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If you’re a Boomer or Gen X, do you remember your parents talking to you about money? I sure don’t. And my father was the assistant VP at a large regional bank.  He offered me one piece of financial advice that I remember: “Wholesale is better than retail.”

I don’t know if he was trying to encourage me to open a small business or a flea market booth (it was circa 1982, after all) or just teach a level of frugality that I never saw in our household. He never taught me the “pay yourself first” principle, as far as I can remember. He did explain the concept of compound interest, but I had a passbook savings account that didn’t compound very quickly.

Read: Credit card fees are so annoying, Americans are going back to cash

I remember my mother getting her first credit card, a Discover rewards card that earned cash back, shortly after he passed away. She paid it off every month. I never lacked for anything growing up. But I didn’t understand, and wasn’t taught, how money magically provided everything I needed and most of the things I wanted.

Just like sex and death back in the ‘80s, money wasn’t discussed in our household.

Younger generations have moved past some of these hangups about discussing money, but some resistance persists, according to a new survey published by Vericast.

Talking About Money: Generation by Generation

A majority of people across generations said they are “very open” with their family about finances. Almost three-quarters (72%) of millennials said they’re very open with their family about finances. More than two-thirds (68%) of Gen Z said the same, followed by 63% of Gen X. The smallest percentage, 56%, of Boomers said they’re open with their family about finances.

Meanwhile, 41% of Boomers still avoid financial discussions, compared to 39% of Gen X, millennials and Gen Z.

Boomer Money Avoidance: Privacy, Greed, or Fear?

There are many reasons people across generations avoid money talks. While Boomers could have set an example of openness, they didn’t have the resources younger generations have today. There was no one to teach them.

“[Boomers] weren’t necessarily taught how to talk about money. Their parents treated money as something you didn’t discuss at the table,” said Fred Cadena, SVP and managing principle at Vericast.

That reflected my personal experience, too. Although I’m Gen X, my parents were part of that Silent Generation, born between the Greatest Generation and Baby Boomers. Past generations had employer-sponsored pensions, a solvent Social Security fund, and not as many questions about the future.

“There was genuinely less to coordinate with family back then,” Cadena said.

Cadena also believes there’s more to Boomers’ reluctance to talk about money, but it’s not what many people think.  

“The story people often tell is that the Boomer generation is sitting on a pile of money and guarding it. That’s not always what’s happening,” he said.  

Boomers, Cadena asserted, may be keeping quiet out of fear or uncertainty, not greed.

Whether you’re discussing their future inheritance, the financial help you can offer adult children now, or even what it might cost if you need to enter a nursing home or assisted living later in life, it’s difficult to pinpoint a specific dollar amount.

“The moment you name a number, you feel like you’ve made a promise,” Cadena said.

What Changed with Generation X?

Gen X began to reverse the trend of talking about money, most likely out of necessity. Squeezed between taking care of older parents and potentially funding adult children, while battling debt and struggling to save for retirement, Gen X is forced to discuss money.

A recent Wells Fargo survey revealed that 64% of parents with children ages 18 to 28 are supporting those young adults financially in some way.  More than half (56%) said their own finances are feeling the strain from it. Meanwhile, 46% of Gen Z described their financial lives as “messy.”

Gen X has to discuss money to set boundaries and protect their financial future. Our willingness to talk about money may also stem from wanting to help our children avoid the challenges we face.

“When you’re disclosing a shortfall instead of an estate, the conversation becomes a warning. Warnings can be easier to give,” Cadena said.

Related: Divorce after 50 can bring harsh money ramifications

Millennials and Gen Z: Mostly Willing To Talk About Money … Except Those Who Aren’t

While a higher percentage of millennials and Gen Z (72% and 68%, respectively) said they are “very open” with their family about finances, those who don’t want to discuss finances are adamant about it.

Nearly one-third (32%) of both Gen Z and Millennials said they’d “rather eat a bug than have finance conversations.”

Information, Not Help

A percentage of both Boomers and Gen X believe it’s best not to get involved in family finances. One-in-five (19%) of Boomers said that family involvement is a “negative,” while 15% of Gen X (the highest percentage of all generations) believe that parental guidance can lead to adult children becoming “too financially dependent.”

