“All analogies break down if taken too far, just like a car. Only there’s no gas station & maybe the mechanic is an editor or logician & also…” – Ken Jennings, Jeopardy Champion Against the advice of Ken Jennings, and in order to better understand the stock market, we often talk about a different asset
Author: Justin Smith
Knowing full well that financial planning is about far more than numbers, Justin loves to help clients walk through both the routine and the significant decisions in life. While he could have been perfectly happy with a career as a mathematician or counselor; he is delighted to get to be both...often within the same meeting or even sentence. Justin thrives on being able to transform complex financial and relational issues into practical plans and clear action steps.
Proposed Plan to “Fix Our Broken Tax Code”
For much of the year, we’ve told clients “let’s wait and see” when considering certain tax saving strategies like Roth conversions or a Qualified Charitable Distribution because we wanted to see what tax policies might come from Washington. On September 27th, the White House released the “Unified Framework for Fixing Our Broken Tax Code” to
We Answer the WSJ’s “19 Questions to Ask Your Financial Adviser”
As we have previously written, it is difficult for investors to know what to look for in their search for a financial adviser (or advisor). In his most recent Intelligent Investor column for the Wall Street Journal, Jason Zweig updates the timeline of the fiduciary rule and points out that since its delay, “the burden
What Should I Do With My Next $_______?
We get this question often. A client will have just received an inheritance or sold a piece of property and has a lump sum of money. Or maybe they have just received a raise or paid off a debt and now have a higher monthly cash flow. “What do I do with this money?” can
Q2 2017 Market Commentary: It’s a Little Bit of Everything & If God Ran a Hedge Fund
All these psychics and these doctors They’re all right and they’re all wrong It’s like trying to make out every word When they should simply hum along It’s not some message written in the dark Or some truth that no one’s seen It’s a little bit of everything – Dawes “A Little Bit of
Why Bookies Don’t Work Local Swim Meets
My wife and I have been in the thick of swim team at the neighborhood pool. With our 9 and 7 year-old girls on the team and their 4 year-old brother to cheer them on, Tuesday nights take on a whole new meaning. By far, the most entertaining events are the 6 and under heats.
Required Reading for Nearly Anyone: “Being Mortal” by Dr. Atul Gawande
Not Your Typical Summer Beach Read I bought Being Mortal a few years ago on a date night with my wife. We grabbed dinner and stopped through Scuppernong Books to judge books by their covers. We each bought a book and laughed that my choice was a surgeon’s thoughts on “medicine and what matters most
Most Stocks Underperform Treasuries…and Santa’s Not Real
Dr. Hendrick Bessembinder is shattering stock pickers’ dreams like the 2nd grader who tells his classmates the truth about Santa Claus. Looking back over an 89 year period (1926-2015), the Arizona State professor found that the odds of picking winning stocks are not that appealing. In fact, investors would have a better chance at picking
Q1 2017 – Quarterly Market Commentary
A Change in Format For as long as we can remember, we have been sending a paper market commentary by mail every quarter to our clients and friends. You probably wouldn’t have guessed it, but we have always felt a bit constrained by a 2 or 3 page paper commentary. How can we highlight what
The Double-Edged Sword of Retirement Savings
How 10% Can Save You 10 Years in Retirement It’s hard to get out of my head that “10 minutes could save you 15% on your car insurance” thanks to GEICO’s never-ending cavemen commercials. Along those same lines, did you know that 10 percent could save you 10 years in retirement? Michael Kitces, whom I