Behavioral Finance and Asset Allocation
Summary Points: We simply have to watch money flow to know how “average investors” behave. Investor emotions typically run opposite to sound decision making. Sound allocation planning can provide other positive impacts on your overall plan. An emotional investor is very likely to make poor decisions over his or her financial life. Various […]
Optimizing Required Minimum Distributions
Key Takeaways The IRS made a retiree-friendly tweak to its RMD schedule for 2022 When to best take retirement distributions can be opposite for two similar investors Engage Us: We do our best work when we know your updated situation We’re only a week into 2022 and I have already spent a few […]
Getting Creative with College Funding
In our previous discussions about college planning, we’ve discussed where and how much to save while acknowledging that these questions require several assumptions. Is it sensible to make saving for college a major financial goal when there’s no guarantee the child will attend? That’s a tough question for families and for this reason, we favor educating […]
Behavioral Finance and Asset Allocation
Summary Points: An emotional investor is very likely to make poor decisions over his or her financial life. Various experts (DALBAR, American College, etc.) have done in-depth studies to measure exactly how investor returns have lagged overall market performance. Measuring this behavior over an extended period for an “average investor” has proven difficult. The exact […]
End of Year Financial Planning
As we officially enter the month of November, it is hard to believe that Thanksgiving is just three weeks away. Hopefully, this year brings back the celebration of holiday traditions and family gatherings. However, before the sugarplums start dancing, we need to stay diligent and focus on year-end planning to ensure we are making sound […]
Tax Management in Bull Markets
How do we manage accounts when everything is up? With cooperative markets, many investors have accumulated substantial capital gains in their investment accounts. We analyze the trade-off between ideal allocation & paying tax to achieve it. In general, we advocate paying tax along the way to avoid over-concentration. When I was growing up, my granddad […]
Retirement Saving Myths and Misconceptions
We are fortunate to have a very educated and knowledgeable client base, but we are consistently surprised by the myths and misconceptions clients and prospects bring to the conversation. Below I have listed my Top 7 Myths and Misconceptions About Retirement Savings; it is by no means a complete list but highlights the most common […]
Upcoming Child Tax Credit Checks: Not Free Money
Max Child Tax Credit now $3,600/child under 6; $3,000 ages 6-17 Even high-income families will receive 50% advances on these credits Advance payments can increase your tax bill next year, all else equal If you take a vacation in the middle of this month, you may come home to a surprise check in the mail. […]