Tax season is officially here. The IRS began accepting paper and electronic tax returns on Monday, January the 27th and the due date for 2019 federal income tax returns is April 15, 2020, for most individual taxpayers. By now you’re probably somewhere between assembling a...
Stock market returns last year as measured by the S&P 500 were a remarkable 31.5%. Gains this large are tempting. But return percentages can be misleading for several important reasons: Returns don't necessarily correlate with improving wealth, returns come at a cost, and whole portfolio...
I feel comfortable saying most people are aware that death or disability will affect their finances or the finances of the loved ones they leave behind. They may underestimate the impact or fail to take the necessary steps to mitigate these threats, but, at the...
Look, first off, I don't know. And secondly, if you've been around us very long at Beacon you know that we are not stock pickers and will never be stock pickers, for reasons that we have laid out many, many times. The title of this...
Each year I’m given the privilege of speaking with several groups of recent college grads about personal finance. It’s no secret that even after 4 years of high school and several years of college (and perhaps beyond) most people enter the complex world of personal...
The decade of the teens has been one of the most remarkable in US history in terms of contrasts. Charles Dickens, in his Tale of Two Cities describes it remarkably well: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the...
On Wednesday night, President Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives. The next step is for a vote to take place in the Senate, where a two-thirds majority is required to remove a sitting President. Given the Senate is controlled by Republicans 53-47, the...
If it is not clear to you, in 2019, that humans are tribal creatures, then I would suggest you tour an elementary school, which I have done twice in the last two days on behalf of our rising-kindergartner. These people are tribal! They gather into...
Believe it or not, the Holiday season is upon us. This is often a time of year when we reflect on the things for which we are thankful and spend time with friends and family. It’s also a time when many people do a large...
First, we want to wish you and all yours, a Happy and safe Thanksgiving. We are so thankful for you. As we prepare our homes and tables for one of our country's favorite holidays, an industry of marketers and algorithm-developers is busily preparing its websites to...
