Blog
Modeling Your Personal Finances: Part 1
In engineering and physics (my first two careers), the use of computers to model the behavior of complicated systems started during World...
The Cost of Inflation
Inflation is a critical issue in financial planning because it is essentially a tax on your future earnings. Unfortunately, investors...
The Power of Concentration and Diversification
I help busy couples optimize their money decisions so that they can focus on their families and careers. Focusing on their families can...
Why would a smart engineer/doctor/etc. hire a financial planner?
You’re smart and good at solving problems. Why would you hire someone to help you with something as important as your finances when you...
Rule of 72 Explained => Investment Math Nerd time!
Here is a quick way to calculate how many years it will take for your investment to be worth twice as much. Take the number 72 and...
Who or What do you want to have an IMPACT on?!
Who or what do you want to have an impact on? This question is important for anyone who has been successful managing his or her money. I...
Early Advice Yields Exponential Returns
Early financial advice can yield exponential returns because of compounding. Interest, both positive interest on your investments and...
Relieving Spousal Financial Stress
Working with couples I have found that one spouse usually takes the lead in managing the family’s finances. It’s important to realize...
Investing is NOT like Physics
Before I became a financial advisor, I taught physics. Investing in NOT like Physics. Laws vs. Rules of Thumb: In physics, there are...
Investments that make me go Hmmmm…
I consistently advocate for investing in a diversified set of low cost, index-based mutual funds or ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) that...
A Financial Planner to Match Your Needs
There are many types of financial planners. Unlike doctors, lawyers, and accountants, anyone can use the “financial planner” or...
Individual Stocks are Risky!
Over the past 5 years, 34% of individual U.S. stocks lost money. Over the same time period, only 0.2% of U.S. stock mutual funds or ETFs...
Are U.S. Stocks Expensive?
One way to measure whether stocks are expensive is to compare the current price of the stock to the underlying earnings of the company. ...
Do You Pay a High, Moderate or Low Income Tax Rate?
There are currently seven U.S. Federal income tax rates in the IRS tax tables ranging from 10% to 37%. On closer inspection though,...
Happy Money !
Mo’ Money, Mo’ Satisfaction: Once people are able to meet their basic needs for food and shelter, it makes sense that they begin to spend...
Is Stock Picking a Myth?
Yes (1). Then why do otherwise logical, analytical people believe they can beat the market by themselves, or by hiring an investment...
Born in the 1950’s? You’re in Your Tax Planning Window
How you position and withdraw your money before retirement and in the early years of retirement can extend how long your assets last by...
New SECURE Act takes Aim at Large IRAs and 401(k)s
IRA’s or 401(k)’s with over $500k in assets may cause tax headaches for beneficiaries who inherit them because of the new SECURE Act law....
Money is Emotional: Money Scripts
Do any of these “money scripts” describe your attitude towards money (or your spouse’s)? Money avoidance: People who fall into this...