Bogle Discusses Investment Risk During Volatile Times
Bogle Discusses Investment Risk During Volatile Times
These are not happy days here in the U.S. With a constant barrage of bad economic news and a stock market that has even the most earnest long-term investor rethinking their investment strategy, hope and optimism is in short supply.
That’s why this week, when the PBS News Hour did a segment on a new book titled: Millennial Momentum: How a New Generation Is Remaking America by Morley Winograd and Michael Hais, I could barely contain my excitement and enthusiasm. Finally, finally, after drowning in a sea of gloomy news comes this inspiring book that can remind all of us intelligent optimists why we prefer to see the glass as half-way full.
Next time you’re stuck at the airport on a business trip or sitting in traffic on the way to or from work, ask yourself this question. If given a choice between a higher quality of life vs. a higher standard of living, which option would I choose?
As we move into a global economy that moves faster and faster and becomes ever more competitive, the question of your money or your life will become ever more relevant. That’s because the financial pressures will continue to increase as will the demands on your time.
Striking a balance between work and play used to be a lot easier. Although this has traditionally been a struggle for most people, now it seems harder than ever. And with a sagging global economy and a roller coaster stock market thrown in the mix, finding time to just clear your head and think about your future is a daunting challenge.
For all the amazing benefits financial planning brings to people lives, perhaps one of the least understood yet most powerful outcomes is giving yourself the freedom and space needed to step back from your day to day routines and check in with yourself.
Although this seems like such an easy exercise to perform, with busy lives and demanding careers, it’s easier said than done. Usually a task like this gets put on that elusive to-do list, never to be seen from again. And before you know it, 10 or 20 years goes by like the blink of an eye. Yet taking the time this year or even next year to stop, slow down and assess where you are and where you’re headed can reap enormous dividends if done well and with unabashed self-honesty.
Ask a small business owner to describe what makes their business tick and most of the time they can answer this question with superb detail and enthusiasm. Now ask this same, passionate, small business owner to describe their overall tax strategy and most likely you’ll hear silence.
Of course this silence is not a mystery. Most small business owners wear at least five hats to begin with when operating their business and their tax and finance hat is usually not one of their favorites. That’s all too understandable, but here’s why it's important to have a tax strategy for your business.
Like any business owner, if you’re profitable, (or even if you’re not) paying taxes is going to be one of your major expenses - many times one of your largest. As a former practicing tax accountant, I wish I could say the tax code is fair and you’re operating on a level playing field. That’s not the case. The deck is stacked against the little guy/gal and until there’s actual and real tax reform, it’s going to stay that way.
Because the tax code is so complicated, most small business owners opt to file a Schedule C - Sole Proprietor return. And because most small business owners in general tend not to be the best record keepers, the IRS loves to audit Schedule C filers. Even if you did everything right and assuming you have nothing to hide, an IRS audit distracts you from your business at hand and very often causes high anxiety and stress.
I’m a big fan of operating your business as an S corporation. It’s not for everyone, that’s for sure. But if you haven’t had a CPA or financial planner run a tax comparison of what business entity would be most optimal to operate your business or practice, I highly suggest you have this analysis done prior to the end of the year.
Very few S corporation tax returns filed each year are audited. In recent years, the audit rate has been 0.40% annually. That’s the kind of odds a tax accountant loves. How does this compare to other business entities audit chances?
• Partnerships: 0.40
• C Corporations: 1%
• Individual’s filing Schedule C: 1.17%
Although statistically there doesn’t appear to be a big difference between an S corporation audit risk and a Schedule C filer - the difference is night and day. With the IRS eagerly on the pursuit for fees and income, becoming a tax savvy small business owner is more important than ever.
data source: TurboTax
photo by saturnism
Although summer is just winding down, it's already time to look at your 4th quarter financial tasks. Here is the last in the four part installment from the Financial Planning Association (FPA) task list.
Last week, one of my investment management clients called and asked me to review his 85 year old mother’s investment statement and offer my opinion about her overall investment strategy or lack thereof. He was worried that his Mom’s portfolio was being churned and burned.
Even before his fax came through, I had a bad feeling. When I reviewed her current investment statement, it didn’t surprise me to see that 85% of her now dwindling portfolio was invested in stocks and that on average, 42 stock trades were being bought and sold each and every month. I wish I could say this was an isolated incident, but it’s not, not by a long shot. Elder abuse, especially when it comes to investing, is on the rise.
I’ve seen enough statements like this one that betray an investor’s trust to last a lifetime. It always gets me thinking - this could be my Mom being taken advantage of.
Who remembers the 7-up ‘un-cola’ commercials? All these decades later I still remember that distinctive voice of actor Geoffrey Holder. If you want a flashback-here he is in a YouTube video that will bring you back in time: 7-up
Talk with any financial advisor about money management, investment strategies, financial planning, you name it, and unless you’ve harbored a secret desire to become a financial advisor yourself, sooner rather than later, your eyes will glaze over and next thing you know you’re thinking about the wood-fired pizza you’re ordering for dinner tonight.
Last week I met with a prospective client that’s an amazingly talented and successful artist with a studio in Bolinas in West Marin County. Lisa (not her real name) is recently widowed after a very long and loving marriage. Her husband was a prominent attorney in San Francisco and handled nearly every aspect of their money management and investments.
If you’re the type of investor that thrives on volatility in the stock market, this is your kind of summer. With the advent of high frequency trading, multiple hedge funds using Wall Street as one big casino, the global sovereign debt crisis, etc, market volatility for at least the short-term is here to stay.
At some point the stock market will bottom out, although when that happens is anyone’s guess. But when that eventual time does come, what happens next is relatively predictable based on past history.
Once the dust does finally settle from this recent market downturn, turn on CNBC or Bloomberg News and watch how the usual suspects describe in elaborate technical fashion why the stock market is now extremely oversold, how the S&P price/earnings ratios are now at historic lows, how there is lots of value in the market at these bargain basement prices and who is buying what at what price.