CommonSense InvestSense
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CommonSense InvestSense- “Humble Arithmetic,” Prudence, and Successful Investing – 2019 December 2, 2019Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. – Aldous Huxley In 2005, the late John Bogle, of Vanguard fame, spoke at the 60th anniversary conference of the Financial Analysts Journal. Mr. Bogle’s presentation, entitled “The Relentless Rules … Continue reading →investsense
- Full Disclosure: The Art of Reading and Interpreting Mutual Fund Ads November 26, 2019One of the most frequent questions I receive is how to effectively read and interpret mutual fund advertisements. I receive this question not only from individual investors, but from professional investment fiduciaries, such as pension plan sponsors, and securities/ERISA attorneys. … Continue reading →investsense
- Investor, Protect Thyself: The InvestSense Investor Self-Defense Strategy October 15, 2019During his term as Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).(1993-2001), Arthur Levitt focused more on investor protection than perhaps any other recent SEC Chairman. His advice from a1999 speech, “Financial Self-Defense: Tips From and SEC Insider,” is still … Continue reading →investsense
- Investopedia Top 100 Most Influential Financial Advisor Honor August 15, 2019Honored to be named by Investopedia as one of the Top 100 Financial Advisors for 2019. Unlike a lot of other “top” lists, Investopedia bases its selection largely on criteria such as contributions to online media to educate investors on … Continue reading →investsense
- One Step to Building More Effective, and Safer, Investment Portfolios July 27, 2019What is the first factor an investor or investment fiduciary, such as a pension plan sponsor, should consider in evaluating an actively managed mutual? Most people’s answer would probably be a fund’s returns or the number of Morningstar “stars” given … Continue reading →investsense
- CommonSense InvestSense About…Returns July 20, 2019As an attorney that specializes in wealth management/preservation and asset protection, I often see investors who have suffered unnecessary financial losses due to poorly designed and/or poorly managed investment portfolios. This is especially troubling, for as legendary investment expert Benjamin … Continue reading →investsense
- Sound Investment Advice from Jack Bogle…Again May 5, 2019Why write anything? Mr. Bogle says it all. https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/vanguard-founder-jack-bogle-apos-194408395.htmlinvestsense
- REAL Wealth Management 2019 – Wealth Distributions and Transfers April 13, 2019Today, we address what I consider to be the third aspect of a genuine wealth management program – distributions and transfers of one’s assets. Distribution encompasses both transfers made while one is living, inter vivos transfers, and transfers made after … Continue reading →investsense
- REAL Wealth Management 2019 – Preservation April 11, 2019“Make as much money as you can and keep what you get. That’s the way to become rich.” – Scottish adage When I tell people that I am a wealth preservation attorney, I often get the obligatory inquisitive look, followed … Continue reading →investsense
- REAL Wealth Management 2019 – Accumulation April 10, 2019As promised, over the next few I will discuss what I believe are the three aspects of real wealth management – accumulation, protection/preservation and distribution. Most of the posts and white papers on wealth management deal with the accumulation phase. … Continue reading →investsense
- “Humble Arithmetic,” Prudence, and Successful Investing – 2019 December 2, 2019
Category Archives: Asset Protection
Full Disclosure: The Art of Reading and Interpreting Mutual Fund Ads
One of the most frequent questions I receive is how to effectively read and interpret mutual fund advertisements. I receive this question not only from individual investors, but from professional investment fiduciaries, such as pension plan sponsors, and securities/ERISA attorneys. … Continue reading
Posted in Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, Asset Protection, Best Interest Proposal, Best Interests, Consumer Protection, ERISA, Fiduciary, Investment Advice, Investment Advisors, Investor Protection, IRA, pension plans, Portfolio Construction, portfolio planning, Portfolio Planning, Retirement, Uncategorized, Wealth Accumulation, Wealth Management, Wealth Preservation
Tagged 401k, 401k Investing, 403(b), abusive practices, Active Management Value Ratio, Advice, asset protection, Closet Index Funds, Consumer Protection, ERISA, Fiduciary, investing, investment advice, investment advisors, investment losses, investment portfolios, investments, investor protection, IRAs, Pension Planning, Pensions, portfolio construction, retirement plan participants, stockbrokers, wealth management, wealth preservation
REAL Wealth Management 2019 – Preservation
“Make as much money as you can and keep what you get. That’s the way to become rich.” – Scottish adage When I tell people that I am a wealth preservation attorney, I often get the obligatory inquisitive look, followed … Continue reading
Posted in Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, Asset Protection, Estate Planning, Investment Advice, Portfolio Construction, portfolio planning, Retirement, Retirement Distribution Planning, Uncategorized, Wealth Management, Wealth Preservation, Wealth Recovery
