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Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.
The single biggest office pool event just got more interesting. I’m not talking about the Superbowl. Though, that’s probably a close second. No, it’s March Madness. And it’s all thanks to Warren Buffett. Continue Reading…
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Last week I dug into alternatives to low volatility ETFs. In it, I hinted at a another, simpler way to reduce portfolio volatility. It starts with diversification. But it ends with the asset allocation you choose. In other words, you can build a simple portfolio of stock and bond funds that limit the impact of market volatility. In most cases simpler is better. That is the goal here, to show how the simplest allocation strategy can reduce volatility in your portfolio.
To understand market volatility we need to understand what moves the markets: why stock prices move and the same for bond prices. Most of the causes can be reduced to rumors, news, political, economic, and disasters. Let’s not forget our own behavior plays a role too. Continue Reading…
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Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.
Don’t confuse this with a retail is dying piece. It’s not and never will. Those stuck under a rock the past decade have missed the transformation of retail – that article paints a telling tale of the shift from offline to online shopping. It’s safe to say offline retail has peaked. Outlet malls and department stores are being replaced by warehouses and delivery centers. Continue Reading…
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The IRS has finally updated and battle tested its system for this years barrage of tax returns. But are you ready? If not, this simple checklist is a great way to get started early. While you wait for 1099s and W-2s to show up, here are a few last minute tax return reminders and tips to help get your return done right, on time, for less.
Most of you know the last day to file a tax return. But do you know the first day you can file?
The day tax season opens can change from year to year depending on whether there are any last minute changes to the tax code. This year, the IRS had to push the start date back about a week. The first day you can file your tax return is January 31.
That doesn’t mean you have to wait until then to get started. You can even finish early. All the major tax software will hold your finished tax return and file it for you once tax season starts.
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A couple of years ago a new kind of fund, the low volatility ETF, was first offered by fund companies. It fits in a new fund category known as smart beta, which offers a different way to weight index funds outside of the typical market cap weighting used by most indexes.
It didn’t take long for these new funds to become popular. Much of that popularity is due to its initial performance. The funds did more than advertised and investors started chasing returns. But are low volatility ETFs actually worth it? Or is there a better option? Continue Reading…
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Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.
A new weather term popped up this week – Polar Vortex. If you were in its path you quickly found out what it meant. COLD. Not surprising really. Anytime they give weather patterns a special name, it never turns out good. Continue Reading…