You may recall that Newport, RI had a natural gas disaster earlier this year leaving 7,455 customers without gas (read: no heat) on the coldest day of winter. Turns out it was another manmade disaster. Yesterday, the Rhode Island Division of Public Utilities and Carriers (DPUC) released its report and here are the reasons: First, demand for natural gas was in excess of contractual limits by the Algonquin interstate pipeline driven by sudden low temps. I would think this one could have been avoided. It gets cold, real cold in Rhode Island during the winter. There will be an increase … [Read more...]
Archives for October 2019
Your Retirement Life: California Dreamin’ then Disaster Strikes!
Reader Inbox You can’t make this stuff up. As one client emails: E.J., I feel blessed by PG&E. They threatened to turn off power again early this morning and at this writing (1:35 PM) it is still on. The Saturday night to Monday afternoon outage wasn't exactly fun. I lost everything in my refrigerator and freezer and couldn't cook anything. I'm in a condo, so no generator is allowed. My son's community in Maine looks more inviting by the day. And another: E.J., Hope you are well. Read the "Your Survival Guy" article about the sorry state of the sorry state of California -- … [Read more...]
When Dividends Pay You to be Patient
When stocks move sideways, make sure you’re being paid to invest. Because the stock market has a history of doing just that. From 1929-1954: From 1965-1981: Over the last year: Originally posted on Your Survival Guy. … [Read more...]
Your Retirement Life: Investment Planning in One Chart
Originally posted on Your Survival Guy. … [Read more...]
There are Two Ways to Avoid Investor Overkill
I wrote in March 1991: Listen to me and listen to me hard as I tell you that investors miss the boat over and over because (1) they insist on timing the market, (2) they insist on investing with emotion keyed to events of the moment, and (3) they steadfastly refuse to buy when news is bleak. It’s the old buy-high-sell-low game again and again. Most investors regularly equate action with profits. But you don’t want a lot of action in your portfolio and you only need to follow a handful of indicators and a handful of investments. Most investors simply cannot help themselves, and that leads … [Read more...]
These Two Eastern States Are Open for Business
There were only two states on the East Coast that ranked in the Top 10 of the Tax Foundation's 2020 State Business Tax Climate Index. Those states were Florida at number 4, and New Hampshire at number 6. In the ranking, states were graded on corporate taxes, individual taxes, sales taxes, property taxes, and unemployment insurance taxes. Florida led the nation with the best ranking for individual income taxes and also secured the second-best ranking for unemployment insurance taxes. Florida placed in the top half of states in all categories. This year New Hampshire moved to 6th … [Read more...]
Tax Planning: Don’t Buy Mutual Funds’ Cap Gain Distributions
When you invest in your retirement life, it’s paramount you harness the advantages of a tax-efficient investment strategy. One strategy is to avoid surprise year-end capital gains distributions from mutual funds. Year-end distributions are why I prefer having individual, dividend-paying stocks in a brokerage account rather than the uncertainty that comes with mutual funds around this time of year. Take caution. Be prudent. Do not buy a fund around this time of year to immediately be on the hook for a tax gain. It’s like showing up for dinner, after it’s been eaten, and being stuck … [Read more...]
Since When do Democrats Want to Lower Taxes on the Wealthy?
Democrats in the Senate attempted and failed to loosen the $10,000 cap on state and local tax deductions yesterday. This seems odd because the burden of the cap falls heavily on wealthy taxpayers, and since the Bush administration Democrats haven't given an inch when it comes to lower taxes on wealthier Americans. The problem with the cap may arise for Democrats in that it hits the wealthy in high-income tax, Democrat voting states the hardest. In other words, Democrat politicians' donors. Richard Rubin reports in The Wall Street Journal: Full repeal of the cap would deliver more than half … [Read more...]
California’s Tax Increases Spur 40% More Wealthy Residents to Leave
Just how long will wealthy Californians accept being used as an ATM machine by the state's legislators? For years Democrats have said their ever-increasing taxes don't drive wealthy people away from the state. A new study says that theory is false. In fact, the study suggests higher taxes in California increased the number of wealthy residents fleeing by 40%. Americans do, in fact, want to leave their high tax states. The Editors at The Wall Street Journal write: Democrats in California have raised taxes on the rich again and again, and liberals claim it has no effect on taxpayer … [Read more...]
Fidelity Ends its $500M Relationship with Ken Fisher
Darla Mercado reports at CNBC: Fidelity has terminated a $500 million relationship with Fisher Investments, bringing the total yanked from the money manager to almost $1.8 billion. Officials at the giant Boston-based asset manager confirmed it would end its relationship with Fisher on Monday, in light of inappropriate comments founder Ken Fisher made at an investment conference on Oct. 8. Fisher managed $500 million in assets for Fidelity’s Strategic Advisers Small-Mid Cap Fund. “Fisher Investments does not provide investment advisory services for any portion of the assets of … [Read more...]
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