It’s time to drop an F-Bomb: let’s talk FIDUCIARY! The big news this spring is that the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. has announced a change to its Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct. Starting October 1, 2019, CFP® professionals must act in the best interest of the client at all times when providing financial advice. This is the so-called fiduciary standard, which has been in the news ever since the Department of Labor (“DOL”) created its own rule in 2016.
Read MoreWelcome to the stock market roller coaster! It’s a bit jarring, especially on the heels of the tranquil 2017 merry go round, but as the bull market in stocks enters its tenth year, volatility abounds. Investors probably feel a bit of relief that the major indexes finished the first three months of the year with relatively small losses (Dow down 2.5 percent, the S&P 500 dropped 1.2 percent and the Russell 2000 was off 0.4 percent) or gains (NASDAQ up 2.3 percent, despite a 9.5 percent drop in Facebook) but that’s like saying the roller coaster ride ended in the small place that it started: what happened in between is where the action occurred.
Read MoreIt’s been more than five years since housing prices bottomed out. Since then, the economy has strengthened, the labor market has improved and mortgage rates remain historically low. All of those factors should add up to a robust spring housing season, but that’s not what’s going on. Instead, realtors and builders are lamenting the low number of homes for sale.
Read MoreStocks dropped by nearly 3 percent Thursday and another 2 percent on Friday, closing out the steepest one-week percentage decline for US indexes since January 2016. The proximate cause was President Trump's announcement that the U.S. would levy 25 percent tariffs on up to $60 billion dollars worth of Chinese imports.
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