Expanded access to non-traditional investments
October 30, 2017  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

We have expanded our access to non-traditional investments through an independent exchange called CAIS. This platform provides third-party research reports, analytics tools and streamlined transaction execution for private equity funds, private loan portfolios, hedge funds, real estate funds, and others. Non-traditional,…Read More

Lower cost ETFs now transaction-free on TD Ameritrade
October 25, 2017  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

Good news! Our preferred custodian, TD Ameritrade, recently announced that they are overhauling their offering of Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) that trade without commissions. Here are a few key improvements: The list of ETFs that transact without trading costs will…Read More

Correlation and Portfolio Performance
August 31, 2015  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

Different types of investments are subject to different types of risk. On days when you notice that stock prices have fallen, for example, it would not be unusual to see a rally in the bond market. Asset allocation refers to…Read More

Five Ways to Manage Risk in Your Retirement Savings Plan
August 13, 2015  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

Your employer-sponsored retirement savings plan is a convenient way to help you accumulate money for retirement. Using payroll deductions, you invest for the future automatically, following that oft-noted advice to “pay yourself first.” But choosing to participate is just one…Read More

Should I be worried about a Federal Reserve interest rate hike?
February 11, 2015  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

After years of record-low interest rates, at some point this year the Federal Reserve is expected to begin raising its target federal funds interest rate (the rate at which banks lend to one another funds they’ve deposited at the Fed)….Read More

10 Financial Terms Everyone Should Know
February 11, 2015  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

Understanding financial matters can be difficult if you don’t understand the jargon. Becoming familiar with these 10 financial terms may help make things clearer. 1. Time value of money The time value of money is the concept that money on…Read More

Easy Math: 1.00% > 0.05% Interest on Cash
January 29, 2015  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

As of today, 01/29/15, interest rates paid for online savings accounts are in the 1.00% range and very close to the rates 12 month CDs are paying. We encourage clients with excess cash to consider these online savings accounts to…Read More

Share Class Conversions for Lower Investment Costs
January 22, 2015  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

Part of our job as financial advisors is to seek out the best investment service relative to fees for our clients. One of the many benefits of moving your accounts to TD Ameritrade is access to lower cost mutual fund…Read More

All About IPOs
January 13, 2015  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

Maybe you’ve heard someone talking about investing in “a hot new IPO” and wondered what all the fuss was about. Or maybe you’ve heard about a company “going public” and thought about whether you should invest in it. If you’re…Read More

Importance of Timing a Roth IRA Conversion
December 12, 2014  | By Kevin Smith, CFA

Conventional wisdom holds that if you convert a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, you should never pay the conversion taxes from IRA assets. The reason is that you’ll be depleting IRA assets that might otherwise be available to grow…Read More