Have you been feeling a bit down and more negative than usual? If this months Consumer Confidence Index reading is a reliable indicator, you are certainly not alone. The US Conference Board’s monthly Consumer Confidence Index for March (which measures “consumer attitudes, buying intentions, vacation plans, and consumer expectations for inflation, stock prices, and interest […]

I’ve written about this topic in the past but as tax day approaches, I often get questions about filing an extension and what that means. I talked to a client on this very subject earlier this week so let’s recap. What is a tax extension? Tax returns for the previous tax year are due on […]

Markets have been presenting quite a few mixed emotions these days. This up and down dynamic made for another interesting week. Let’s look at what happened. Sentiment Shift Confirmed We’ve been writing about the fast (and steep) sentiment shift in recent weeks. More data was revealed this week to confirm how quickly investors have turned […]

In recent weeks, clients have been consuming more financial news. This is understandable as when markets are volatile, the news media enjoys covering the ensuing drama and speculation. A client heard the term “multiple compression” and wanted to understand what that meant. Multiple is another term for a commonly used valuation metric – the Price […]

My dad has been teaching me about investing since I was a teenager. Once of his all-time favorite mantras is “some days are better than others.” That phrase has been playing on repeat in my mind for the past two weeks as markets have taken investors on a wild (and painful) roller coaster ride. That […]

Whenever we hit times of market volatility, I always appreciate it when clients reach out to me. Many times, it helps just to talk to someone about your fears and concerns. The small action of speaking your worries outloud can be enough to satisfy that pesky “do something!” urge. During those discussions this week, there […]

Well, this has been quite the week. It never ceases to amaze me how equities always seem take the stairs up and the elevator down, meaning they seem to fall at a FAR more rapid pace than they rise. As is always the case, when markets fall, the media is fast to latch on to […]

I talked with a client this week about concerns she had regarding the security of her email account. This is a great topic to cover in today’s post. Before we dive in to email best practices, think about your email account for a minute. If you are like me, it likely contains a pretty comprehensive […]

During week’s of high market volatility (like the one we just lived thru), I always like to revisit this writing from Warren Buffet from almost 40 years ago In the 1987 letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, Buffett unfolds the concept of Mr. Market for us: Ben Graham, my friend and teacher, long ago described the mental attitude toward market […]

A client reached out this week asking about using a bond ladder as part of their fixed income allocation. I thought this topic may be of broader interest so let’s take a look! What is a bond ladder? A bond ladder is a portfolio of individual fixed income instruments (such as bank CDs or individual […]