The #SerenityWealthNow Show

🥧 SWN 116 - 09/27/26 | Slicing a Fair Share of Your Pie 🥧

This week on The #SerenityWealthNow Show, we sit down with Joel Houser of Fortis Strategic Partners. A fellow tax strategist who has spent years helping entrepreneurs build the kind of forward-looking plan that provides value long after the return has been filed.

🎙️ Join Chris Cooper and Joel as they break down why the government's definition of "fair share" rarely matches yours, the misconception about trusts when it comes to taxes, and how the ten year clock on an inherited IRA just might be the most expensive surprise your kids never see coming.

When it comes to taxes, we all want our "fair share" to be as low as possible. It's easy to say someone else's should be higher, unless you are that someone. It's not about tax avoidance, we've all got to give a piece of the pie for the services we need.

We just want to keep a bigger piece of the pie we've made.

🎟️ Reserve your Spot for our Live Experience on October 1st: https://www.SerenityWealthNow.com/Decisions

Visit Fortis Capital Advisors

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👼 SWN 115 - 09/20/26 | Home Is Where the Plan Is 👼

This week on The #SerenityWealthNow Show, we sit down with Shelby Lawhorn of Angels on Duty. A family-run practice built to keep people at home as long as possible, with quality care that grows as the need does, meeting families wherever they are in their journey.

🎙️ Join Chris Cooper and Shelby as they break down why long-term care rarely starts with a nursing home, expose the coverage gap draining policies (and assets) dry, and why taking even the smallest steps early can go the farthest.

A plan built in small steps tends to hold up better than one assembled under pressure. Starting early is what buys you choices later.

The earlier you plan, the smaller the steps have to be.

🎟️ Reserve your Spot for our Live Experience on October 1st: https://www.SerenityWealthNow.com/Decisions

Visit Angels On Duty

⏳ SWN 114 - 09/13/26 | Someone Will Decide. Might As Well Be You. ⏳

This week on The #SerenityWealthNow Show, we sit down with Robynn Ragland of Ragland Estate Law. An Estate Attorney who is hired to be human, not crank out forms, and it shows in how she works with the families she helps.

🎙️ Join Chris Cooper and Robynn as they break down why a signed trust can still be an empty promise if it's never "funded," why a blank beneficiary field carries more weight than people realize, and why naming a guardian for your kids isn't a decision you want left to a courtroom.

A plan sitting in a drawer doesn't do much for the people around you today. But naming a guardian, updating a beneficiary, and having conversations today can turn chaos into clarity for those who are important to you, all while you're here to provide it.

Estate planning isn't about what happens after you're gone. It's for the people you care about today.

🎟️ Reserve your Spot for our Live Experience on October 1st: https://www.SerenityWealthNow.com/Decisions

Visit Ragland Estate Law

A Rate Hike & Controlling the Decisions You Can
Serenity Wealth Live on the Vic Porcelli Show: 09/18/26

Chris joins Vic & Ken for a timely read on the Fed's latest quarter point rate move, plus a prelude to 3 Decisions that get made for you if you don't make them first.

The recent quarter point interest means a little more yield in your savings accounts and perhaps some short term pressure on bond prices. The flip side is higher borrowing rates in an effort to stabilize inflation. As inflation woes settle, rates will likely decline as well.

The key is to control what you can. And that means being comfortable with uncomfortable conversations. Estate Planning, Long-term Care Planning, and Tax Planning. All risks you can't control, but you can control how you plan for them.

The market may decide the rate. But you get to decide your readiness.

Maximize your Giving
Serenity Wealth Live on the Vic Porcelli Show: 08/21/26

Chris joins Vic to talk tax-smart charitable giving, with a special highlight to the mission of the MO Better Foundation. An organization built to enhance the lives of Missourians with physical disabilities.

When it comes to giving, we want "MO" of our money going to the great causes we support. Strategies like Qualified Charitable Distributions, Donor-Advised Funds, or donating appreciated stock can stretch your generosity farther, by reducing your tax bill.

Take $5,000 out of your IRA, write a check to your church, and it's taxable income. Send that same $5,000 straight from your IRA to the church, and it is a non-taxable distribution. Same gift, same charity, stretched farther. That's tax-efficient giving.

Giving makes a difference. But Giving Smarter, can make an even greater impact.

Trump Accounts & The Meaning behind the Marketing
Serenity Wealth Live on the Vic Porcelli Show: 07/24/26

Chris visits the studio to share his thoughts on the new "Trump Account" and how it stacks up against a 529 and other savings vehicles. But the real conversation isn't about which account wins. It's to focus on the why.

Before you put money anywhere, stop and ask: what am I actually trying to accomplish? What is this money's job?

Both accounts hand a lump sum of money to your kid at 18 and assume they'll be a responsible adult. No strings attached, no take-backs. That should make you pause. The fix isn't picking the "smarter" account. It's pairing the objective with the approach and choosing the right account for your situation. And understanding the real gift is financial education.

With great power comes great responsibility.