If you enjoy fine literature, we recommend all of Warren Buffett’s annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholder letters, dating back to 1965. While financial reports are rarely the stuff from which dreams are made, Buffett’s way with words never ceases to impress. His most recent 2016 letter was no exception, including this powerful insight about…(Read More)
We’re interested in helping you maintain financial security across multiple fronts. Please make sure that you are aware of the unfolding news about the latest global ransomware attack on computers running Microsoft Windows operating systems. You can Google “ransomware attack 2017” to scan the latest headlines, but basically, if your device becomes infected, your…(Read More)
Market indexes. You read about them all the time, such as when the Dow Jones Industrial Average (the Dow) topped 20,000 points in early 2017 … and then broke 21,000 just over a month later. In our last piece, we explored what those points actually measure, which isn’t always what you might guess…(Read More)
Disability insurance addresses lost wages that stem from an inability to work. Long-term care insurance, in contrast, addresses expenses associated with medical care provided to you in your home, a nursing home, a rehabilitation center, or an assisted living facility. Disability insurance policies may address either short-term or long-term needs for income…(Read More)
As we covered in our last piece, indexes have their uses. They can roughly gauge the mood of a market and its participants. If you’ve got an investment strategy that’s designed to capture that market, you can see how your strategy is doing in comparison … again, roughly. You can also invest in an…(Read More)
If ever there were an appropriate analogy for how to invest for retirement, it would be the classic fable of The Three Little Pigs. As you may recall, those three little pigs tried three different structures to protect against the Big Bad Wolf. Similarly, there are at least three kinds of “building materials” that investors…(Read More)
In days of yore, navigational maps were often illustrated with dragons and sea monsters, indicating that danger was afoot on the high seas. The imagery may have been mythical, but the risks were real enough, especially for travelers who failed to equip themselves for the journey. To this day, risk and reward remain tightly connected…(Read More)
Since nearly every media outlet on the planet reported the news, you probably already know that the Dow Jones Industrial Average topped 20,000 for the first time on January 25, 2017. But when a popular index like the Dow is on a tear, up or down, what does it really mean to you and…(Read More)
Ali vs Frazer. Magic vs Bird. McEnroe vs Borg. All three have brought endless hours of debate on who is superior. As of the last decade in the world of finance that rivalry has been ETFs vs. Mutual Funds. ETFs track an index, such as the S&P 500 or the Dow Jones Industrial…(Read More)
As a new parent and having a baby, you are focused on one thing and one thing only — the baby’s health. You have the right thinking. You want to be a good parent. You know it’s a huge responsibility, and you made sure that your home was a welcoming environment. Okay, maybe you…(Read More)