Category: Investments

Many people often have outsized positions due to appreciation and large pre-tax retirement accounts. You may be looking to reduce portfolio risk and protect gains now, while also aiming to reduce your future income tax burden. Roth conversions and harvesting capital gains are two effective financial strategies that can achieve these goals; however, they accelerate income tax costs. There are current tax consequences associated with each strategy, and the issue becomes whether to accelerate ordinary income, capital gains, or a combination thereof.

By Marc C. Shaffer

A triple tax-advantaged account that many overlook, a Health Savings Account (HSA) is an account for individuals with high deductibles to set aside money on a pre-tax basis to cover qualified medical expenses. If you are able to cover most medical expenses out of pocket, a high deductible health insurance plan may work for you while allowing you to invest through your HSA for tax-free growth.*

By Marc C. Shaffer

While financial market volatility can be stressful for people of all ages, the implications of a bear market generally mean different things for different life stages.

Investors are routinely warned about allowing their emotions to influence their decisions. However, they are not often cautioned that their preconceptions and biases may color their financial choices.

In a battle between the facts & biases, our biases may win, especially when we don’t realize we have them. If we acknowledge this tendency, we may be able to avoid making unexamined choices when it comes to personal finance. It may actually “pay” to recognize blind spots and biases with investing.

Here are some common examples of bias creeping into our financial lives.

Rare collectibles can provide an entertaining form of alternative “investment,” and might seem particularly intriguing when markets are wobblier than Aunt Gertrude’s jello salad. Comic books can sell for millions of dollars, for example, depending on their rarity and condition. We’ve seen a copy of Detective Comics #27 (the first appearance of Batman) sell at $1.5 million.

By Ryan Brooke

The topic of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies has come up more recently in meetings with clients, friends and family who want to know, “what is all the buzz about?”

High net worth investors face investment challenges that some would consider unique to their financial status. The fundamental tenets of investing apply equally to them as with any other investor, but the affluent investor needs to be mindful of issues that typically arise only from substantial wealth.

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. It’s a colloquial saying we’ve heard many times, and it’s an important one when it comes to your investment strategy. We know diversification makes good sense and can help you reach your long-term goals. But occasionally, a certain stock will come along that can make you throw disciplined investment principles out the window. Sometimes, the allure of individual stocks is just too attractive to the average investor.

By Marc C. Shaffer

Skip the bad days? It sounds like a great concept.

How many of you would choose to skip right over 2020? If only we all had perfect foresight – both in life and with finances.

Here’s one thing we know about investment markets: in election years, years where we experience a pandemic, years that are filled with big news and years that are calm…they fluctuate.

By Marc C. Shaffer

Retirement. It is arguably one of the most talked about “goals” people save for, so much so, that short term goals can often get overlooked. Short term and long-term goals are not the same and treating them the same could mean some important considerations might be missed.