Why a Living Trust Might be Right for You and Your Family If you plan to do a basic will for your estate plan (or already have a will), you may want to consider using a “living trust” instead. There is a commonly held belief that trusts are only appropriate for people with very large… Read More
Trust & Investment
What Does Exceptional Trust and Wealth Management Look Like? During periods of crisis and volatility, financial and investment guidance become more important than ever. Bad financial advice in periods of stress can undo years of saving and careful planning. On the other hand, truly great providers of trust and wealth management services provide you with… Read More
Economic Outlook – Spring 2020 “A Historic Start to the Year” As our team puts together this quarter’s economic outlook, the world is confronting an unprecedented health crisis. Our thoughts are with the individuals and families impacted, as well as the front-line health-care workers and first responders. The typical format for this blog post is… Read More
Your 2020 Investing Resolution: Pay More Attention to Risk Barring any sudden year-end calamities, investment returns in 2019 have been outstanding. As of the end of November the S&P 500 is up 27.63% this year. Even the relatively more conservative bond investments had strong returns as the Barclays Aggregate Bond Index has gained 8.79% during… Read More
Spend Some Time on Your Company’s Retirement Plan Retirement plans can be a tremendous benefit for employees. Unfortunately, often times they can also be frustrating and time consuming for small and mid-sized business owners. The reality is that offering this great benefit comes with a great deal of responsibility. If done mindfully, business owners like… Read More
Economic Update – Fall 2019 Edition The US Economy – Safe as Houses In the movie Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, the evil Professor Moriarty sends some thugs to kill John Watson and his new bride Mary as they travel by train en route to their honeymoon. While the train speeds over a bridge,… Read More
Negative Interest Rates As Told by Alice in Wonderland “Oh, you can’t help that,” said the Cat: “we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.” “How do you know I’m mad?” said Alice. “You must be,” said the Cat, “or you wouldn’t have come here.” Let’s start with the basics – as of August 2019… Read More
For the Best Investment Opportunities Look Local Let’s start with a question: What is your largest asset? Many people will respond with the following answers – “My home” or “my 401(k)”. Both of these answers miss a larger opportunity. For many of us, especially those in early and mid-career stage, the most valuable asset we… Read More
Economic Outlook – Spring 2019 Edition Hope Springs Eternal The deep freeze of winter is finally over in the Midwest (we hope) and spring is in the air. There seems to be a renewed sense of optimism after a winter that dampened both moods and economic growth. The US Stock market rebounded from its big… Read More
Economic Outlook – Winter 2019 Edition The 4th quarter of 2018 reintroduced investors to the volatility that can suddenly hit the stock market. The S&P 500 reached all-time highs in September before dropping 13.5% over the next three months. Since the stock market is more predictive than reactive many observers were wondering if this sharp… Read More