Episode summary
How Much Should a Dentist Be Saving?
The Dentist Money Show
· · 56 min · Hosts: Matt Mulcock, Rabih Powell, Will
Summary
The conversation centers on why the usual “save 20%” rule is too blunt for dentists and how saving should be tied to life stage, cash flow, and goals. The host uses a client case: a young dentist with seven figures already saved across a 401(k), Roth accounts, and a brokerage account, who wants to know whether he still needs to keep pushing brokerage savings at the same pace while expanding his practices, paying debt, and maybe changing household spending.
The panel argues that savings and spending are inseparable: saving is really deferred spending, and every dollar eventually gets spent by you, your family, or someone else. They distinguish between short-term cash, true long-term savings, and debt paydown, and they debate what should count toward savings rate. Retirement accounts and brokerage accounts get the strongest support, while extra mortgage or student loan payments are treated more cautiously depending on whether they build usable wealth.
They also stress that dentists often need a higher savings target than the general public because income and spending are both higher. Early-career dentists may need a baseline habit rather than a perfect percentage, but the bigger priority is raising income, automating savings, and building liquid assets so future choices are easier and less stressful.
Key takeaways
- The host says the standard 20% savings rule is a useful benchmark, but the right rate depends on career stage, debt, spending, and future goals.
- Will argues dentists should usually try not to fall below a 10% savings rate, even early in their careers, to build a durable habit.
- Matt says extra debt payments can count as savings only when they increase net worth in usable assets, such as a practice building or investment property.
- Jake says savings should mainly go into long-term, income-producing assets, with brokerage accounts especially important for dentists who are already heavily concentrated in their practice and real estate.
- The panel agrees that increasing income is often the fastest way for younger dentists to improve savings capacity and reduce financial stress.
Notable quotes
“there's only four places to put your money. You can save it, you can spend it, it goes towards debt, goes towards taxes”
“Saving is just deferred spending for the future”
“I really don't think you should really try not to dip below a 10% savings rate would kind of be my baseline”
“the goal is that you're going to be making enough money as a practice owner that you would, yes, you'd follow this waterfall, but you're going to fill up the buckets of retirement accounts ideally each year”
How the episode opens
Consult an adviser or conduct your own due diligence when making financial decisions. General principles discussed during this program do not constitute personal advice. This program is furnished by Dennis Advisers, a registered investment adviser. Welcome back to the Dennis Money Show where we help Dennis make smart financial decisions. I am Matt and here with the dream team guys. here with the brain Will and hot take Jake. How are you guys?
I feel great. I'm ready to go. I love being here. — Doing good. — He's jacked up. — Yeah. — Yeah. — Will, are you going to match the energy or what? — Let's go. Let's talk. — Let's talk about
That was better. That was better. Uh, okay.
Well, at the time of this recording, let's see. We got to talk about We We just finished our first cohort of Launchpad. I will say for the expectations we had, guys, smashing success.
But we had a really a solid first class uh for for Launchpad. We are going to be re-releasing this in September for a second class. I don't remember the exact date.
I want to say September 18th. We've made a ton of changes to this. All for the better.
We've shortened the class overall. It's going to be eight weeks this time. If you have any questions on this, you can go to dennismoney launchpad.com to check out the information and uh sign up for the weight list if you have any questions on that.
So, we'd love to have you. You guys were part of the launchpad. Any any thoughts you want to add to that?
Was amazing.
It was great. Yeah, I think we each had a course. I did. Insurance was my uh little lesson, my class, I think we're calling, right, that I that I spoke on.
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- savings rule
- savings goals
- saving vs spending
- brokerage accounts
- retirement plans
Watch the episode
Watch “How Much Should a Dentist Be Saving?” on YouTube
Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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The Dentist Money Show, this episode and its artwork belong to Dentist Advisors - Financial Planning and Investment Management. Octagon is not affiliated with the show; this page is an independent summary.
