Telephone. A game many of us played when we were kids. The message starts out as “today is my birthday” and by the time it is communicated to the last in line ends up as “purple monkey dishwasher.” It’s a comical game when we’re children but, as adults, we find the wide chasm between sender [...]
As companies shift away from defined-benefit retirement plans (i.e. we’ll pay you $x per year for the rest of your life) towards defined-contribution plans (i.e. you contribute x% per year) an inducement for employee participation is the company match. It’s that free money 100% ROR of which we’d be foolish not to take advantage. One [...]
This chart supported by Vanguard’s own data is indicative of the explosion in popularity of passive investment strategies. Short-sighted investors focused myopically on fees and benchmarking (which will end badly for them should a downturn send them scurrying for the door at the same time) have made Vanguard a dominant force in corporate governance. How [...]
Apollo Wealth Management is proud to once again be a Tabby’s Place matching gift sponsor. From now until August 10th every dollar you donate to The Linda Fund will be matched 100%. The Linda Fund is all about cats like Sam – the cats nobody else wants because they need extraordinary medical care and love. [...]
A couple of significant changes in the mortgage market go into effect this month. Borrowers will see a bump in their FICO scores due to the removal of certain liens and judgments. This is not a market-based change but a response to legal action. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are increasing their debt-to-income ratio limit [...]
In early June the first wave of the Department of Labor’s fiduciary standard went into effect. The rule requires professionals providing advice on retirement accounts to act in the best interests of their clients. In theory it sounds great but for it to be effective the public must know who is/isn’t a fiduciary . . [...]
In the short term many factors impact stock prices. In the long term stock prices are driven by the underlying fundamentals of the companies for which they are proxies. It’s an obvious truth but one many of us often forget. It’s why we’re so easily swayed when we look at short-term data and wrongfully conclude [...]
The flowers sure do smelly lovely. Will they lead to an unpleasant financial odor? Passive investing (i.e. indexing) is all the rage. Academics preach its virtue. They justify their existence by cranking out study after study concluding most managers don’t outperform the indexes all of the time. Massive mutual fund complexes (we’re lookin’ at you [...]
The powerful tax-deferral tool is likely nearing its end. WHAT IS STRETCHING: Sustaining and maximizing the tax-deferred status of an IRA when the beneficiary is a non-spouse such as a child. WHO LIKES IT: Beneficiaries who accrue years of compounded, tax-deferred growth while minimizing the Present Value of the liability (i.e. $1 in the future [...]
With apologies to John B. L. Soule we’ve stolen the title of his 1851 Terre Haute Express editorial to explain how we had a Howard-free office for a few days. It sure was quiet around here with him gone! Here’s a Q&A about our President’s most recent visit to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.