Blog
‘Nightmare’ for bonds ahead? How to explain it to clients
As investors have recently rediscovered, stocks have risks. So do bonds. When Fed Chairman Jerome Powell recently hinted his agency could boost rates as many as four times this year, volatility ensued. The stock turbulence demonstrated that weakness may be looming for...
Is it really necessary to rebalance your investment portfolio?
Periodic rebalancing is generally a good way to keep your investing strategy on track and to prevent your portfolio from becoming too risky during market surges (like the one we've been experiencing in recent years) or too conservative after big market setbacks. That...
3 Big Money Mistakes to Avoid Once You’re in Retirement
It’s the big question at the heart of all retirement planning: how long will you live, and by extension, how long should your money last? But you don’t need to tie yourself up in existential—or actuarial—knots trying to answer the unanswerable, financial advisors say....
What Drives Long-Term National Debt Growth?
With the current 106% debt-to-GDP ratio, there’s no doubt that today’s government debt is high. The last time the United States reached this mark, it was during the aftermath of WWII in the late 1940s. But despite nearly historic debt levels, it does not seem that the...
Fed Rate Hikes Don’t Have to Translate to Bond Losses
In Periods of Rising Rates, Higher Income Can Help Keep Returns Positive As the Fed continues on a path of gradually raising interest rates, many investors are moving to cash, short-term bonds and floating-rate securities. But the view that bonds have to suffer losses...
The Impossible Reality of Long-Term Care Planning
Unless you're very rich or very poor, you should be looking into all of the long-term care possibilities out there. Because of the costs and complexity involved, the choice isn't easy. But it is necessary. As a financial planner, I have learned that finding a simple...
Estate planning: How to “death clean” your finances
The most sweeping tax overhaul in three decades will make big changes to how families pay their taxes. The bill lowers tax rates for all income groups, but caps or eliminates many popular deductions. (Dec. 21) AP The phrase “death cleaning” may sound jarring to...
Warren Buffett Shares the Secrets to Wealth in America
I have good news. First, most American children are going to live far better than their parents did. Second, large gains in the living standards of Americans will continue for many generations to come. Some years back, people generally agreed with my optimism. Today,...