How well are you securing your cash and valuables? Do you have a safe at home? A safe is an obvious choice for convenience, but unless you have serious security, you wouldn't want to leave major wealth sitting unattended while you're at the office or on vacation. You need a better option. The most obvious choice for most is a safe deposit box. That is the route an increasing number of the world's wealthiest are taking. Disasters like the wildfires and hurricanes that have hit the United States in recent years have made securing wealth an urgent endeavor in the minds of many. Benjamin … [Read more...]
Why I Work for You, and Not the Other Way Around
If you’re a client, you know you matter. We have a relationship. We talk about our families. You matter. In an industry where mega-investment-firms are acquiring medium-sized firms, what tends to get lost in the churn is you, the client—the one making it all work. Integration of your needs into a bigger firm’s desires is like a chicken processing plant, where there’s not much to talk about afterward because the relationship died long ago, and you’re there for the pickin’. Bringing in a new client takes time. It shouldn’t happen with a takeover deal. It takes care. It takes several … [Read more...]
How to Hire Investment Counsel: This is the Way
Real quick. You’re interested in hiring a financial advisor—one who’s held to a fiduciary standard by law, not some silly suitability one. You know you need help, but you just can’t make it happen because there’s resistance: No time, no real interest in digging into it, or you don’t know enough to explain to a loved one why you need it. “We’re fine, aren’t we?” She might ask. OK, here are summaries of two calls I had yesterday with prospective clients that will help you gain some perspective. The first one was with a prospective client whom was referred to me by a client I’ve been … [Read more...]
Be a Shepherd. You’ll Be Happier. Greed Kills
I was talking with a client yesterday. He emailed me earlier in the afternoon. The subject line read “New Customer.” His neighbor recently retired. She has a lot of company stock. She asked him what he’s doing with his money. She was intrigued by the “Armadillo” approach. I’ll let you know how our talk goes. Until then, I want to share with you the rest of my conversation. I’m so impressed with my client. He’s built his business over many years of hard work by taking small steps. Being in technology, he’s benefitted significantly from COVID. But he was ready for it. He was preparing all of … [Read more...]
Lumber Prices Soar
Normally in late autumn lumber prices are falling like the leaves, but it's 2020, and lumber price activity is just as crazy as everything else. Instead of dropping, prices for lumber are climbing. Ryan Dezember reports for The Wall Street Journal: Lumber futures have shot up 24% so far in November, closing Thursday at $616.90 per thousand board feet. That’s a lot lower than the record $1,000 hit this summer during America’s pandemic-induced lumber binge. But it is nearly 90% more than the typical price for boards delivered in January. “By any historical standards, this is just incredibly … [Read more...]
Why Your Retirement Survival is No Easy Task
You know how I feel about keeping what you’ve made and perhaps working a side hustle. You Owe it to Yourself to Continue Doing What You’re Good At Keep Working, if You Can How Many “Retirees” Will Keep Working?: Some Just Won’t Stop How Many “Retirees” Will Keep Working?: Today’s Elderly Twice as Likely to Work than in 1985 Your Retirement Life: You Can Keep Working These Americans Are Never Going to Retire You also know the benefits of working with someone who can be unemotional about your money. The entire country is emotional today. My RAGE Gauge, which measures … [Read more...]
How Can You Make Money in Your Sleep? Read on…
"Are you calling to tell me you bought a Treasury yielding five percent?" my client asked. "I wish," I responded. "I remember when they were yielding ten percent," he said. "But then again, inflation was that high too." "Do you guys handle taxable accounts?" He asked. "Yes, we're not picky." "I've got a lot of money in CDs. When they mature, it's just sitting in cash doing nothing." From there, we started talking about quality stocks and bonds and how a combination of the two could work as a long-term source of income. Maybe we don't get all of the income we want and dip into principal. … [Read more...]
The Case for Individual Stocks: Now More than Ever
UPDATE 11.18.2020: Has there been a company better positioned for the pandemic than the Home Depot? If your fire pit is more like your new outdoor living room, you know exactly what I'm saying. It's almost impossible to find those neat outdoor heaters. The same goes for pressure-treated wood. We're all trying to make our involuntary staycation one worth remembering. During a talk with Dick Young yesterday, he recalled graduating from Babson in 1963. Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank also graduated from Babson that year. Their class has, as a whole, been most active in giving back to the … [Read more...]
ESG Funds: You Invest, They Win—Here’s Why
You work too hard to have your savings messed with. You have enough on your plate as it is. Between keeping track of the rules for Roths, IRAs, RMDs, it all adds up. You read about ESG funds that are supposed to be “good” for the environment and wonder, “But, are they good for me?” In my series for you, “You invest, they win,” you wonder. You may also wonder about my concerns with Vanguard being too big. “How do you know if it’s too big?” you ask. “Well, it might be too big,” I respond, “if your phone rep is greener than a recycling bin and working in a room the size of a football field.” If … [Read more...]
The French Plan: Schools Open, Bars Closed
France has had great success in lowering the number of coronavirus cases by closing restaurants, bars, and gyms, but keeping schools open. The New York Times' David Leonhardt reports: What is Europe doing differently? It is cracking down on the kind of indoor gatherings that most commonly spread the virus. England closed pubs, restaurants, gyms and more on Nov. 5 and announced they would remain closed until at least Dec. 2. France, Germany’s regional governments and the Catalonia region of Spain have also shut restaurants, among other businesses. “I’m sure the Europeans didn’t want to … [Read more...]