Will you please have a will
Now and then, we all wrestle with the fact that we will not live forever. While most of us find this topic difficult to think about, it will happen to all of us and the circumstances will vary. For some, it will be sudden, while others will have prolonged battles with health issues and may require […]
Updating expected returns
Arguably the most important thing Rockbridge does is forecast what kind of lifestyle families can expect in retirement. We believe our attention to retirement planning, and all aspects of financial planning, separates us from other wealth managers in Syracuse and across the country. The fee-only fiduciary model puts clients first and delivers on things investors […]
Roth conversions
Roth IRA conversions can be an important potential tool for implementing a tax efficient retirement plan. At its core, a Roth conversion involves prepaying a deferred tax liability in exchange for tax free growth going forward. Conversions are ideal for people who are in lower tax bracket today than they are likely to be in […]
An investing lesson found in bank earnings
Last week, the largest U.S. Banks reported earnings. Since then, sellers of news have been scouring the information in an attempt to entertain their viewers and readers with insights into the future of stocks and the economy. Let them, but know the real value to the investors is not in the headline earnings miss, the […]
Assessing market volatility
In the last quarter of 2018, the market was down 20% from previous highs and we had many clients reaching out concerned about declines and high volatility. But when we examined the market’s movements, we found the volatility to be higher than normal but far from extraordinary. Recently, we have gotten similar questions from clients […]
Three upside-down investment insights
Often, all you need to be an excellent investor is a healthy dose of common sense: A penny saved is a penny earned. Buy low, sell high. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. That said, the best way to achieve these simple goals isn’t always as obvious. In fact, many of our favorite […]
Market commentary – January 2020
Stock Markets Stocks were up nicely this quarter except for Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) which is quite a turnaround from last year’s fourth quarter. The one-year numbers including REITs, are well above what it is reasonable to expect over the long run but are necessary from time to time to make up for the […]
Reassessing volatility
2018 was a less pleasant time to be an investor. In the four trading days leading up to last Christmas, the market dropped 7.7%, capping off what was a nerve-racking year for investors. But when we delved deeper, we found that 2018’s volatility wasn’t that unusual. One measure of market volatility is looking at the […]
Rockbridge names Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
You may spot the good news in the press sometime soon, but we wanted you to be among the first to hear it, straight from us! Please join us in congratulating Patrick Rohe, CFP® as we name him Chief Executive Officer of Rockbridge Investment Management. Why the change? It’s an opportunity to recognize Patrick for […]
Active vs. passive fund management
Every six months, Morningstar releases their “Active/Passive Barometer.” We feel Morningstar is a good source of data as they tend to be unbiased. While Vanguard or Dimensional Fund Advisors will always tell you passive is better, and active fund managers will always mine data that trumpets the benefits of active management, Morningstar is close to […]
