How much should you put down on a house? How about 100%? Some pundits would say you should borrow more, especially when rates are low, because you can make more investing that money in the stock market. Good point, but that assumes you actually invest the money rather than spending it on some other depreciating … More The Lowdown on How Much Down?
As a lifetime Connecticut resident, I have often pondered the similarities and differences between Connecticut and our neighbor to the north, Massachusetts. Admittedly, the comparison usually ends up being between Boston and pick any city in Connecticut. Outside of the major city comparison, it seems to me the two states have more in common than … More Hartford Wailers?
A very interesting article on the topic of what to do if your parents need financial help. Like most things financial, the answer is individual to each families’ circumstances. In the case of parents, the answer involves practical, cultural and indeed moral considerations, and advance planning will help in every case. Practical planning applies to both … More What to Do if Your Parents Need Financial Help?
When we are born. our parents take care of us. As our parents age, we need to help take care of them. Senior scams are rampant. Check out this article on scams targeting older adults and have a conversation with the older people in your life, whether it be a parent, friend, or someone in your … More The Circle of Life
Interesting article about saving for retirement. It suggests that the nation’s poor should not be coaxed into retirement savings accounts. Not sure I agree without further analysis, but it does raise important questions about the priorities we all face in managing our personal finances. I’d like to address one point not specifically mentioned in the … More Retirement Savings Accounts. Who needs them, and from where?
I like the advice from Kobe Bryant in this article. Reminds me of the the proverbial “Give them a fish, feed them for a day. Teach them to fish, feed them for a lifetime.
Invest when you have the money, sell when you need the money. Invest consistent with your goals, both timeframe and risk tolerance. And diversify. Picking a winner is hard. And today’s winner may be tomorrow’s loser. Diversify instead.
Unless you are an experienced investor and/or have a sizable net worth, you should probably stay away from cannabis stocks, along with bitcoin and other newfangled products. But if you do invest, limit it to your “funny” money. By that I mean you should limit it to an amount that is similar to what you … More 13 mistakes cannabis investors should avoid
Despite working in the institutional real estate industry for 20 years, I tend to agree with this article that stocks are better long term investments than real estate for most individuals. But to support their thesis, the author references Case Shiller Index and FHFA statistics on home price appreciation. These are predominantly single family indices, … More Real Estate vs. Stocks?
Proverbial Living 