Blog

11 Oct 2019 This Is Your Brain On (Financial) Drugs

Posted at 08:55h in The Friday Brief by Jared Korver, CPA, CFP®

By cyclonebill - Spejlæg, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8822885 In 1987, The Partnership for a Drug Free America released one of the most famous commercials in TV history, featuring an egg in a frying pan and the dramatic line: “This is your brain on drugs.” Like most...

04 Oct 2019 How to Simplify College Planning

Posted at 08:00h in The Friday Brief by Geoff Hall, CFP®, RICP®

Planning for your child’s (or grandchild's!) college education can be stressful and confusing. What schools should they consider? What criteria do schools look at in potential students? What kind of financial or merit-based aid should they expect? Are they more suited for one career over...

27 Sep 2019 Populism is Tough on Markets

Posted at 10:06h in The Friday Brief by Sam Bass Jr.

Just a few years ago, before the populist revolution in our country, the 'sausage-workings' of government were largely carried out behind heavy gilded doors by professional politicians, appointees and bureaucrats. Every two, four, and six years we judged their finished products in terms how much...

13 Sep 2019 How Much Should You Save Each Year?

Posted at 09:46h in The Friday Brief by Ryan Smith, CFP®, RICP®, CTS™, MSFP

There’s ample research about how much you can safely withdraw from your portfolio once you retire. There’s less research about how much you need to save annually so you can retire (this is called your “savings rate”), probably due to the large number of variables...

06 Sep 2019 How to Rescue a Pet and Your Finances

Posted at 09:42h in The Friday Brief by Jared Korver, CPA, CFP®

What would it take for your finances to get better? I mean, you have a life, I have a life (although my friends may object...

30 Aug 2019 Kids and Money

Posted at 08:00h in The Friday Brief by Geoff Hall, CFP®, RICP®

You probably aren’t surprised to hear that I’d like to raise my kids to be generous, kind, patient, thrifty and modest--in all areas, including their wealth. I hope they’ll be capable of making smart financial decisions and have a healthy relationship with money. ...

23 Aug 2019 The Inverted Yield Curve

Posted at 08:55h in The Friday Brief by Sam Bass Jr.

So what exactly is an inverted yield curve and does it really matter? Historically, when long-term interest rates fall below short term rates, more often than not, recessions ensue. However, more recently the results have been mixed. Back in February of 2005 Allen Greenspan, then Fed Chair, debunked the...

16 Aug 2019 Two Charts that Can Make Investing Easier

Posted at 08:00h in The Friday Brief by Ryan Smith, CFP®, RICP®, CTS™, MSFP

Investing offers what in theory seems like an easy trade: long-term wealth creation for short-term volatility. But the reality is that it’s not so simple. The promise of gains over 10 or 20 years becomes less compelling as you face large market drops that take...

09 Aug 2019 Is Sharing for Adults, Too?

Posted at 09:47h in The Friday Brief by Jared Korver, CPA, CFP®

My wife Amy and I have two sons--Miles and Charlie--who are four years old and almost two years old, respectively. Do you know what one character trait we spend the most energy and time attempting to teach them? Of course you do! It's sharing. Share the Legos. Give your...

02 Aug 2019 Equifax and Capital One: How to Protect Yourself

Posted at 10:45h in The Friday Brief by Geoff Hall, CFP®, RICP®

Last week, the consumer credit reporting agency, Equifax, settled with the US Federal Trade Commission over its 2017 data breach that affected over 147 million Americans. The settlement of up to $700 million includes as much as $425 million for individual settlements. On Monday, Capital...