“Is now a good time to start investing?” It’s a simple question, but it’s almost impossible to answer because it requires a market prediction. Most people agree that trying to predict the market is impossible, but it’s human nature to …
Financial Synergies teams up with J.P. Morgan in a speaker-event with Andres Garcia-Amaya, Global Market Strategist, J.P. Morgan Funds. The event was held at the Hofheinz House, in Houston, TX on September 4, 2013 at 6pm. See below for some …
The situation in Syria has gone from bad to worse over the last few weeks. The U.S. and allies are preparing for a possible military strike against President Assad’s regime in a country that has been torn apart by a brutal civil war. …
Remember 2008? Some of us kept our eye on the ball and maintained our long-term investment plans. Others panicked and went to cash, thinking that it would protect them from downside risk, and waited until the market “normalized” before they dove back …
Aaron Tippin is a country music artist that rose to fame in the early 1990’s. I was a teenager when his debut single was released, “You’ve Got To Stand For Something”. It became a popular anthem for Americans as we …
One of the toughest parts of my job as a financial advisor is experiencing the passing of a long-time client. Comforting a grieving family and helping to guide heirs through the account transfer process that follows is both challenging and …
For the same reason we liquidated our position in TIPS (Treasury Inflation Protected Securities) earlier this year, we’ve made a change in the commodities category. You might be asking yourself, why would terminating a bond position like TIPS prompt a …
Over the years I’ve come to realize that diversification can mean different things to different people. Most financial advisors preach diversification, but I’m often astonished by the allocation strategies that pass for “diversification” in the financial planning industry. Diversification is …
Much of our latest due diligence and fund research has focused on bonds, and that research recently led us to make a fairly dramatic change to our clients’ bond allocations. Three funds have been eliminated from our portfolios and two …
We’ve made a change in our small-cap value stock category. We’ve replaced the Queens Road Small-Cap Value fund with Diamond Hill Small-Cap Institutional (DHSIX). This fund has been on our radar for years, but only recently were we able to …
Last week, while perusing the Wall Street Journal and catching up on some of the most intense news of recent history, I happened upon a quote by English author John Donne which goes something like this: “No man is an …
Beginning in the late 1960’s, a professor at Stanford University began a series of studies on delayed gratification. Pre-school children were given a single marshmallow and then offered a choice: they could eat the marshmallow immediately or they could wait …
Last week the world learned that 84-year-old Gloria MacKenzie was the sole winner of the $590 million Powerball jackpot. This makes her one of the biggest winners in lottery history. The widowed great-grandmother chose to receive her winnings as a …
We are often asked the question, “What makes you different?” There are many things that set us apart from our competitors, but there is also an official distinction we hold over the majority of other financial advisors. For more than …
The Retirement Salary® is our proprietary retirement income strategy. It is not an annuity or commission-based product. It is designed to provide retirees with a steady, predictable income while allowing the portfolio to continue growing over time. Please view the …
Few would question the merits of using a Traditional IRA as a vehicle for tax-deferred retirement savings. They are very easy to establish, and the investment options are vast. As long as you are under the age of 70 ½ …
The rise in social media networks and other Internet-based outlets, such as messaging and email, have become very important tools for communication in business. Now, with the SEC regulation allowing for companies to push certain types of business announcements and …
While medical expenses should come as no surprise to retirees, the amount of money we anticipate spending on medical care in retirement is often grossly underestimated. Based on a 17-year retirement, a couple who retired last year could expect to …
Chart of the Month | Stocks vs. Bonds: More Choices for Investors as Bond Yields Rise