However, 92% of survey respondents said they think younger generations will receive the most up-to-date information if parents are involved in financial decisions, ranging from choosing a bank to managing debt. More than one-third (36%) said that getting input from an older family member leads to better financial outcomes.

The bottom line: It’s great to share financial knowledge and brainstorm with children, even before they reach adulthood. But at some point, it’s okay to stop being “The Bank of Mom and Dad.”

Filling Financial Gaps for Your Adult Children: Helping or Hurting?

Cadena advised looking at adult children’s financial needs as either a “hole” or a “gap.” A gap, he said, is something like an emergency car repair, a move, or temporary unemployment. A hole means their income consistently exceeds their expenses.

“It can be difficult to assess from the outside, which means it may help to ask for a clear picture of income, expenses, debt, and the specific shortfall,” Cadena said.

But, he warned, the money you offer should be determined by what you can give comfortably rather than what your adult children need. Don’t borrow from your retirement or borrow against your house if it will create a retirement shortfall.

“The kindest thing you can do for your children is not run out of money at 80,” Cadena said.

This story written for TheStreet by Nifty 50+

Nearly everyone has had the experience of getting a gift that’s perhaps not exactly what you want.

Maybe it was a Christmas sweater and you’re Jewish and live in Florida, or perhaps, someone made the bold decision to buy you one of those mini water features that don’t really work in a house that has cats.

Sometimes, of course, you make a gift-buying decision and decide you made a mistake before you actually give it. Maybe you bought a friend some warm socks for their trip to Norway and they end cancelling the trip before you give the gift.

Whatever the reason, most gift givers know to include a gift receipt, and if you made the purchase, a return should be enough.

That, of course, depends upon the retailer you bought the item from. Walmart already has a generous return policy, and it gets even more generous for the holiday season.

Here’s what Walmart’s return policy looks like

Walmart offers a 90-day return policy on most purchases

“You have 90 days after purchase or upon receipt to return most items unless noted in our exceptions. Most Consumer Electronics are returnable within 30 days. Wireless phones are returnable within 14 days. To ensure your in-store item may be returned, review the exceptions on our Corporate Return Policy page,” the company shared on its website.

The holiday policy is a slight improvement.

“Most items purchased in-store or online from October 1 through December 31 are returnable until January 31,” the company added.

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Basically, that means that anyone who wants to start their holiday shopping in October gets an extended window for returns. The enhanced policy also includes some items that don’t qualify for the regular 90-day window, including some electronics, and items purchase in Amazon’s online Marketplace.

But, there are still some exceptions and “Marketplace seller participation varies,” according to Walmart.

Walmart has an extended holiday returns program.Shutterstock

These are Walmart’s 90-day return exceptions

Walmart has an extensive list of items that don’t qualify for its 90-day return policy.

Your item may have return restrictions and/or special instructions as follows:

Wireless phones, Marketplace collectible and Marketplace luxury items (most are returnable within 14 days).

Marketplace and Consumer Electronics items (most items are returnable within 30 days).

Items that are part of Consumer Electronics or Collectible bundles must all be returned together to receive a refund; downloadable software or video games are not returnable.

Returns of certain items containing hazardous materials may be subject to specific requirements, such as mail-back or in-store returns only, or other seller-imposed conditions.

Items that include a rechargeable battery (e.g., tools, drills, lawn equipment, laptops, eBikes, etc.) must contain the original battery to qualify for a return.

Freight/oversized/heavy items are not returnable to stores.

Items that require assembly (e.g., indoor/outdoor furniture, grills, etc.) must be fully disassembled and re-packaged prior to returning to a store or FedEx location(FedEx may decline service for unpackaged assembled items).

Items that contain fuel, propane, or other flammable liquid (e.g., items such as lawn equipment, recreational vehicles, propane tanks, etc.) should be completely drained and/or returned empty. 

There are other exceptions.

“Items that are non-returnable include diabetes monitoring systems, pharmaceuticals, weapons, ammunition, and more,” Walmart added.

Walmart’s published holiday policy does not provide a separate list of exceptions.

Walmart shoppers are starting early

Walmart’s extended holiday return policy makes sense because of how customers shop at the retailer.

