2018 Q3 Trends – Interest Rates Up
October 22, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

We have observed a gradual interest rate increase since mid-2017. The change was first experienced in higher yielding cash savings accounts, which was great news for emergency funds and rainy day funds. More recently we have seen an increase in…Read More

NEW! North Austin Location
October 22, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

In an effort to better serve our clients who live and work north of the river, we have opened a meeting location at the intersection of Mopac and Far West. This is a Regus coworking office space for the purpose…Read More

Podcast: Budgeting in Austin, TX
September 5, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

This podcast breaks down the difficult challenge of budgeting for a middle to upper middle class family in Austin, Texas. Find it here: http://conversationwithkevin.libsyn.com/a-mental-model-for-budgeting We cover: What does it cost to live comfortably in Austin? Why bother budgeting at all?…Read More

US vs The World
September 5, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

Stock markets have exhibited some fascinating behavior this year, and I’m not just talking about Elon Musk tweeting Tesla’s price up and down. (Although I can’t wait for the movie to come out –  DiCaprio was born for that role.)…Read More

Trade Wars
July 18, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

If wealth creation can be defined as more people accessing better products and services at lower prices, then Trade Wars gum up the works. It is not easy to find a respected economist who favors Trade Wars because it is…Read More

Tech Update: Portfolio Insight
May 17, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

We are excited to announce a new visual investment dashboard in your Orion portal. Orion is a performance reporting system that uses data feeds from TD Ameritrade and other custodians and presents that information to you in a visual way….Read More

The Flat Yield Curve
April 17, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

Here is what has been going on in global markets in Q1 of 2018. Click here for the full Q1 report in PDF format. Some interesting facts from the Q1 report: Top performing emerging markets: Egypt, Brazil, Peru, Russia Most appreciated…Read More

Can we afford that house? Rules of thumb.
March 19, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

There is usually a difference between the house we really want and the house we can actually afford. Figuring out a reasonable purchase price is critically important for financial security, and it is easy to let that number float up,…Read More

Deciding which house to buy
March 12, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

This is the time of year when home buyers and sellers become very active. If you are a potential buyer, let’s face it, this town is EXPENSIVE! The obvious reasons are: 1) People want to live here at an increasing…Read More

Higher interest rates on cash
March 6, 2018  | By Kevin Smith

Good news! Higher short-term interest rates mean higher potential returns on your cash. This is not going to make or break your retirement plans, but it may be worth a 30 minute exercise to review the interest you are earning on…Read More