ACA Premium Relief in 2026: What Happened to Enhanced Subsidies and What’s Next
For households enrolled in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace, the new year arrived with a sharp increase in monthly health insurance premiums. Why? Enhanced ACA subsidies expired on December 31, 2025. While the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), signed last summer, introduced sweeping changes to the healthcare landscape, it did not explicitly cancel […]
2026 Opens with Momentum and Cautious Optimism
Markets started 2026 on a positive note, with major equity indices extending their 2025 gains as leadership shifted to smaller companies and cyclical sectors. The bond market was quiet and produced modest gains as Treasury yields inched lower, and corporate bonds outperformed as credit spreads remained tight. The tone across financial markets was risk-on but […]
Inflation, Housing, and Fed Speeches: A Pivotal Week Ahead
Having hopefully shaken off the always-lethargic start to the new year, investors will be bombarded by data this week, some of it still questionable in quality. For example, the usefulness of Consumer Price Index and Producer Price Index numbers for October, delayed because of the government shut-down, is not even being discounted — it’s largely […]
OBBBA in 2026: What the New Law Means for High-Net-Worth and Ultra-Wealthy Taxpayers
With the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) of 2025 now fully in effect, the tax and planning framework for 2026 and beyond is clearer. For the ultra wealthy, it’s a boon. For the high wealth taxpayers, the outcome is more mixed. The widely feared expiration of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act did not occur: lower income tax rates and elevated […]
2025 Market Recap: Strong Returns Across Assets, Elevated Valuations, and Falling Rates Set the Stage for 2026
Equities The S&P 500 returned 17.9% in 2025 and ended the year just off an all-time high, capping a 37% recovery from the April lows as the economy and corporate profits proved far more resilient than markets feared from tariffs and geopolitical events. Exuberance of the prospects for Artificial Intelligence was a key aspect of […]
Passing the Baton: What Powers the Economy Into 2026
Welcome to 2026. The traditional image of the baby who brings in the new year seems modestly inappropriate as the US economy enters what, by many measures, represents the 198th month of an economic expansion that started in the third quarter of 2009. There have indeed been quarters of negative growth during this time period, most notably during the spring […]
Risk-On Rally as the Fed Fine-Tunes Policy and Market Leadership Broadens
Executive Summary Last week, markets leaned risk-on as the Fed delivered its third consecutive rate cut and investors doubled down on the soft-landing narrative. Stocks wavered early but rallied after Wednesday’s Fed decision, with the S&P 500 and Dow moving back toward all-time highs. The Russell 2000 set record highs on consecutive days, and the […]
2025’s Unexpected Strength, 2026’s Unanswered Questions
As the year draws to a close, where do we find ourselves? Most likely, not where many of us thought we would be. Economic growth of 2.7-3%, inflation of 2.7-3%, a rising stock market, and falling interest rates… out-of-context (even in-context), this stands as a remarkably positive positioning for the start of 2026. The trade uncertainties that have […]
Should You Open a Trump Account for Your Child? A Balanced Guide for Parents
Between the headlines about the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and Michael Dell’s $6.25 billion donation, many have been asking whether these new accounts should be opened for children or grandchildren. Below is a straightforward look at how the accounts work and where they may fit into a broader wealth transfer plan. A Trump Account is a […]
Could a DNA Test Reveal an Unknown Heir and Disrupt Your Estate Plan?
DNA services such as 23andMe have made it far more common for biological children – sometimes entirely unknown to the family – to surface after a parent’s death and assert inheritance rights. While this remains an unlikely scenario, it is more plausible today than ever before. Many state laws rely heavily on biological relationships, especially […]
Markets Rally Through Data Fog as Fed Expectations Drive Sentiment
Executive Summary Markets extended their rally in October, rising for a seventh straight month despite intra-month volatility and uncertainty around a December rate cut. The government shutdown has ended, but it has left a gap in economic data, making it difficult to analyze the economy. Despite this data vacuum, optimism around a third consecutive rate […]
Economic Momentum Builds as Companies Shift Focus to 2026
Lessened concern about consumer spending weakness in December, and optimism about end-of-year economic growth, risks overlooking the intense focus of American business on 2026 profitability. Adjustments to the global trade changes introduced by tariff policy and other actions continue to unfold, and labor force decisions for the first half of the coming year — always top-of-mind […]