“Customers aren’t waiting for the biggest shopping days to start making decisions. Among surveyed Walmart customers, half begin researching more than four weeks before the holidays, with another 20% starting three to four weeks out. And nearly half (48%) make multiple shopping trips during the holidays,” the company shared in Walmart Connect, a publication for the chain’s vendors.

Walmart urged its vendors to take a long view on the holiday season.

“Holiday shopping unfolds across weeks of researching, planning, shopping and returning for more. For brands, the opportunity is to stay relevant across the season, not just show up for its biggest days,” the company added.

Amazon, Costco, and Target’s return policies

Walmart’s policy already having started gives it and edge over Amazon and Costco, which have not yet added an extended holiday return window.

Amazon

Amazon has a shorter return window than Walmart, according to the policy posted on its website.

Most items can be returned for a refund or replacement/exchange within 30 days of delivery as long as they are in original or unused condition. For eligible items, customers can return items for free at many locations. For information on an item’s return eligibility, check the product detail page before placing your order. After placing an order, you can find relevant information on an item’s return eligibility in your Order History.

Amazon has not yet announced its 2026 holiday return policy.

The retailer’s 2025 policy, however, was similar to Walmart’s and is still available on its website.

“For the 2025 holiday season, most items purchased between November 1 and December 31 can be returned until January 31, 2026. This extended window gives you or your gift recipients plenty of time after the holidays to decide if items need to be returned,” Amazon shared.

Costco

Most Costco items can be returned without any window. There are some exceptions.

Costco has a lengthy return policy, which can be seen fully on its website. The highlights include:

Electronics: Costco will accept returns within 90 days (from the date the member received the merchandise) for Televisions, Projectors, Major Appliances (refrigerators above 10 cu. ft., freezers, ranges, cooktops, over-the-range and under-counter microwaves, range hoods, dishwashers, water heaters, washers and dryers), Computers, Touchscreen Tablets, Smart Wearable Devices, Cameras, Aerial Cameras (drones), Camcorders, MP3 players and Cellular Phones.

Cigarettes and alcohol: Costco does not accept returns on cigarettes or alcohol where prohibited by law.

Products with a limited useful life expectancy, such as tires and batteries, may be sold with a product-specific limited warranty.

Special Order Kiosk and Custom Installed Programs: Custom product(s) manufactured to our member’s personal and unique specifications cannot be returned or refunded, except for warranty repair/replacement due to failure to meet specifications.

Airline and Live Performance Event items are non-refundable.

Precious metals are non-refundable.

Gift Card and Ticket items are non-refundable.

Costco does not have a holiday returns policy, aside from allowing a longer window on some electronics items. That’s largely because the chain has a generous, non-traditional returns policy anyway.

Target

Target has a pretty straightforward returns policy, which it shared on its website.

Most unopened items sold by Target in new condition and returned within 90 days will receive a refund or exchange. The return window for items sold on Target.com begins once you receive your items. This occurs when the order is delivered to you, delivered by a Shipt shopper, or picked up in store.

Some items sold by Target have a modified return policy noted on the receipt, packing slip, Target policy board (refund exceptions), Target.com or in the item description. Items that are opened or damaged or do not have a receipt may be denied a refund or exchange.

Returns and exchanges without a receipt may be limited. Other restrictions may apply.Target Owned Brand items: If you’re not satisfied with any Target Owned Brand item, return it within one year with a receipt for an exchange or a refund.

EBT card purchases: Any item paid for with an EBT card online must be returned within 90 days of the date it was shipped, delivered by a Shipt shopper, or made ready for pickup. This 90-day return window is required by SNAP.

Holiday & limited-time-only collections: Items may have modified return policies.

Purchases at Target Optical, Warby Parker, Pharmacy, Starbucks & Target Tech: Items must be returned or exchanged at these areas.

Target has not shared its 2026 holiday returns policy, but Newsweek shared its 2025 policy.

