Arriving at the culmination of a career and taking the final strides towards retirement is an exciting season of life. Many business owners have spent years and decades pouring in time, sweat equity, and money to run a successful business. The next step for many is the right strategy to enact an effective exit plan…
In 1952, Harry Markowitz published a paper that changed the way investment portfolios are designed and constructed. The revolutionary paper called “Portfolio Selection” introduced a theory called modern portfolio theory. Markowitz found that by constructing a diversified portfolio, an investor could take advantage of higher returns without having to take on an amount of risk…
Money has its limits. While no one can argue money is essential, everyone would agree that it’s not the end-all goal. Ultimately, people want happiness and satisfaction in their lives. And while money can help you live more comfortably, there are plenty of important things money can’t buy.
As we look around at the current state of affairs, it’s easy to get discouraged. There’s a war raging in Ukraine, a COVID-19 virus that continues to spread, inflation is rampant, and many financial analysts predict a recession within the next couple of years.1 And although no one can say for sure where markets are…
Morgan Housel’s book “The Psychology of Money” is an impactful bestseller that emerged during the global pandemic. It’s an insightful look into the natural tendencies people have with money and explains how these tendencies have developed over time. The book is especially relevant to today’s economic environment in the wake of the global pandemic. 1.…
At the time of writing, the US stock market is on track to experience the worst first 100 trading days since 1970. The Nasdaq is down 28% this year, the S&P is down 17.3%, and the Dow Jones is down 12.1%. It’s red as far as the eye can see. This has made many investors…
Early this year, the Hughes vs. Northwestern University Supreme Court case disputed Northwestern’s defined-contribution system, emphasizing the importance of 401(K) plans providing suitable investment options for its participants and fulfilling fiduciary responsibility. Northwestern’s plan included 242 investment options. Some of these funds were not good options, and therefore, the plaintiff sued on these grounds. The…
Analyzing the Market The market has had a poor start to the year. As of May 11, 2022, the S&P 500 was down 17%. That being said, local financial advisors are urging clients to stay invested because jumping ship in a downturn can be detrimental to your portfolio. If you take return data from the…
Morgan Housel, financial writer and best-selling author of The Psychology of Money, has a knack for simplifying challenging financial topics. In his book, he takes readers through a series of short stories that can help explain why we do what we do with money while keeping readers interested and engaged.
In our never-ending search for paying fewer taxes, consider two definitions from the IRS: Tax evasion: The failure to pay or a deliberate underpayment of taxes. Tax avoidance: An action taken to lessen tax liability and maximize after-tax income. The IRS explains that tax avoidance is legal. As taxpayers, there is nothing wrong with avoiding…