Investing

Investing in a world where there is an around-the-clock stream of economic news, and an ever-increasing multitude of complicated investment choices can be confusing and overwhelming. Over 30 years of investment experience has taught us that it is absolutely critical to have a well conceived strategy and to stick to it. Our top priorities for investing clients’ money: Strive to generate the income required to achieve their financial goals. Take the least amount of risk necessary to do so. Notice…

For decades, traditional investing has primarily involved three types of investments, and the main decision has been determining how much money to put into each category: Stocks Bonds Cash What are the Risks with Stocks and Bonds? Stocks offered the highest return potential but had the greatest amount of risk given the volatility of stock prices. Bonds were expected to provide some steady income and stability when stocks declined in value during periodic “bear” markets. But bonds had their own…

For most of the last 15 years, savers have been penalized. In the aftermath of the global financial crisis in 2008, interest rates have been kept near 0% more than 60% of the time. This has meant that money market funds, bank accounts, Certificates of Deposit, and many types of bonds paid little or NO interest for several years. Circumstances have dramatically changed since the beginning of 2022. To bring down inflation, interest rates have been rising steadily. Once all…

Given the current low interest rates and record setting inflation, many investors are looking for different ways to earn interest on their more liquid assets. Enter the I bond. A relatively unheard-of Treasury Department offering, the I-Bond is unique in that it’s rate is based on a combination of “Fixed Rate” and “Inflation Rate” to come up with it’s “Composite Rate”. The current “Composite Rate” the bond is paying is a whopping 7.12% annualized. With any deal potentially this good,…

Here’s an interesting story of luck to ponder. The story of Bill Gates. Bill went to high school at Lakeside School, just outside Seattle, in 1968. At this time computers were not a common occurrence in schools, not even in colleges. However, one of the teachers at his school believed that book study wasn’t enough without real-world experience. He realized that kids would need to know something about computers when they went to college. So, he petitioned the Mothers’ Club…

  The dramatic rise in the price of GameStop Corp. stock took the nation by storm in January. Beginning 2021 at a price of less than $20 a share it exploded to almost $350 by January 27. What accounted for the more than 1,500% increase? A frenzy of speculation (or gambling if you prefer). An unprecedented mixture of neophyte retail investors, newly available free trading, hedge funds shorting (betting against) overpriced GameStop shares then having to buy them back as…