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A Case Study in Evaluating a Mutual Fund

| October 5, 2015 | 0 Comments

Suppose I offered you a mutual fund that promised a six percent annual distribution yield (it pays out six percent per year)? Sounds attractive, right? When we evaluate a mutual fund for our clients, here are some of the factors we consider as we perform our due diligence. Are the costs reasonable? Low expenses are […]

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Layoffs Happen, Even in a Good Economy

| September 2, 2015 | 0 Comments

Within the next few weeks, it seems that Qualcomm is set to lay off about 15 percent of its workforce. This has become fairly commonplace in the American workplace, though it’s been a while since it happened locally on such a scale. Still, Haggen’s team reductions and this news item got me thinking about how […]

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The Debate Over A Fiduciary Standard

| August 2, 2015 | 0 Comments

Back in April of this year, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a proposed rule that would require investment advisors to retirement plans to follow a Fiduciary Standard. The proposed rule has sparked a fierce debate in the industry, as brokers who do not want to be held to this standard argue that the new […]

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What on Earth is a “Liquid Alternative”?

| July 5, 2015 | 0 Comments

Scarcely a day goes by that I don’t receive a call or at least two emails from somebody trying to sell me a “Liquid Alternative” mutual fund. Thankfully, only one of my clients has come to me saying “I’ve got to have some of these.” So what are these things and why might you want […]

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Should You Buy Earthquake Insurance?

| June 3, 2015 | 0 Comments

Recent events in Nepal got me thinking about a couple of things. The first was how I might be able to help such poor people so far away. The second was what would happen here at home if (when?) we were to be hit by the proverbial “Big One.” Unlike a lot of people, I […]

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Financial Planning for a Younger Spouse

| May 2, 2015 | 0 Comments

I’ve worked with several couples with very different birthdates. This isn’t good or bad – as they say, the heart wants what it wants. Still, the financial planning considerations are a little different than for people who marry someone closer to their own age. So, here are five things to think about when a couple’s […]

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Five Questions People (Almost) Never Ask Their Advisor

| April 6, 2015 | 0 Comments

I meet with a lot of people who are looking for financial advice. Their needs and financial knowledge vary greatly. And yet, it amazes me how rarely I am ever asked five simple, straightforward and utterly critical questions, which will go a LONG way towards helping you differentiate good advisors from salespeople. Each of these […]

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Does Global Investing Still Makes Sense?

| February 3, 2015 | 0 Comments
Does Global Investing Still Makes Sense?

In 2014, the S&P 500 Index of the stocks of the 500 largest U.S. companies rose 14 percent. Outside the U.S. it was a different story: the MSCI Europe, Australasia, and Far East (EAFE®) Index of foreign stocks fell almost five percent and stocks in emerging markets lost about two percent. Over the past three […]

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Retirement Accounts: Trusts as Beneficiaries

| January 6, 2015 | 0 Comments

I hope you’ve enjoyed the holidays. As we ring in the New Year and start our client review cycle, one of the things that we do for our clients is to review the beneficiary designations of their retirement accounts (pensions, IRAs, etc.). This is important because the beneficiary designations that you elect control who gets […]

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Retirement Accounts: Distribution Rules

| December 8, 2014 | 0 Comments

With the year-end approaching, an important deadline for retirement account owners is also coming, so this column will deal with some of the rules surrounding IRAs and distributions. A significant caveat applies here: the rules can be very complex and people have literally written books on the topic. So I won’t be able to cover […]

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