Personal finance, explained with real numbers.
The 2026 IRA contribution limit is $7,500, or $8,600 if you are 50 or older. Those numbers are settled. The traditional-versus-Roth choice is not, and it never will be, because it turns on a figure …
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For tax year 2026 the elective deferral limit for a 401(k) is $24,500 and the contribution limit for an IRA is $7,500. Those are two numbers in two different sections of the tax code — IRC 402(g)(1) …
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The S&P 500 does not hold 500 stocks. S&P Dow Jones Indices' own characteristics table showed 503 constituents when we checked it on August 6, 2026 — several companies have more than one share …
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Three funds tracking the S&P 500 charge 0.015%, 0.03% and 0.0945% a year. Fidelity's 500 Index Fund (FXAIX) is the first, and Fidelity states it in dollars on its own page: $0.15 per $1,000 a …
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Vanguard's VOO and VFIAX are the same fund — one portfolio, two share classes. Over the ten years to July 31, 2026, Vanguard reports the mutual fund class (VFIAX) returned an average of 15.04% a year, …
Continue Reading about ETF vs Index Fund: Same Strategy, Different Wrapper →
Strip the jargon and an index fund is one idea: instead of betting on which companies win, buy a sliver of all of them. A fund tracking a broad index (the S&P 500, or a total-market index) holds …
Continue Reading about Index Funds for Beginners: What “Buying the Market” Actually Means →
