Picking Your Pockets
Stealing a page from Elliott Management, the $27 billion hedge fund founded by Paul E. Singer, who successfully sued Argentina for payment of defaulted bond issues, other hedge fund managers have been buying distressed Puerto Rican debt hoping for a similar payout. The strategy works like this: Puerto Rico is known to be in dire […]
Overcoming the Herd Mentality
“If Johnny jumped off a bridge would you jump too?”, said every mother ever. Just shows how pervasive the herding or follow the crowd instinct is. Like bison on the prairie we seem to move as a herd. While there is safety in numbers, sometimes the herd mentality is detrimental to us and our finances. […]
Optimism
Believing that things will get better or that tomorrow will be a better day is at the heart of optimism. If you look back on history, there have been many times to try the optimist’s soul. The Dark Ages, the Black Plague, WW I and WW II, the Great Depression, the Great Recession. But at […]
Opportunity Only Knocks Once
Opportunity only knocks once. You’ve heard this old saying many times in your life. I think it’s wrong. I believe opportunity knocks every day. Maybe it’s a chance to be a little nicer to the people in our lives or the people we meet on the street. Maybe it’s the opportunity to be more generous […]
ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY: IRA-TO-HSA TRANSFER
Did you know that once-in-your-lifetime you can convert dollars, which would inevitably be taxed when distributed from your Traditional IRA, to your Health Savings Account (HSA) where they’ll grow and be distributed tax-free? Sounds great, right? Here’s how… First, you must be HSA eligible and remain HSA eligible for at least 12 months. If […]
Of Potholes and Portfolios
Spring is the time of year when all the potholes created by the freeze/thaw cycles of winter become all too obvious. You can damage your car, your tires, and your rims if you are not careful. We all have to slowdown to avoid these cavernous craters on our roadways and we complain to our local […]
Now or Later
If you think risk is the chance your investment dollar will go down today, then I challenge you to ask the question “When should I take on risk?” If you choose to put your money in a CD or savings account, you avoid the risk of any fluctuation of the principle. You do have the risk of interest rates. Will […]
Not So Lucky
Today, we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in honor of the death of St. Patrick and Irish history and culture. There will be green everywhere, representing good luck, even in the many beers to be consumed today. One thing that we also hope to be green is our stock symbols. However, when it comes to good financial standing, there […]
No Shortcuts
Sometimes it happens. Someone comes into my office wanting to know about their investments and how we manage money but doesn’t want to go through the financial planning process. The have done their own planning or don’t want to do the work to build a real plan. That’s like going to the doctors office and […]
New Year’s Resolutions
It’s that time again. The time when we make resolutions for the New Year. Resolutions are things we want to change. I resolve to… Resolutions are your goals for the coming year. Write them down on paper – in ink. Committing goals to paper makes them more concrete than goals we merely hold in our […]
