How to Avoid the Mutual Fund Tax Trap
It seems that every year in December we get a multitude of calls from clients regarding a pretty common occurrence for mutual funds, but nonetheless an often misunderstood one. December is the time of year when most mutual funds pay out their capital gains to shareholders. While generally speaking, a capital gain means an investor […]
The Do’s and Don’ts of Owning Employer Stock
Owning stock in the company you work for, can give you a feeling of ownership and “skin in the game” when it comes to delivering results to the bottom line. For some, it has also been an effective way to accumulate personal wealth and a larger retirement nest egg. While there are some pluses to […]
Is Warren Buffett Giving Contradictory Advice?
A Discussion of Passive vs. Active Warren Buffett is widely acknowledged as the greatest investor alive today. Last year he was ranked the third wealthiest person in the world, down from number one a few years back. Despite his roots as a value investor whose favorite holding period is forever, in recent years he has […]
Laddering versus Chunking
Many times clients come to us to find a better rate than what their bank is offering when a CD is coming due. Sometimes they are looking for the best short term rate because they fear interest rates are going up and want to have the money available sooner rather than later. Other times they […]
Which One Are You: #1 or #2?
“Forecasting is difficult because we don’t know what is going to happen in the future” – Yogi Berra It’s interesting how people tend to extrapolate into the future. They erroneously assume that what has happened recently will continue at the same pace for the foresee-able future. It is a behavioral trait that many exhibit that […]
Social Security Offices Are Misleading Retirees
Last month I had a client ask me about a social security strategy that is going away on April 30th of this year. They wanted to explore the possibility of using the file and suspend strategy. In this case both spouses were 63 years of age. Of course, this issue is confusing because the file and […]
Did You Miss the Gorilla?
Last week we hosted our first session of Brain Games in which we found as many ways as we could to trick the audience. We unveiled to them their own biases and ways their own instincts work against them, especially when it concerns investing. It’s especially interesting to see how most people believe that they […]
Got Milk?
**Since yesterday was a big down day in the market, I’ve got a quick thought at the end of this blog. Once upon a time in the country there worked a dairy farmer who was having trouble getting his cows to produce milk. They seemed well fed but as the cows grew fatter and fatter, […]
But I’ve Only Owned it a Month!
They are one of the worst aspects of owning mutual funds. Capital gains taxes on funds are charged typically in December, regardless of how long you’ve owned the fund or how much you’ve made over time. Funds might sell appreciated securities for a variety of reasons. Perhaps a stock hit management’s sell target–even in a […]
Buybacks for Better Returns
Have you ever watched Family Feud? Perhaps you were a child when Richard Dawson hosted the game show or maybe you enjoy the current version. No matter, take a moment and: • Name a three-letter word that ends in –ow • Name a chess piece • Name a one-word color for a pair of socks • Name how […]