Paul Ewing Lucky you. I get to speak with successful businessmen on a regular basis. Their greatest investment tends to be in their business not the stock market. It’s never too late to invest in yourself. I speak regularly with Paul Ewing. He could easily be retired and then some, but instead he and friend David Halley, M.D., have created a business around their X10 Therapy knee rehabilitation machine. Last week, Crain’s Detroit Business published an article on it. If you or someone you care about wants to learn the keys to a successful knee replacement then read this article. … [Read more...]
5,000 Jokers
You deserve the peace of mind and comfort that a trustworthy investment advisor brings to you. Unfortunately the investment business is loaded with scammers and crooks. Even when brokers are expelled from a firm they can somehow find work in the same industry. That was the case with Kenneth Dwyer who lost more than $85 million for his investors. “Mr. Dwyer is one of more than 5,000 brokers who were still licensed to sell securities earlier this year after working for one or more firms that regulators expelled between 2005 and 2012, according to an analysis by The Wall Street Journal of a … [Read more...]
Conflicting Advice
An investment advisor is required by law to act as a fiduciary for his client. A stock broker, or “wealth manager” as they refer to themselves, are not. Brokers follow a less stringent “suitability” rule. The difference means that investment advisors must avoid conflicts of interest, whereas a broker should simply disclose them to you as this article points out. Make sure you work with an investment advisor. … [Read more...]
Welcome to Stagnation
I would scrap corporate taxes all together. It’s the fastest way to kick-start this economy. As Art Laffer and Nicholas Drinkwater point out at Investor’s Business Daily According to Larry Gatlin of the legendary country group the Gatlin Brothers, the definition of bankruptcy is: "When your outgo exceeds your income, your upkeep will be your downfall." And boy, does Detroit fit that definition. But the origins of Detroit's bankruptcy are far from unique or exclusively Detroit's fault. And while Detroit's corruption-ridden city government and unfunded pension-fund … [Read more...]
Variable Annuity Losses Pressure Insurers
Here is another stark example of why I don’t like variable annuities. When insurers mis-read the market and their hedges don’t work someone has to lose money. Moody’s Investor Services reports: Unpredictable behavior by variable annuity policyholders will continue to pressure US life insurers going forward, says Moody's Investors Service in its new special comment, "Unpredictable policyholder behavior challenges US life insurers' variable annuity business." US life insurers' inability to predict policyholder behavior including lapse rates led to mispricing that continues to be a weak spot … [Read more...]
Retired Teachers Pay High Fees to Lag the Market
I’d get teacher pensions out of hedge-funds altogether. Retired teachers would be aghast if they truly understood how their money is being “invested”. [expand title="Click here to read more."] Amid questions and criticisms regarding the State of Rhode Island's hedge-fund investments, Rhode Island General Treasurer Gina M. Raimondo has released a breakdown of fees. In documents released to The Providence Journal and a table posted on the treasurer's website, Raimondo reports that the state paid $15.9 million in fees last year on Rhode Island's $1 billion hedge-fund portfolio. That … [Read more...]
What to Do about Vanguard GNMA
You don’t want to sell Vanguard GNMA. I know its price is down. And often, when investors see share prices go down, they sell. They follow the herd. Resisting that impulse isn’t easy. But the herd forgets that stocks were slaughtered in 2008 while GNMA was a port in the storm. You can bet there will be another stock market crash as bad as or worse than 2008. It’s really just a matter of when. 2008 wasn’t a bloodbath for everyone. The average GNMA fund tracked by Morningstar was up 6.6%. It was a terrific year. Unfortunately, it seems you can count on one hand the lucky few who stuck … [Read more...]
Retiring Baby Boomers in the Days of Bubble and Bust
Are you a Baby Boomer heading into retirement? Chances are 2008 hit you like an anvil. Your pension portfolio and the price of your house plummeted. Together, those investments are probably the majority of your wealth. But according to new research by the Social Security Administration, by 2010 Baby Boomers born between 1948 and 1953 had lost only an average of about 2.8% of their real wealth from 2006 to 2010. “How could this be so low?” you might be asking. In 2006 64.3% of the average Boomer’s wealth was tied up in pensions and housing and real estate. Between 2006 and 2008 housing … [Read more...]
Best of 2012: 6% Income in Retirement
Originally posted: June 19, 2012 I came across a special report on retirement income last week during my daily reading regimen. I was surprised by one particular article on ways to boost your retirement income. The recommendation was for preferred stocks—an area I know well and a choice that makes sense in the right environment. But now is not that time. The hook for preferred stocks is the current yield of 6%. But one catch, as the article correctly points out, is that preferreds are lower on the food chain than bonds. There’s more risk of not getting paid if the company can’t make … [Read more...]
Home for the Holidays
The Federal Reserve seems to feel inflation is under control. But those of us living in the real world know it’s far from under control. Have you tried buying an airline ticket lately? Even the airlines that are “bankrupt” or close to it are charging a fortune. Enjoying the holidays together isn’t cheap, especially if you like to eat. If you like being comfortable inside your home as opposed to shivering uncontrollably or sweating profusely, then you know utility costs aren’t getting cheaper either. Consider how much you’ve spent in the past 10 years alone, never mind your lifetime. The … [Read more...]
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