Blog
Our popular Smarter Investing blog is a concise source for asset-class investing principles and retirement planning insights.
Remember What Got Us Here
Stock returns have been good in recent times, maybe better than you realize. But there is a reason for this and they may not continue at this clip indefinitely. Click on the link to read my thoughts and learn more.
Read MoreKnown Unknowns
How could I say no? A group of fellow soccer parents wanted to field an adult, co-ed indoor soccer team. I wasn’t at the get-together when they decided who would play, so I was automatically added as the goalie–a position I...
Read MoreGreener Pastures
It’s easy to forget that we’re investing for our long-term goals, many of which will not come to be for a decade or more. Even older investors are often trying to leave some of their wealth to the next generation or...
Read MoreHow Much Can You Spend In Retirement?
The most common financial planning and investment question I get from clients and prospective clients alike is: How much can I spend from my portfolio in retirement? It also might be the most critical question you’ll face in your...
Read MoreWhat can retired investors learn from bank collapses?
The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank in the last few weeks—the second and third largest bank failures in history—have been dominating financial headlines. But as I’ve read their stories to understand...
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How to restart your retirement plan
A recent article on Fox Business reported shocking findings from the 2022 Fidelity State of Retirement Planning Study: “More than 40% of the general population put their retirement planning on hold during the pandemic, and that...
Read MoreSVB and sensible investing
You’ve probably heard that Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) folded last week, the 16th largest bank failure in history. Stock prices since have been predictably volatile—down for a few days but up significantly today. First, the...
Read MoreThanks Dan
Dan Wheeler passed away this weekend after a battle with pancreatic cancer. I’ve mentioned several financial industry-related names in my articles over the years that are on my gratitude list, from Fama, French, Bogle, and...
Read MoreDFA funds: Anything but one dimensional
When I first started using DFA mutual funds to invest client portfolios over 20 years ago, it was with a specific purpose. After giving up on trying to pick stocks and time the market (“active management”) in the early...
Read MoreThe best investment approached just turned 50
Happy Valentine’s Day! Dimensional posted this video to their website today and I wanted to share it with you. Here are their thoughts followed by the short clip: In love as in finance, there is some value in being flexible....
Read More2022 The good, The bad, and The ugly
With last year firmly in the rearview mirror and annual reports on their way out the door, I decided to look back on 2022 in financial markets and share some of the things that stood out to me and that we can learn from. THE GOOD We...
Read MoreA little full, a lotta sap
Every year after Thanksgiving, my family heads to a remote Christmas tree farm in Edmond to get a real tree for the house. The fresh air is invigorating, it’s our two-year-old lab Berkeley’s happiest day of the year, and my...
Read MoreThe benefits of a cool head
“Everyone I talk to has lost a ton of money this year; what’s going on?” I’ve heard this question several times from clients and potential clients in the last few months. Surprisingly, 2022 looks like it will be...
Read MoreTime the market at your peril
Technology enables immediate access to everything wherever and whenever we want it. In many cases, such as staying in touch with friends and family, or learning about world events, that’s a good thing. However, when it comes to...
Read MoreThe bonds are alright
No one enjoys a stock market decline, but asset class investors don’t have much to complain about this year. While the S&P 500 is down over 17% and the international stock MSCI World ex-USA Index has declined over 22% through...
Read MoreTrust the advisor who trusts markets
With over 200,000 financial advisors in the United States, how do you pick one? First, eliminate the stock pickers. Those are the people making predictions about which stocks are going to be winners and losers. Cross off the market...
Read MoreThe rocky road to real returns
Stocks have historically been the best investment for long-term investors to combat the costs of higher inflation. Small cap and value stocks tend to perform particularly well when inflation rises (I’ve written about this before,...
Read MoreKeeping a cool head while others are losing it
It has been a tough year for investors as diversified stock portfolios have declined by almost 20% from their highs last year. Bonds have failed to offer the stability we’ve seen from them in prior downturns, as their price...
Read MoreTen obstacles to investing and how to overcome them
By David Booth We’ve learned a lot about investing over the past 60 years, a period that has seen many breakthroughs in the world of finance. What we know comes from studying public markets and is grounded in serious academic...
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