Are Republicans or Democrats Better for the Stock Market?
Every four years we talk about how this year’s Presidential election is the most important ever. Along the way, people make a whole host of sweeping statements about how picking their team will lead to all of the good things happening, but picking the other team will lead to all of the bad things happening […]
How Long is the Long Term?
Everyone always talks about investing (and planning) for the long term. But they’re usually vague about what the “long term” actually means. Does that mean 5 years? 10 years? More? (Spoiler: the answer is definitely more). And frankly, talking about how you need to focus on the long term can feel like a bit of […]
Is the Value Premium Pining for the Fjords?
There’s no magic formula for investing. The financial markets seem to take some sort of cosmic joy in bringing people back down to Earth. And it’s value investing’s turn – in fact, it’s been value investing’s turn for a while now. To put it mildly, this has been a rough decade and a half for value stocks.
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.
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 […]
What Makes the Markets Move?
Financial markets are constantly on the move, and those moves can have serious implications for what your retirement will look like. Still, most people don’t really have any clue as to why the markets move the way they do.
What Risks Are Worth Taking
Risk drives everything about your investments, but all risk is not created equal. For most investors (and most of the financial industry) dealing with risk is a lot like making sausage. People want the end result, the investment returns, but they don’t want to deal with the process and the uncertainty that risk implies. They […]
Why You Make Profit From Investing
Why have markets been good to investors over the long-term? Why should you get those returns for simply investing your money? The reason: the market is paying you to take on risk.
Should You Own Bonds in a Rising Rate Environment?
Most people don’t think too much about their bonds. They really are the boring foundation for your portfolio. However, occasionally they spring to the surface, and this is one of those times. Lately, a number of people have been wondering why they should be investing in bonds, since we’re obviously in a period of rising […]
