By: Laura Walton AFC® My blog on home affordability took me to the tech startup Divvy which led me to Max Levchin of HVF Labs who somehow juggles a smorgasbord of tech startups, board positions, wife, kids and 800 emails a day. I was left with the nagging question “How does one person pull all…
By: Laura Walton AFC® How you react to money and financial issues is both unique to you and critical to your long-term financial success. This is the heart of behavioral economics. Take this test to better understand yourself. I’ve replicated the short five question test from “Simple but Not Easy,” Morningstar’s Guide to Helping Investors Overcome…
By: Laura Walton AFC® We’re hearing more and more about this in the news – how hard it is to buy that first home. I remember looking for my first home in Tucson in 1975. We bought the $32,000 condo instead of the $50,000 home we wanted because it’s what we could afford. The numbers,…
A Regional Director for Dimensional Fund Advisors responded to last week’s blog, Jump or Wade, with several powerful graphs looking back at historical market moves. These eight graphs help us put today’s investing climate into perspective. And, last but not least, have a plan: NOTE: TCI Wealth Advisor clients have access to funds offered by Dimensional Fund Advisors.
By: Laura Walton AFC® Is now a good time to invest in the stock market? I’m asked this question more often these days. The market has steadily increased in value over the last several years. Will it continue? What should I do? Start by reviewing your plan. Because your plan reflects your circumstances and goals,…
By: Laura Walton AFC® A folly, sometimes called an eyecatcher, is a building with no purpose other than to enhance a view on the grounds of a castle or large estate in 18th century England. The folly at Blair Atholl Castle in Scotland was nothing more than something to look at out the castle window over…
By: Laura Walton AFC® General Electric was the last of the original 12 stocks that made up the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Walgreens will take its place.That’s big news! Why the change and exactly what is the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) anyway? First, what’s an index? It’s a measurement of a section of the…
By: Laura Walton AFC® After my father passed away, my mother’s broker recommended she buy mutual funds that had an 8% front-end load. That meant that for every $1000, $920 was invested in the fund. This was a “suitable” investment but a no-load mutual fund would have been in her best interests. The fiduciary standard requires the…
By: Laura Walton AFC® This is a touchy subject. In our 3rd DecadeTM program we recommend building a nest egg before tackling other life events like buying a house, getting married and having children. We’re careful to recognize that’s not everyone’s reality. I think back to a participant in one of our first classes – he and…
By: Laura Walton AFC® We track the march of time in hours, minutes and seconds without much thought. I start my workday at 8AM, head home for the evening around 5 and so on. Throughout the day I work down my “to do” list. Turns out I could, and probably should, be more scientific about…