289: FSAs vs. HSAs: Hidden Opportunities for Wealth, Health, and Smarter Spending

Today on Love, Your Money®, HWM’s lead financial advisor, Hollina Wadsworth takes the mic to talk about two often-overlooked tools that can have a surprisingly big impact on your tax planning and long-term wealth building: FSAs and HSAs. The truth is that HSAs/FSAs aren’t just expense accounts. When used well, they can be powerful tools to reduce your tax bill, save for the future, and spend in ways that support your life, your values, and your peace of mind. The better you understand how these accounts work, the more empowered you are to make them part of a bigger, values-aligned plan–and make full use of the tools available to you to build a life that feels financially secure and emotionally grounded. So if you’ve ever felt like medical expenses come out of nowhere, or like your health benefits are just a check-the-box decision during open enrollment, this episode is for you. Here’s what you’ll learn in this week’s episode of Love, your Money: 01:47 Why you can’t ignore FSAs and HSAs when talking about your wealth building and tax planning strategy 03:33 The basics: What FSAs and HSAs are, how you become eligible for them, and what makes an HSA one of the most tax-efficient investment accounts available 08:32 How to make the most of your FSA, the dependent care vs. healthcare FSA, and what to do with FSA funds left over at the end of the year 12:46 How HSAs can help you build long term wealth as a stealth retirement vehicle 16:24 Strategic use of HSAs and FSAs, and how their relevance might evolve over your lifetime 18:02 What to take away from this episode–and what you can do next Show Notes To get access to the full show notes, including all the resources mentioned, visit: https://hendershottwealth.com/podcast/fsas-vs-hsas Follow Hilary on: LinkedIn Instagram YouTube Hendershott Wealth Management, LLC and Love, your Money do not make specific investment recommendations on Love, your Money or in any public media. Any specific mentions of funds or investments are strictly for illustrative purposes only and should not be taken as investment advice or acted upon by individual investors. The opinions expressed in this episode are those of Hilary Hendershott, CFP®, MBA.