Fun with Charts and Data!
There is a really entertaining person to follow on Twitter that goes by the name of Plan Maestro (@PlanMaestro) and he/she publishes a tweet storm every weekend called chartstravaganza.
Picking up Quarters in Front of a Steamroller
Do you have an advisor that talked you into buying business development companies (known as BDCs), leveraged loans, or senior loans? It’s a good time to ask yourself if they understood what you would be risking when they made the recommendation?
The Next Financial Crisis?
$1.52 Trillion - the total amount of student loan debt outstanding
45 million - total number of student loan borrowers in the system
$27,975 - average student loan balance for ages 20 - 30
Is the Phillip's Curve Dead?
Is the Phillip's curve dead? Historically, we have seen inflation ramp up at these unemployment levels - but not this cycle. Why doesn't inflation pick up? Well, as the labor market tightens, employees are put in a better position to negotiate wages, their higher wages allow them to purchase more goods, rampant demand for more goods then enables employers to raise prices without a significant impact to their sales volumes. And the cycle continues....
Owning Your Retirement
Given that backdrop, let's get to the meat of Ben Carlson's article - how hard is it to save a million dollars in your 401(k)? Again, the answer to this question is dependent on a lot of different factors.
On Our Mind
As we wrap up a week filled with numerous headlines and little market movement, here are some things on our mind.
Halftime Market Report
It's July 16th and we're back after taking last Monday off for some recovery time post-Independence Day week. I think it's time for a good, old-fashioned halftime report on what's going on in the markets and economy as we move into the second half of 2018.
Nothing Lasts Forever
Last week I wrote about financial independence over the conventional thought of retirement, and I detailed a series of uncomfortable truths about wealth and money in the United States from Nick Maggiulli from Of Dollars and Data.
Retirement or Financial Independence
One of the most common phrases I hear when chatting with people about my firm and what I do for a living is some variation of the following...
It's 2018, What's Your Next Shot?
On January 15th, 2018, the Australian Open kicked off. This tournament is the first of the major four Grand Slam events of the year and it gives us tennis fans a perspective of what may occur over the rest of the year. In fact, over the past ten years in men’s tennis, the winner of the Australian Open finished the year ranked in the top 3 nine out of ten times and finished No. 1 three of those times.
Brexit? Why Yes, I’ll Have Mine with Eggs and Bacon
In 1994, the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA) was created to bring together 31 countries (including the United Kingdom) and foster growth across the region. Since the United Kingdom (UK) entered this agreement, UK GDP growth has decelerated, wage growth has become anemic, and the residents of Britain have…
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