Preparing in the Wake of a Pandemic

Some of you might be feeling anxious and uncertain because of the Coronavirus and its potential impact on the stock market. It is normal to feel this way. Unfortunately, this type of market decline is not unusual. Historically, there is a 10% market decline every 18 months. And nearly half of those declines turn into a 20% loss (about once every 3.5 years, believe it or not). However, there is a bright side.

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What Bull Market?

There seem to be countless stories of the stock market's all-time highs and the fantastic returns we have experienced over the past several years.  We thought we’d dig into those claims a bit more and research if that really has been the case.

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The Best States For Retirees

While clients think about how much income tax they’ll have to pay in retirement, we have found that the calculation is much deeper. First, as clients retire, their income typically drops substantially and moving to Florida or some other state with a low-income tax rate may not be worth the effort of moving.

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The Top Three Things We Have Learned About The New Tax Law

For the last two months, our Private Client Group has been focused on year-end tax planning.  Our team has performed dozens of tax projections and has found several items about the new tax law that don’t seem to be getting much attention.

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Due Diligence? Really?

How does an all-expense-pay three-day trip to the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Marina del Rey, CA sound? Vacation conferences can cloud an advisor’s judgment and make her more inclined to recommend a client that may not be in that client’s best interest.

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I Am Sitting On Cash, Should I Wait For the Next Market Crash To Invest?

This question is pretty common amongst our clients we meet with. They may have built up cash over time, sold a real estate property, or inherited money. Whatever the reason, they find themselves sitting on cash and are fearful of investing it in the stock market.

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The Most Important Metric To Track For Financial Independence

Every few years, investors seem to find some scheme to try to get rich. Most recently, it’s been Bitcoin. After advising hundreds of wealthy individuals and families over the past two decades, I have found one ratio that has been key to allow them to accumulate AND preserve wealth.

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Unreasonable?

The 5th circuit court recently ruled that the Labor Department’s rule requiring financial advisors to act as a fiduciary to an investor’s retirement savings is “unreasonable.” What did the rule actually say that made it unreasonable? Basically, when dealing with an investor’s retirement savings, a financial advisor must act in the client’s best interest.

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How Poker Can Make Us Better Decision Makers

Poker is all about consistently making great decisions. Winning is a byproduct of that decision-making.  It doesn’t happen every time, but you can tilt the probabilities in your favor. 

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