...is you. Thank you Josh Brown for this enlightening look at how people can't seem to get out of their own way. If you're an Apollo client (and, if not, why aren't you?!) or a reader of our blog/newsletters you would be correct in assuming the behavioral finance themes underlying the reactions to market stress [...]
Not long ago a prospective client inquired about Apollo’s views of the fixed income markets and, specifically, muni bonds. It was a simple discussion – one we’ve had with our clients a number of times since the ‘market meltdown’ of 2007-2009. We explained that with ‘risk-free’ 10-year Treasuries yielding 2% and the questionable balance sheets [...]
The following is an excerpt from an article by Carl Richards originally appearing in the December/January 2015 issue of Morningstar magazine. We've bolded a few of the more interesting points. I suspect you’ve heard a version of this phrase at least once in your career. It usually makes an appearance after you offer a recommendation [...]
According to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance the average year-over-year price increase (using a healthy, 55 year old single male as the baseline) was 8.6%. The culprit is twofold: In the short-term insurers’ bond portfolios continue to earn paltry returns diminishing their ability to fund benefits. Over the long-term insurers’ poor product rollout [...]
Promotions abound for enrolling in Medicare but did you know you can opt out of Medicare? WHEN CAN I DO IT? The Medicare Advantage Disenrollment Period (“MADP”) runs from January 1st through February 14th. AM I ELIGIBLE? You must have a private Medicare plan (often referred to as Medicare Part C or a Medicare Advantage [...]
Generally qualified retirement accounts such as pensions, 401(k)s and IRAs offer good and meaningful protections from creditors. Traditionally under federal bankruptcy laws (states offer varying levels of protection) up to $1.25 million in an IRA has been protected from creditors. A 2014 Supreme Court ruling, however, reduced the protections afforded if the funds are held [...]
In many ways technology has lowered the cost of service delivery. For a nominal cost the friendly automated voice of the credit card company allows us to “press 1” to find out our balance. Similarly we can contact a customer service rep halfway around the world when we need to speak with someone. The question [...]
Despite the fact many Americans fear they won’t have enough money to retire a full 42% (sadly that’s not a typo) don’t invest according to a recent survey by GetRichSlowly.org. And why would they? Investing would get in the way of buying those Disney on Ice “Frozen” tickets purchased using the latest iPhone which for [...]
With many states hurting for income the threshold for paying estate taxes will rise in an attempt to stem the tide of retirees leaving for greener pastures. The following is a list of states that will increase their estate tax exemption in 2015: MARYLAND: Increase from $1 million to $1.5 million. MINNESOTA: Increase from $1.2 [...]
Can someone selling a product be looking out for the best interests of his/her customer? One’s individual intentions are irrelevant. What’s inherent in the business model is what drives behavior. MorningstarAdvisor provides this article explaining rather clearly how consumers of financial advice must take caution in determining where they get their information and the motives/incentives [...]