Purchase window: Items bought between November 1 and December 24, 2025, with the return clock starting December 26

Electronics: Non-Apple, non-Beats electronics and entertainment items had to be returned by January 24, 2026

Apple and Beats: Returns had to be made by January 9, 2026

Target Plus items: Most had to be returned by January 24, 2026, but seasonal holiday decor from Target Plus sellers wasn’t covered

Everything else: The extension only covers the short-window categories. Most other items already get 90 days, which reaches past Christmas on its own

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Why we love this deal

When you get home from work, you just want to kick off your shoes and throw down your keys and bag the second you get inside. This usually creates a huge pile of stuff in the entryway with nowhere else to go, which is why adding storage space specifically for shoes and accessories can help keep the entryway, mud room, or other high-traffic areas easier to manage while going about your busy day. 

The Hawsaiy Farmhouse Shoe Cabinet is a chic, affordable, and efficient way to help tidy up high-traffic areas that’s currently on sale for just $105 (down from $200) thanks to October’s Walmart Deals event. While it’s made as a farmhouse-style shoe cabinet, it also works well for storing your purse, hats, scarves, shopping bags, and other accessories that you regularly grab while leaving the house.

Hawsaiy Farmhouse Shoe Cabinet, From $105 (was $200) at Walmart

Courtesy of Walmart

Shop at Walmart

Why do shoppers love it?

This cabinet features six tiers of storage with adjustable shelves that can be moved to accommodate different types of footwear. From sneakers and flats to heels and tall boots, the flexible shelf arrangement offers easy customization that fits your needs. It can fit approximately 18-24 pairs of shoes, offering ample storage while maintaining a slim and space-saving profile for narrow entryways.

The versatile construction and included anti-tipping kit also allow this cabinet to be used as a TV stand, coffee bar, or just a general storage solution, providing versatility for any home. The cabinet doors keep everything closed off and dust-free, while the open bottom shelf offers an easy-to-access space for small kids or shoes you use multiple times a week.

Courtesy of Walmart

The cabinet is made from engineered wood and metal legs, and features stylish cross patterns and clean lines that fit into almost any aesthetic. It measures 45 inches tall, 13.8 inches deep, and 29.5 inches wide, with each shelf measuring between four and seven inches, including the adjustability. The doors feature magnetic strips to keep them closed when not in use, and the legs have adjustable height pads to help even out the cabinet on uneven flooring. The top shelf also features a back and side wall to prevent items from rolling or falling off, and gives it an expensive look. 

Details to know

Size: It measures 45 inches tall, 13.8 inches deep, and 29.5 inches wide.

Color: It comes in brown, black, gray, natural, and white for $106.

Shelving: With five adjustable shelves and one open shelf, this unit can hold up to 24 pairs of shoes.  

One reviewer said, “It is very cute and taller than I expected. It’s for our mudroom for everyone to stick their shoes in, and the shoes fit in nicely. I can close the doors and hide all that mess.”“It’s a reasonably priced shoe rack, and has plenty of space for our shoes. It’s a nice-looking cabinet that hides all of our shoes that used to lie on the floor.”

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Homhougo Shoe Storage Cabinet, $110 at Walmart

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Whether you need to clean up your shoes in the entryway or need a catchall in the mudroom, the Hawsaiy Farmhouse Shoe Cabinet is a great choice. It has ample space for storing accessories, shoes, electronics, and more, and includes an anti-tip kit for safety. Shoppers can save 48% on this cabinet, paying just $105 at Walmart. 

Warren Buffett ran Berkshire Hathaway for more than six decades.

When his farewell letter came out, the coverage went straight to the succession plan, the handoff to Greg Abel, what the company looks like going forward without him.

Most of that coverage missed the part that mattered most to individual investors. It was four words, buried in a letter full of business news, and it was not complicated.

He had been writing shareholder letters since 1965. Nearly every one of them made some version of the same argument about time and patience and not selling when markets fall. TheStreet reported on the significance of Buffett going quiet, but the investment message in the farewell letter is what most people reading it could actually use.

He said it plainly. At 96, there was no next letter to save it for.

The letter covered a lot of ground. Succession, philanthropy, the partnership with the late Charlie Munger. But there was one section investors kept coming back to.

Buffett had circled the subject of Father Time before. In the farewell letter itself, he put it directly: Father Time “is undefeated; for him, everyone ends up on his score card as ‘wins.’” For the investors who read past the business headlines, those words pointed somewhere useful.

