Rich by Default

A plain-English guide to low-cost index fund investing for Canadians and Americans, narrated by Lee Thomas. The author discovered his own parents were paying roughly 30,000 dollars in advisor fees on a typical retirement portfolio. That single discovery sparked this book. Investing should not require a financial advisor, a special degree, or a 2 percent annual management fee that quietly eats decades of compounding. Rich by Default lays out the simplest, lowest-cost path to long-term wealth. Lee Thomas walks the listener through the hidden-fee trap, the case for low-cost ETFs and broad-market index funds, and a step-by-step blueprint anyone can follow in Canada or the United States. What you will hear: The Hidden Fee Trap. Taking Back Control. ETFs, The Simple Solution. Blueprint, Stocks and Bonds Made Simple. Ready-Made Portfolios You Can Copy. Tax-Smart Accounts. Escaping Advisors and Pensions. Automate and Forget It. How to Stay Calm When the Market Crashes. Retirement Withdrawals and Sequence Risk. Rich by Default (Conclusion). Plus a Frequently Asked Questions chapter covering fees, TFSAs, RRSPs, IRAs, 401k plans, and which broker to pick. This is not a get-rich-quick book and it is not financial advice. It is a calm, practical roadmap that strips investing down to what actually works: low fees, broad-market index funds, tax-smart accounts, and consistent contributions. For fans of plain-English investing instruction and the low-cost index fund philosophy. For everyday investors in their twenties, thirties, forties, and beyond who want to take control of their money without paying someone two percent a year to do the basics. From the author of Done Being Broke and Habit Master, the same direct teaching voice applied to the investing problem.