Tagged Consumer Protection, financial planning, investing, investment portfolios, investor protection, Pension Planning, retirement distribution planning, wealth management, wealth preservation
The “Secret” Morningstar
I love Morningstar. It is my primary research source. I enjoy the posts of their columnists. But unlike most investors who use Morningstar, I basically ignore their legendary “star” system. Morningstar itself has told investors that their star system is … Continue reading
Posted in Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, Asset Protection, Closet Index Funds, Common Sense, Consumer Protection, Fiduciary, Fiduciary Standard, Investment Advice, Investment Advisors, Investor Protection, Portfolio Construction, portfolio planning, Portfolio Planning, Wealth Accumulation, Wealth Management, Wealth Preservation
Tagged Active Management Value Ratio, asset protection, Closet Index Funds, Consumer Protection, investing, investment advice, investment advisors, investment losses, investment portfolios, investment scams, investments, investor protection, InvestSense, wealth management, wealth preservation
Setting the Record Straight on Asset Allocation
One of the “dirty little secrets” of the investment industry is to deliberately misrepresent the findings of a study on the importance of asset allocation. The study, commonly referred to as the BHB study after the three gentleman who conducted … Continue reading
Posted in Absolute Returns, Asset Protection, Consumer Protection, Fiduciary, Fiduciary Standard, Investment Advice, Investment Advisors, Investment Fraud, Investment Portfolios, Investor Protection, Portfolio Construction, portfolio planning, Portfolio Planning, Retirement, Wealth Management, Wealth Preservation
Tagged 401k, 401k Investing, Absolute Returns, abusive practices, Consumer Protection, consumer right, financial planning, investing, investment advice, investment advisors, investment portfolios, investment scams, portfolio construction, stockbrokers, wealth management, wealth preservation
1+1=33%, or the Myth of the 1% Annual Investment Fee
This post is going to be short and sweet, as I keep getting calls and emails from people who wonder why their portfolios are not performing as well as they think they should. In most cases, their portfolios are the … Continue reading
Posted in Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, Asset Protection, Closet Index Funds, Fiduciary, Investment Advice, Investment Advisors, Investment Fraud, Investment Portfolios, Investor Protection, IRA, pension plans, Portfolio Construction, portfolio planning, Retirement, Retirement Plan Participants, Retirement Planning, Uncategorized, Variable Annuities, Variable Annuity Abuse, Wealth Accumulation, Wealth Management, Wealth Preservation
Tagged 401k, 401k Investing, abusive practices, Active Management Value Ratio, asset protection, Closet Index Funds, Consumer Protection, Fiduciary, financial planning, investing, investment advice, investment advisors, investment losses, portfolio construction, retirement plan participants, variable annuities, variable annuity abuse, wealth management, wealth preservation
Controlling the Controllable: Factoring Investment Costs Into the Prudence/Suitability Equation
Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. – Aldous Huxley In an earlier post, I discussed the benefits of controlling the controllable aspects of investing. Investors cannot control the performance of the markets. Investment fiduciaries are not … Continue reading
Posted in Asset Protection, Closet Index Funds, Fiduciary, Investment Advice, Investment Advisors, Investment Portfolios, Investor Protection, IRA, pension plans, Portfolio Construction, portfolio planning, Portfolio Planning, Retirement, Wealth Accumulation, Wealth Management, Wealth Preservation
Tagged 401k, 401k Investing, abusive practices, Active Management Value Ratio, Advice, Closet Index Funds, Fiduciary, investing, investment advisors, investment portfolios, investments, investor protection, IRAs, Pension Planning, Pensions, portfolio construction, retirement plan participants, retirement planning, wealth management, wealth preservation
Investor Alert: Variable Annuities and Fixed Indexed Annuities
The Department of Labor announced the other day that it was delaying the effectiveness of certain part of their new fiduciary rule for 60 days. This delay was essentially requested by the Trump administration in order to evaluate the fairness … Continue reading
Posted in Asset Protection, Consumer Protection, Consumer Rights, Equity Indexed Annuities, Estate Planning, Fiduciary, Fixed Indexed Annuities, Investment Advice, Investment Advisors, Investor Protection, IRA, pension plans, portfolio planning, Portfolio Planning, Retirement, Retirement Plan Participants, Retirement Planning, Variable Annuities, Variable Annuity Abuse, Wealth Accumulation, Wealth Management, Wealth Preservation
Tagged 401k, 401k Investing, abusive practices, Advice, black box investment fraud, Consumer Protection, Equity Indexed Annuities, estate planning, Fiduciary, financial planning, Fixed Indexed Annuities, investing, investment advice, investment advisors, investment portfolios, investment scams, investor protection, IRAs, portfolio construction, retirement plan participants, retirement planning, stockbrokers, variable annuities, variable annuity abuse, wealth management, wealth preservation