Also read: Warren Buffett doubles down on stock market message for 2026

The four words Buffett left behind

“Father Time always wins.”

Buffett was not writing a meditation on aging. He was making a narrower point about what time does for an investor who gets out of its way.

Holding a broad market index through crashes and recoveries without selling is not a sophisticated strategy. It just requires staying in the account while most people do not.

He has made this argument in different forms across decades. At shareholder meetings using hypothetical portfolios. In interviews using his own early investment history. In letters laying out the compounding math over 30 and 40-year windows.

The farewell letter did not add anything new to the philosophy. It just said it more directly than anything that came before, probably because there was no next time to say it.

The S&P 500 has returned roughly 11.5% annually over the past four decades, dividends included. Buffett has said future returns may come in lower and he has not backed away from that.

He said it in 2023 and said it again before stepping back. The letter does not promise anything about what markets will do. The argument is about behavior, not return forecasts.

Buffett wrote to Berkshire shareholders every year for six decades.Daniel Zuchnik / Getty Images

Why Buffett kept pointing people toward index funds

In his 2013 letter to Berkshire shareholders, Buffett said 90% of the money set aside in trust for his wife should go into a low-cost S&P 500 index fund. He named Vanguard.

The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF carries an expense ratio of 0.03%. The difference between that and paying 1% a year in management fees compounds for 40 years. It is not a small number.

According to S&P Global’s SPIVA, 86% of actively managed large-cap funds underperformed the S&P 500 over the past ten years.

Buffett put money on this. He bet a hedge fund manager a million dollars that the S&P 500 would beat a basket of hedge funds over a decade. The bet ended in 2017. The index returned roughly 125%. The hedge funds averaged roughly 24%.

His point was never that fund managers are bad at their jobs. Fees are the problem.

Most skilled managers cannot outrun the drag of annual costs compounding against their returns, no matter how well they pick stocks.

Buffett did not invent the index fund. John Bogle did, and Buffett has said so on the record. Spending five decades as the most famous active investor in the country and then telling ordinary people not to try it is what made his position unusual.

What the numbers look like over a long enough stretch

Put $20,000 into a broad index fund and leave it untouched for 40 years at that 11.5% historical average and you end up close to $1.5 million. Add $1,000 a month in contributions over the same period and the number approaches $10 million.

Neither projection means much without the thing that actually produces them: not selling. The year that wrecks a multi-decade compounding run is rarely the year the market crashes. It is usually the year the investor decides to wait in cash until things settle down.

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Dollar-cost averaging is buying a fixed dollar amount on a regular schedule no matter what the market is doing. When prices fall, the same dollar buys more shares. When they rise, it buys fewer. That is the mechanics of it.

What it actually takes to do it is continuing to buy when every piece of financial news is making the case for stopping. Most investors who sell into a downturn to wait for clarity end up getting back in at higher prices than the ones they left at.

The 11.5% historical figure is gross. Pull out inflation running around 3% and a 1% annual expense ratio and the real after-cost return is closer to 7%. Seven percent over 40 years is still a meaningful number.

But projections built on the gross figure and projections built on what you actually keep are not the same projection. The gap between them grows with every decade. Someone planning on one and living on the other will notice eventually.

What made the farewell letter different from everything else he wrote

Buffett wrote to Berkshire shareholders every year for six decades. The letters ran long and covered everything from capital allocation to why he thought most Wall Street compensation was absurd. The final lesson before he stepped down carried weight that a mid-career letter from the same person would not.

A fund manager telling retail investors to stop trying to beat the market has an obvious interest in saying it. Buffett spent five decades at the top of active investing and then said the same thing.

He built the career that most people in finance would want and used it to argue that ordinary investors should not attempt what he did. Nobody else making that argument was making it from the same place.

The farewell letter was not long. It was not a summary of six decades of investment thinking and not trying to be. Buffett had said the important things many times and did not see a need to restate them at the end.

The Father Time section is easy to scroll past in a letter full of news about succession and philanthropy. For anyone who stops at it, the investment instruction underneath is the same one he kept repeating throughout his career. Buy broadly. Keep costs low. Give it time. Leave it alone while it works.

Related: Warren Buffett has a stark message for stock market investors