High-income earners often face limits when it comes to Roth savings—but the tax code provides several alternatives. Learn how Roth 401(k)s, backdoor Roth conversions, and mega backdoor Roth strategies work, how they differ, and where each may fit within a thoughtful, long-term retirement plan.
Artificial intelligence has been a dominant market theme in recent years, influencing sector performance, valuations, and investor sentiment. Headlines have shifted from optimism about productivity gains to questions about disruption and the long-term implications for established business models.
In this commentary, Sarah Swan, CFP®, Wealth Manager, examines how evolving AI narratives have affected areas of the stock market, including the divergence between AI infrastructure companies and software firms. She also draws on historical examples of technological change and foundational ideas from thinkers such as Alan Turing and John Searle to frame the broader questions surrounding innovation, uncertainty, and markets.
The federal government shut down has entered its third day, continuing its disruption, uncertainty, and the all-too-familiar (and maddening) cycle of political gridlock and brinkmanship.
However, this is not a government shutdown story.
We’ve spoken with so many clients who are feeling completely uneasy about recent market volatility and the political landscape, and for good reason of course. So many of you have weathered market storms before, but as I said in last week’s Insights piece, it’s one of those things that unfortunately doesn’t get any easier just because you have past experience with it. We empathize with the angst and uncertainty you’ve likely felt the past month but of course particularly over the last two days regarding tariffs—and more than empathy, we feel this weight on your behalf.
If my kids were old enough to read this newsletter, they’d say “Mom, all you do is lecture people, including us.” Good thing for me, they aren’t there yet. But alas, I hope you wouldn’t agree with their presumed sentiment. The reality is that as advisors to our many, many cherished clients over decades, we believe we pick up on themes to which individuals wouldn’t otherwise be privy.
I set a goal for myself to read more in 2024. This felt equal parts lofty (where will I find the time?!) and obvious (perhaps less doomsday scrolling, and online shopping would serve me well). I had never been a big reader before, and I wasn’t proud of that. This year, though, something was unlocked for me—admittedly, and embarrassingly, many years overdue. I gave myself permission to drop anything that wasn’t thrilling to me, and I figured out what I love to read. The result? Twenty-nine completed titles in 2024, and eight dropped titles. Life is, in my opinion, too short to suffer through books I don’t like.
What I shouldn’t do as a financial advisor is wax poetic about the ways a person should spend their money. We give a lot of informed advice as advisors, and much of that advice is centered around data and modeling and educated extrapolating about a person’s specific circumstances, but one thing that’s less straightforward is advice about how people should spend their hard-earned money. Money is so personal.
I recently met with an impressive 90-something-year-old client of mine who’s been managing his own investments for most of his life. It’s only recently that he decided it’d be a good idea to give up [some of the] reins and lean on an advisor. I have to commend a decision like that.
One of the questions we get here often is about the differences between bond funds and individual bonds. While both are a great way to add some fixed income exposure to your portfolio, you’ll want to understand six key differences between the two so you can decide which is the right investment tool for you.
When you’re little, the world around you seems to turn like a play. And you’re at the center of it. Scenes change; sets turn over—without so much as an interruption. The show goes off without a hitch. The crew in black aren’t seen as they rush around the stage—but you wouldn’t have noticed them anyway. Because things happen somewhat magically when you’re a kid.
