Two Philosophies for Retirement Income Planning Part One: Probability-Based
Within the world of retirement income planning, the siloed nature of financial services between investments and insurance leads to two opposing philosophies about how to build a retirement plan. There is an old saying that if the only tool you have is a hammer, then everything starts to look like a nail. This tendency is […]
The Yield Curve is Inverted. Don’t Panic.
It’s pretty easy to make finance stuff sounds scary. What happens in the financial markets has a direct effect on our retirement – but those same financial markets are basically a black box for most people (and a very dark gray box for a lot more). So it’s very easy for the financial media to […]
What Does it Mean to Call China a Currency Manipulator?
Monday (August 5th, 2019) was a chaotic day for both the world economy and markets. We want to break down what’s happened, and how that will likely impact your investments.
Should You Add Real Estate to Your Portfolio?
We talk a lot about stocks and bonds, but we spend less time on hard assets like commodities or real estate. Investing in real estate is very similar to investing in stocks, so it requires many of the same principles as any other asset class, just with a little twist.
Ignore the Financial Media
The financial media is omnipresent. Whether it’s hearing about what the Dow did today on your drive home, or a talking head pontificating about how the market’s are obviously about to tank, we are constantly immersed in a miasma of prognostication. Everyone has a take on what the markets will do next, and what you […]
Can TIPS Help You?
Inflation is one of the most pernicious risks facing retirees. While there are a lot of ways to manage inflation risk, TIPS, or Treasury Inflation Protected Securities, are one of the few investment options that directly hedge against inflation risk. They aren’t perfect, and there are certainly some things to consider when you use them […]
Should You Try Timing to Avoid Bad Markets?
WHAT IS OCCAM’S RAZOR? Occam’s Razor is a principle attributed to William Occam, a 14th century philosopher. He stressed that explanations must not be multiplied beyond what is necessary. Thus, Occam’s Razor is a term used to “shave off” or dismiss superfluous explanations for a given event. This concept is largely ignored within the investment […]
How Does the Market in 2018 Stack Up Historically
There’s been a lot of ‘sturm und drang’ around what the markets have been doing lately. The financial media has been talking about how this is the sign of the inevitable end of the world. Of course, we’ve had a few things lately that were also supposed to be signs the world crashing down on our ears. But, well, the world is […]
Is There Such a Thing as “Too Diversified?”
A client brought up the concept of being too diversified recently, and it gave me pause. My initial reaction was that there is no such thing . Diversification is a good thing. It allows you to minimize risks inherent in individual investments (company gets sued, senior executive leaves, “next big thing” flops, etc.) and take […]
The Impact of Unexpected Inflation
Inflation and the four L’s of retirement: longevity, legacy, lifestyle, and liquidity.
