When developing a portfolio with retirement as a goal, do your best to never withdrawal funds as growth is interrupted. That is what happened to both the Bohr and Einstein portfolios. The owners of each needed funds for education and other emergencies. When funds are withdrawn the benefits of dollar-cost-averaging is broken, thus stunting portfolio growth. … [Read More...]
Keep It Simple
Don't be surprised if you don't know the difference between a benchmark ETF and a strategic ETF. Strategic is sometimes called "Fundamental" or "Active" and they differ from the ETFs we recommend for our ITA portfolios. To read more about the … [Read more]
Buffett vs. Steadman
For every Warren Buffet there are a hundred Charlie Steadman's in the investing world. While nearly every investor has heard of Buffett, few remember Charlie Steadman. Is there a … [Read more]
Serious Investors Benchmark Their Portfolio
Establishing an appropriate benchmark for a portfolio is essential if one is serious about investing. Avoiding portfolio bench-marking is an act of self-deception. Exactly what is the purpose of a benchmark and what are the requirements for a fair … [Read more]
Reviewing The Fundamentals of Investing
Search this blog site for “The Golden Rule of Investing” and you will pick up the basic ideas of Rule #1 of Investing. The Golden Rule of Investing is – “Save as much as you can as early as you can.” Burton Malkiel puts it this way. “The … [Read more]
Nine Critical Investment Decisions
Nine Critical Investment Decisions 1. The Decision to Save or Not to Save 2. The Go-It-Alone or Professional Manager Decision 3. The Decision to be a Passive, Active or Mosaic Investor 4. The Decision to Use Index Funds or Stocks to … [Read more]
Weekly Music Recommendation
Photograph: Arches National Park - Image captured just as the sun was rising. My music selection this week is Yo-Yo Ma playing Ennio Morricone. This CD includes some of the most beautiful and haunting compositions ever collected on one platter. As … [Read more]
Index vs. Passive Investing
Harold R. Evensky, in his Wealth Management: The Financial Advisor's Guide to Investing and Managing Client Assets book, makes a distinction between index and passive investing. Few readers are unaware of the differences between active and passive … [Read more]
Goofus vs. Gallant
As a small boy, my family subscribed to a magazine called “Children’s Activities.” Each issue contained a story of two characters, Goofus and Gallant. We all wanted to be like Gallant, although we frequently found ourselves behaving like … [Read more]