401(k) Fee Disclosure Coming Soon . . .
If you have a 401(k) account, your next statement may not look much different, but it will contain some very interesting and powerful information. During the last several years, increased focus has been given to the expenses and fees charged to retirement plan participants. The Department of Labor (DOL) recently published regulations under the Employee […]
Market Commentary October 2012
The equity markets finished a very strong quarter in September, erasing the losses of the second quarter, and more, pushing returns solidly into double-digit territory for the year. If the S&P 500 could hold its 16% gain through the next quarter, it would be the third best annual result of the past decade, and above […]
Maximizing Social Security benefits requires financial planning
Social Security planning has become an increasingly complex area of financial planning. As more couples reach retirement age, it’s important to review all the scenarios to maximize your hard earned Social Security benefits. Mary Beth Franklin, editor of Investment News, explains how “with the right elections, married couples can dramatically up their (Social Security) payouts.” […]
Is our retirement system broken?
Professor Teresa Ghilarducci has an opinion piece in the NY Times this week lambasting our evolving approach to retirement. She has some good points. Our Ridiculous Approach to Retirement By TERESA GHILARDUCCI Published: July 21, 2012
Beware of Fancy Financial Advisor Titles
Tara Siegel Bernard writes in the NY Times, “Most investors don’t realize that when they walk into a bank or brokerage firm branch, the representatives there are essentially free to emblazon their business cards with whatever titles they please — financial consultants, advisers, wealth managers, to name a few. But if you’re looking for someone […]
Global Equity Valuations
The global equity markets continue to experience disappointing returns. In discussions with clients, my advice is a reminder that the research shows that developing a strategic asset allocation plan and staying the course through rebalancing is the prudent course of action. The European sovereign debt crisis is in its third year and continues to create […]
Investor Behavior: Market Timing Pitfalls
Dalbar, an independent communications and research firm, has done countless studies trying to quantify the impact of investor behavior on real-life returns. Their studies focus on the difference between investors’ actual returns in stock funds to the average return of the funds themselves. Basically, they are comparing the return the investor gets to the return […]
Four Ways the Financial Media Causes Investors Harm
ONE: Focus on the near term. A recent headline reads, Anxious financial advisers scale back summer vacations. “Still haunted by the 2008 financial crisis, many financial advisers are scaling back their summer vacations or giving up on them entirely. Many are afraid to be out of the office in case this is the third straight […]
Market Commentary July 2012
Equity markets had a rough second quarter. For the period ending June 30, 2012 the S&P 500 index (large stocks) was down 2.8%, the Russell 2000 index (small stocks) was down 3.5%, and the MSCI EAFE index (international stocks) was down 6.9%. The international index might have seen a double-digit decline were it not for […]
Financial Planning Etiquette: Clients First!
“The interests of the client continue to be sidelined in the way the firm operates and thinks about money.” This is a direct quotation from Greg Smith’s recent op-ed that he penned after stepping down as a senior executive of Goldman Sachs. Holding himself up as a man of integrity, Mr. Smith couldn’t stand working […]