Should You Retire Sooner, and Is Your Fund Winning?

Motley Fool Money

The Motley Fool

Business, Investing

4.4 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 16 August 2025

⏱️ 22 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Wes Moss is a Certified Financial Planner practitioner and the author of “What the Happiest Retirees Know.” In Part 2 of this conversation with Robert Brokamp, Wes discusses the non-financial keys to a fulfilling retirement and whether more people should retire sooner. Also in this episode: -Chaos at the IRS -Credit card delinquencies are rising, and rates are sky-high -Tools to optimize your Social Security claiming strategy -How to determine whether your mutual fund is winning Host: Robert Brokamp Guest: Wes Moss Engineer: Dan Boyd Disclosure: Advertisements are sponsored content and provided for informational purposes only. The Motley Fool and its affiliates (collectively, “TMF”) do not endorse, recommend, or verify the accuracy or completeness of the statements made within advertisements. TMF is not involved in the offer, sale, or solicitation of any securities advertised herein and makes no representations regarding the suitability, or risks associated with any investment opportunity presented. Investors should conduct their own due diligence and consult with legal, tax, and financial advisors before making any investment decisions. TMF assumes no responsibility for any losses or damages arising from this advertisement. We’re committed to transparency: All personal opinions in advertisements from Fools are their own. The product advertised in this episode was loaned to TMF and was returned after a test period or the product advertised in this episode was purchased by TMF. Advertiser has paid for the sponsorship of this episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Is your mutual fund winning, and should you retire sooner?
0:08.4	You're listening to the Saturday personal finance edition of Molly Full Money.
0:20.6	I'm Robert Brokheim, and this week is part two of my conversation with financial advisor and author
0:25.5	West Moss about his years-long research into what makes for a fulfilling retirement.
0:30.6	But first, let's look at what happened last week in money.
0:33.5	And we start with chaos at the IRS.
0:37.1	President Trump recently fired IRS Commissioner Billy Long, who had been on the job for less than two months.
0:42.3	He will be temporarily replaced by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who apparently doesn't have enough on his plate already.
0:48.3	This transition makes Bessett the seventh person to become the head of the IRS so far this year. The seventh. Meanwhile,
0:56.0	a quarter of the IRS's employees have left or been let go in 2025. This comes after
1:02.0	the passage of the one big beautiful bill a month ago, which requires the IRS to provide guidance,
1:06.0	issue regulations, and update publications regarding the myriad changes enacted by the new law.
1:11.7	So it could be an interesting tax filing season next year.
1:15.4	The immediate consequence of all this turnover and reduction in staff is that it may take
1:19.7	longer to get official clarifications from the IRS, either via their publications or if you're
1:24.4	just trying to get anyone on the phone.
1:26.7	It could also mean fewer
1:27.8	audits. And listen, I don't want to be audited more than anyone else, but I also don't
1:32.8	love the idea of people getting away with not paying their lawful share. According to a recent
1:38.0	article in Barron's that highlighted this likelihood of lower audits, the IRS collected $5.1
1:43.5	trillion in 2024 taxes, but estimates that there's another IRS collected $5.1 trillion in 2024 taxes, but estimates
1:47.4	that there's another $700 billion that goes uncollected. Speaking of audits, or what the
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