parents lose automatic authority; in the 20s–30s, relationships, beneficiary forms, prenups, and guardianship become key; for parents, trusts can prevent an ex from controlling a minor child’s inheritance; in midlife, wills vs revocable living trusts, funding trusts, probate privacy, and Medicaid planning risks arise; in later years, documents should be reviewed for life changes, divorce, retirement, and long-term care. Vernon advises finding a trusted professional and shares how to contact her.

00:00 Estate Planning Matters
02:26 Meet The Trusted Esquire
04:17 Why Community Wealth
06:03 Common Estate Myths
08:06 Turning 18 Changes Everything
12:30 Mid 20s Money Moves
15:50 Prenups And Planning
18:50 Kids Guardians Trusts
21:24 Wills Vs Trusts
25:50 Medicaid Sandwich Generation
29:11 Retirement Plan Checkup
31:55 First Steps And Finding Help
34:05 Where To Find Shevonne

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Updated Payment Guidance from Department of Ed

Federal Student Loan Updates: MOHELA Default Letters, IDR Recertification Tips, New On‑Time Rules, PSLF Tracker Issues, Borrowing Limits Lawsuit, and PSLF Buyback Progress

In this episode, we share major federal student loan updates, focusing on errors and rule changes affecting forgiveness and repayment. MOHELA mistakenly sent default-risk notices to thousands of borrowers who were current. With income recertification restarting after the 2020 pause, we share alternate forms of documentation that might be preferable to a tax return. Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the grace period for on-time payments is removed for IDR and PSLF credit, creating concerns about weekends and autopay timing; Repayment Assistance Plan borrowers also risk losing interest subsidy and $50 principal reduction if late, and guidance suggests extra payments may disrupt subsidies. The PSLF tracker temporarily disappeared and some counts were reduced, potentially correcting prior adjustment-era credits. A lawsuit has temporarily paused lower graduate borrowing limits, and PSLF Buyback processing appears to be improving after streamlining to a button-based application.

00:00 Student Loan News Intro

00:44 Back in Studio Updates

02:15 MOHELA Default Letter Error

03:37 Recertify Income Smartly

07:45 Grace Period Removed Shock

10:43 RAP Subsidy and Extra Pay

13:58 PSLF Tracker Disappears

18:11 Borrowing Limits Lawsuit

20:22 PSLF Buyback Speeds Up

21:57 Wrap Up and Next Steps

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Trump Accounts Explained: Pros, Cons, and Whether Politics Should Matter

In this episode we cover Trump Accounts, launched July 2026, which offer a $1,000 initial contribution for children born January 1, 2025–December 31, 2028. Brenton discusses the political and moral hesitation some parents feel, especially for marginalized communities. For those interested, we cover how to open the account current custody options, investment limitations, tax features and more. We then compare the functionality of the Trump Account to other accounts commonly used to save for children's futures: a custodial IRA, Uniform Gift to Minors Accounts, brokerage accounts and a 529 savings plan.

00:00 Can You Turn Down 191K
00:47 Back to School Chaos
01:33 What Are Trump Accounts
02:21 Politics and Parenting Pressure
05:33 Dave Ramsey Clips
07:13 How to Open and Invest
08:57 Comparing Kids Savings Options
11:34 Limits and Tax Basics
17:18 Withdrawals and Ownership Rules
21:54 Messenger vs Message Wrap Up
24:01 Compound Interest Reality Check
25:21 Final Takeaways

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