Lots of people asked us how the new law would affect them. That's a more complicated question than it might seem. There are a million factors that determine what your tax bill will be (well, not really a million, but you get it). But to really understand what the bill means for you, you [...]
The holidays are here, and that means one thing — it’s time to send end-of-year holiday greetings. I admit, I should have sent this blog out sooner! But use it as a reference for next year. While adding standard best wishes to a greeting card or electronic message sounds simple enough, a few questions [...]
5 Obvious Strategies (That Apparently Aren’t So Obvious) Most people, on paper, would agree with these strategies. But a much smaller percentage of the population actually use them to when making financial decisions… 1. Buy low and sell high. You won’t find a single person who disagrees with the theory behind this investing [...]
Tulip Bulbs & Bitcoin A little history lesson. Personally, I find nothing more beautiful than tulips in full bloom. Sadly, they don’t last long and perhaps that adds to their appeal. At no time was that love for tulips greater than in the 1630’s when prices for the bulbs soared. At one point, 40 [...]
5 Simple Strategies to Avoid Overspending this Holiday: As the largest gift-giving holiday season, the final month of the calendar year accounts for nearly 30 percent of total annual sales for some retailers. While this is great for suppliers, it is the costliest season of the year for shoppers. Americans spend 9 times the amount of money [...]
How Actively Managed Mutual Funds Cost You Money You likely already know that actively managed mutual funds cost more to own than index funds — a lot more. A typical active mutual funds charges fees of between 1.5% and 2%. The gap is enormous, even indefensible, once you consider that three-quarters of active fund [...]
12 Things You Should Know About Bear Markets If you have ever had a conversation with me about the stock market, you know how I feel. It’s completely unpredictable. Even my own husband wants me to tell him when the next market downturn will take place and he gets disappointed when I say [...]
Lump sum payment or monthly payment? Faced with mounting pension costs and greater volatility, companies are increasingly offering their current and former employees a critical choice: Take a lump-sum payment now or hold on to their pension plan. Companies are offering these buyouts as a way to shrink the size of future pension [...]
If 1,000 Investors Invest, One Should Randomly “Beat the Market” Ten Years in a Row But what about stories of investors like Peter Lynch who managed to beat the market fourteen years in a row while managing the Magellan Fund? Isn’t he proof that someone can beat the market consistently? Not to downplay Lynch’s [...]
10 Tips for Helping to Teach Your Children to Save Saving money is a habit that can take time to build, and even some adults have yet to master it. Consider this: Just 41% of Americans have savings set aside to cover emergency expenses. With that in mind here are some things you can [...]