Prospect of Financial Crisis Tops Fears of Pre-retirees

My Comments: You will note to the right of my image as you look at this page a comment about my professional objectives as a financial planner and consultant. None of us live in a vacuum where we avoid the influence by what we hear on TV, what we read in the papers and somehow …

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Bump Up the Minimum Wage

My Appologies for no post yesterday. I had the pleasure of having a kidney stone surgically remove. Those of you who have had kidney stones know how much fun I had. When I entered the workforce many, many years ago, I think the minimum wage was $1.75 per hour. Everyone screamed that it would put …

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How “Safe” is your money?

For those of us in the financial advice business, there is a never ending circulation of ideas that question the future outcome of our recommendations. It’s less so when the markets go up every day, but there are always uncertainties that surface. Recently, the questions have been much louder than usual. There are a number …

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Why Obama should pick Summers to lead the Fed

My Comments: I’ve made it clear over the past few years that I am not a fan of austerity. I believe the government has a mandate to push the envelope to make sure that ALL of us are included when it comes to sharing the pie. Can we push too hard? Oh, yes, and the …

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Bits and Pieces

DOW HIGH - The Dow swung in and out of negative territory July 31st, but was up more than 100 at its session high, setting a fresh intraday record of 15,634.32. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq held their modest gains. Earlier, the Nasdaq hit its best level since October 2000. All three major averages …

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What’s Happening?

My comments: For many of my clients, the recent quarterly statements from their custodian was disturbing. The numbers suggested and does suggest that their investments are at risk and some are asking whether we’re looking at another major financial crisis. None of this is new to me; I've been down this road several times before …

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Worst July For Munis Since 2003 Seen Paving Way For Rebound

My Comments: See, it's still possible to find some good news! August 1, 2013 • Bloomberg News The municipal market’s biggest July decline in a decade is leading investors such as Vanguard Group Inc. to bet history is on their side as they buy with yields close to a two-year high. Tax-exempt debt fell about …

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J.P. Morgan Weekly Market Recap – July 31, 2013

Volatility in virtually all markets have meant clients are upset and uncertain. Here is a take away from this weeks J.P.Morgan report that I think is important: "...expect growth to accelerate into the second half of the year, a realistic expectation given the easing of fiscal drag, the continued rebound in household wealth and the …

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5 Reasons Americans Have the Economic Blahs

TK: “My sentiments, exactly!” By Drew DeSilver | July 25, 2013 Four years into the current recovery, the views of most Americans about the economy can be summed up as “meh.” According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted last week, 45% of Americans rate the national economy as “only fair,” and 37% call its …

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Hope for Demoralized Would-be Retirees?

My Comments: It’s sort of like watching grass grow, or perhaps watching an old car turn to rust. You know it’s happening but you can’t just stand there and expect to see a difference from one moment to the next. The authors of the study referenced in this article talk about Dimensional Fund Advisors or …

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