The recent settlement between the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and various plaintiffs marks a significant turning point in the real estate industry. This agreement, which resolves allegations of anti-competitive practices, took effect on August 17th and could substantially change how homes are bought and sold across the United States.
Reducing Student Loan Balances Using Programs Offered
Student loan payments resumed on October 1st after over three years of forbearance. More than 30 million people are returning with existing loans, and 13 million new borrowers and recent graduates are entering the system for the first time since the Covid-related forbearance. Regardless of whether everything is appropriately structured for the first federal loan payment, you should still review your student loans to ensure everything is in order and understand your new payment.
Politics and the Stock Market, Imperfect Together
How Banks Work and the Importance of FDIC Insurance
What Happened to Silicon Valley Bank (SVB)
Revelations around the collapse and government takeover of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) dominated the news over the weekend. Except for the distractions provided by March Madness brackets and the Oscars, the word of failing financial institutions brought back bad feelings for everyone. Ironically, the film Everything Everywhere All at Once not only swept the Oscars but aptly describes the swiftness in which SVB collapsed.
The Super Bowl Indicator
The Super Bowl Indicator is a market phenomenon first introduced in 1978 by New York Times sportswriter Leonard Koppett. His findings revealed that the outcome of the US stock market (measured by the S&P 500 or Dow Jones Industrial Average) could be predicted by the winner of the Super Bowl in the National Football League
Student Loan Forgiveness
U.S. college tuition costs have skyrocketed over the last few decades, leading to an unprecedented number of students needing to finance the burden through student loans. As of August 2022, student loan borrowers owed a collective nearly $1,750,000,000,000 in federal and private student loan debt, with the average borrower owing $28,950.
New Tax Law Impacting Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) Starting in 2022
As the well-known saying goes, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes. The idea of taxation can be traced back to 3000-2800 BC when the first known taxation system took place in Ancient Egypt. Since then, there have been many changes and additions to the tax laws, with one point remaining certain; no one wants to receive a large tax bill that they weren't expecting.
529 Plans For Grandchildren May Be Getting Better
IRS Offers Clarity on the Secure Act
Russian SWIFT Sanctions and Your Portfolio
War in Ukraine
Our prayers and thoughts are with the Ukrainian people who are suffering immeasurably at the hands of the Russian military today. To characterize this as "geopolitical risk" that will impact our portfolios seems insensitive. Millions of Ukrainian people woke up today with plans to go to school and work, meet up with friends, or start vacations, and instead have bombs falling on their cities as Russia commits to war on their land.
Does more information help us make better decisions?
Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?
Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?
T.S. Eliot, The Rock, 1932
What does Eliot’s critique of modernity, which holds that we are losing something valuable in our lives as we pursue technical progress, have anything to do with investing and personal financial planning?
CARES Act: Relief for Households & Businesses
Sustainable, Responsible, and Impact (SRI) Investing Conference
Earlier this month I had the opportunity to attend the 29th annual SRI Conference in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The SRI Conference is the premier annual gathering of sustainable, responsible, and impact investment professionals working to direct the flow of investment capital toward a truly sustainable future.