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AUTHORS: Jennifer Climo Jean Fullerton Jonathan Harrington Nick Prigitano Jenna-Rose Finnie Kyle Labelle

They Don't Ring A Bell At The Bottom

October 7, 2022 Investments Jennifer Climo

Stock and bond markets are falling, inflation is persistent, and the media keeps talking about a recession…what portfolio changes should you make? Should I Sell My Stocks? The current volatility in the stock market has many people asking the same question. The answer is no, you should not sell your stocks. Let’s remember that the average intra-year decline (drop at some point during one calendar year) is about 14%. We simply forget about this after the markets have recovered again. When your portfolio falls steeply, it is normal to have an emotional response. Do not react to it! By far the most powerful emotion in investing is long-term regret, and if you sell now, you will certainly regret it later.

Series I bonds really are yielding over 9% right now. Should I buy them?

June 17, 2022 Investments Jonathan Harrington

Series I bonds (the I stands for inflation) are all the rage right now because of their currently high yields in an otherwise low-yielding savings environment. But before you tap into your home equity line of credit to max out your I bond purchases, you need to understand the mechanics of how I bonds work. What is an I bond? An I bond is a bond issued by the US government on which you earn interest at a rate tied to inflation and guaranteed by the federal government. If you buy an I bond today (June 2022), you will earn 9.62% interest, which is tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U). The bond earns interest for up to 30 years. You can also defer paying federal tax on the interest until you redeem (cash in) the bond, and there is no state or local tax on the interest.

The Levels of Risk for Stock Investments – Why Diversification Is Key to Prudent Investment Management

May 6, 2022 Investments Nick Prigitano

Anyone who has heard anything about the stock market knows it’s volatile. There will be swings up and down. But, although past performance does not guarantee future results, historically over the long term, it has rewarded investors who have stayed the course. However, when referring to the stock market, most people mean a broad-based benchmark (like the S&P 500) that invests in lots of different companies. Long-term returns are not the same for someone holding individual stock or a group of stocks that differ from the given benchmark.

What Are the Risks to Your Investments, and What Should You Do About Them?

March 11, 2022 Investments Nick Prigitano

The world is riddled with uncertainty right now. A glance at news headlines shows that. Inflation has not been this high in decades. There are mounting geopolitical risks from the largest land war in Europe since WWII. There are still remnants of a global pandemic. All these crises have led to ballooning US debt during a time when interest rates are poised to rise. Risks abound, and this has been reflected in the stock market, both globally and domestically, with recent drops from all-time highs. With risks coming from all sides, what is an investor to do? Like anything in life, investing comes with trade-offs. In this post, we will discuss some of the biggest risks to investing, and the trade-offs of hedging against them.

Financial Planning for Unmarried Couples

December 17, 2021 Taxes Social Security Estate Planning Investments LGBTQ+ Jennifer Climo

Financial and tax planning advice is relatively easy to find online for married couples and single individuals. However, according to the U.S. census, about 8% of adults live with an unmarried partner. When you are living with a long-term partner, you may think of yourself as married for most purposes, but the law treats you very differently than it does a married couple. It is important to understand these differences, as they can have a dramatic impact on your lifetime taxes paid. It used to be that if you were LGBTQ+ and in a relationship, you were going to be an unmarried couple, as the federal government did not recognize same-sex marriage. This all changed in 2015, when gay marriage was made legal by a Supreme Court decision. However, many LGBTQ+ couples were long disgusted by the lack of marriage equity and chose to remain unmarried even after the court decision. This means there are still many unmarried LGBTQ+ couples.

Contribution Limits for Retirement Accounts in 2022

November 12, 2021 Investments Nick Prigitano

As financial planners, we obviously adore retirement accounts and saving for the future. What makes these accounts so great are the tax rules associated with contributing money to them. You can either get a tax deduction today (but pay taxes later when you withdraw the money), or you can skip the deduction now and know that the money invested will grow tax free going forward. The tax benefits are so appealing that there are contribution limits to these various retirement accounts. Every year, the IRS reviews these limits, and financial planners everywhere wait with great anticipation to see whether these limits will increase in the coming year. Well, the numbers for 2022 are out....

Contemplating Your Compensation – What to Consider When Receiving Company Stock as a Part of Your Compensation Package

July 9, 2021 Taxes Working Professionals Investments

When many people consider the compensation package for an employer, they primarily look at the base pay and possible bonus potential. Beyond that, other fringe benefits such as health insurance, company paid life insurance, a 401(k) match, or other perks (like being able to work from home) may come into the equation. However, for many people who work for publicly traded companies, a portion (often significant) of their total compensation will come in some form of company stock awards. How do you quantify this part of your pay, and its risks, when evaluating your entire compensation package? Here are some things to consider when company stock is a portion of your total pay.

Robinhood’s IPO Access Platform: Gold Mine or Financial Black Hole?

July 2, 2021 Investments

It was inevitable to hear the terms Robinhood and IPO in the same sentence. Robinhood, the investing app, has had its name all over the place in recent years. And with the company still privately held, Robinhood and IPO seemed destined to touch the headlines of financial newspapers. What may not have been foreseen was that Robinhood would not only be going through an IPO itself but would be offering its customers the opportunity to invest in other IPO offerings.

Solar Panels - Making Money While Lying in Your Hammock

June 22, 2021 Investments

By putting solar panels on your property, you are in effect installing a power plant that generates free energy; doesn’t require fuel; is silent and pollution free; has little or no maintenance and lasts for 25 years or more. In return, you receive free electricity to reduce or eliminate your electric bill; you increase the value of your home; you get a subsidy from the government; and you help combat climate change.

Making Sense of Nonsense - AMC & the Latest Meme Stock Craziness

June 11, 2021 Investments

“We caution you against investing in our Class A common stock, unless you are prepared to incur the risk of losing all or a substantial portion of your investment.” Not exactly the words that you want to hear come from the CEO of a publicly traded company. Yet, that is a quote from a regulatory filing that AMC Entertainment (NASDAQ: AMC) placed with the SEC on June 3rd, 2021. The filing went on to say, “Within the last seven business days, the market price of our Class A common stock has fluctuated from an intra-day low of $12.18 on May 24, 2021 to an intra-day high of $72.62 on June 2, 2021, and we have made no disclosure regarding a change to our underlying business during that period, other than with respect to an additional financing.”

Lumber, Gasoline, Inflation? Oh My! - What's The Deal with Inflation and What to Do About It

June 4, 2021 Cash Management Investments

The silent killer of many financial plans is the gradual increase of the price of goods and services over time, otherwise known as inflation. This mysterious villain is often neglected because these price increases are so gradual, they are hardly noticed day by day, until you reflect on what things used to cost 10, 20, or 30+ years ago. This has been especially true over the past decade when inflation has been so much less than in the past.

The American Families Plan and the potential increase in Capital Gains Tax rates

April 26, 2021 Taxes Investments

President Biden is planning on previewing his American Families Plan (AFP) at his first address to a joint session of Congress on April 28th. Some of the expected parts of the plan include extending the enhanced child tax credit, 12 weeks of family leave paid for by the federal government, free community college, access to free childcare, and universal pre-K. To pay for all of these new programs, the President is expected to propose tax increases in various forms. One of the most talked-about changes is with long-term capital gains rates, reportedly increasing dramatically for those Americans with more than $1 million in taxable income.