Plain-language articles on investing, taxes, retirement income, market context, and planning updates from our CFP® team.
No financial planner can know what the future will bring, and none should pretend to. Markets, stock prices and ultimately return are all beyond anyone’s calculation or control. Any plan that reacts to market events is a plan that is doomed to fail, so a successful investor must appreciate that markets are unpredictable and accept […]
Dimensional Fund Advisors’ Weston Wellington offers useful perspective regarding the financial crisis in Greece. Click the link below to view the video. DFA on the crisis in Greece
Many years ago when I was just beginning my budding career, an older and wiser financial advisor told me that “the only rule of thumb is that there is no rule of thumb”. My experience has taught me to believe it. Take savings rates for instance. Many have heard the rule of thumb: “Save 10% of […]
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Interesting article from Bloomberg “The Hugely Profitable, Wholly Legal Way to Game the Stock Market” Our clients know this as the Reconstitution Effect and that we have been using patient strategies to avoid/prosper from this effect for over a decade!
These days, socially responsible investing, or SRI for short, is a popular practice among investors who consider themselves socially conscious, and who want to believe their money can do more than just increase the value of their own portfolio. And in theory, this seems like quite the win-win: after all, who wouldn’t want to see […]
The common perception among the investing public is that all of the professionals who help clients manage their money are “financial advisors,” and all belong to one profession. This (mis)conception is dangerous and needs to change. In reality, there are two distinct businesses: investment sales and financial advice. Knowing the difference can be crucial to […]
In February, my youngest son Gabriel graduated from Saybrook University in Seattle with a Master’s Degree in Industrial Psychology with a focus on Organizational Systems. In March, he and his wife Jaimee (who has trouble spelling her name correctly) moved to Bellingham to escape the big city and be closer to family. Gabe’s extensive and […]
As a newcomer to financial planning, entering the world of investing without some basic principles to follow can feel a lot like Alice tumbling down the rabbit hole. All of a sudden, you find yourself in a bizarre alternate reality where normal, everyday language is replaced with “securities,” “beta,” “alpha,” “tranches,” “futures,” and “REITS.” You […]
(Note: all screenshots in this post are from our 2015 Numbers Unlimited financial planning worksheet, which you can access here.) With April 15 nearly upon us, you’ve submitted your tax returns by now, and the chances are good you’re breathing easy knowing the next tax season is nearly a year away. But before you get […]
