The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data indicated that the February unemployment rate was 5.5% while labor force participation was 62.8%. At 5.5%, the unemployment rate appears to be a positive, although it doesn’t adequately reflect underemployment. The labor force participation rate of 62.8% is near record lows and would seem to reflect an … Continued
Yahoo Finance penned an article last week titled, “Five ways your financial adviser can screw up your retirement, legally.” This coincided with an announcement by US Labor Department Secretary Thomas Perez, indicating that he was sending the agencies’ “conflict of interest” rule to the Office of Management and Budget, which means that the timer is … Continued
The Society of Actuaries has revised its mortality assumptions for the first time since 2000. The new data estimates that the average 65-year old man today will live 86.6 years, up from the 2000 estimate of 84.6 years. The same data for women has increased to 88.8 years from 86.4 years. These changes have significant … Continued
We all know that stock markets fluctuate. Over the last 70 years, the S&P 500 has lost 20% of its value 12 times. But over the same period, the S&P 500 was up nearly 15,000%, and, during the period 1926-2014, recorded a 10.1% average annual rate of return. More recently, the stock market took a … Continued
I recently attended an investor conference in NYC hosted by a large money center/investment bank. While I rarely attend such events, I was particularly interested in the topic of “alternative investments” and how they may be used to either increase the return and/or reduce the volatility in a portfolio. At the risk of over-simplification, equity … Continued
J. Paul Getty (1892-1976) provided an excellent summary of Germany’s problem with Greece’s debts. “If you owe the bank $100, that’s your problem. If you owe the bank $100 million, that’s the bank’s problem.” With that in mind, it will be interesting to see how this issue plays out over time. All comments and suggestions … Continued
Walmart, the largest private employer in the country, recently announced that all its U. S. workers would earn at least $9 per hour by April and at least $10 per hour by next February. In the opinion of the author, this is the right thing to do. “The workman is worthy of his hire”. This … Continued
A combination of softened global demand and increased marginal production — principally in North America — has precipitated the collapse in crude oil prices over the past six months. An analyst being interviewed on CNBC today suggested that oil prices would rebound sometime in 2016. It was also disclosed yesterday that Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway recently … Continued
A great deal of speculation surrounds the financial and political crisis gripping Greece. The country’s politicians have mismanaged government finances for years and while a brief reprieve was given by the European Union a few years ago, the problems continue to crop up. In simple terms, the country has been spending more than it takes … Continued
Two recent articles suggest that we may be seeing a return to riskier home financing. Friday’s Wall Street Journal carried an article by Anya Martin asking “Tempted to Put Home Equity to Work?” Sunday’s Detroit Free Press included a commentary by JC Reindl highlighting the return of Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac insured mortgages featuring … Continued
Falling gasoline prices, mandated fuel economy standards, media coverage of low volume, innovative vehicle power trains and concern over the environmental impact of fossil fuels, has raised questions regarding the future of gasoline powered motor vehicles. Most car buying decisions are probably based on the purchaser’s requirements relating to affordability (both initial cost and continuing … Continued
Having worked as a financial professional since the mid 1980’s, I have worked with many families with a vast assortment of dynamics: “normal” families, “dysfunctional” families, and everything in between. There is nothing that will drive a family to dysfunction quicker than money or transitioning the responsibility of financial decisions. In this, the final installment … Continued
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