One Big Beautiful Bill Act Signed: First Look at Key Tax Provisions for Wealthy Investors
The OBBBA Has Landed: First Look at Key Tax Provisions Last week, President Trump signed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” (OBBBA) into law. The new mega bill permanently extends important provisions from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), including today’s lower individual income tax rates and higher standard deduction. Notably, the estate and […]
Investment Commentary – July 7, 2025
Executive Summary Major U.S. stock indexes finished the holiday-shortened week higher. Smaller-cap indexes performed best, with the S&P MidCap 400 and Russell 2000 indexes climbing 2.85% and 3.52%, respectively, followed by the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which advanced 2.30%. The S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite both closed at all-time highs for the second week […]
Economic Commentary – July 7, 2025
And just like that, it’s back to tariff turmoil. It would seem, however, that the shock of (saber-rattling?) threats to impose massive tariff increases by either July 9 — the old deadline — or a potentially new deadline of August 1, is greater for some US trading partners than it is for US-based companies. This […]
Economic Commentary – June 30, 2025
Fireworks generally start well before Fourth of July in neighborhoods around the country. This curtailed week for market-moving data is no exception. The economic cherry bombs will be in the form of employment data, which could as easily be a bust as a large and startling “Boom”. And there will be plenty of sparklers highlighting […]
Celebrity Estate Planning Lessons: What Jimmy Buffett’s Trust Dispute Teaches Us
Lessons from Jimmy Buffett’s Estate In recent celebrity estate news, Jimmy Buffett’s widow, Jane Buffett, and his accountant, Richard Mozenter, are currently embroiled in a legal battle. They share roles as Co-Trustees of Jimmy Buffett’s marital trust, which houses the bulk of his $275 million estate. Established for Jane’s lifetime benefit, with remaining assets passing […]
Investment Commentary – June 30, 2025
In the second quarter, the S&P 500 was up ~10%. The U.S. dollar has had one of its worst starts to a year on record. It is on pace to fall approximately 8% in Q2 alone. Almost every asset class is negatively correlated with the U.S. dollar. To put the first half of 2025 simply, […]
Investment Commentary – June 23, 2025
What Happened Geopolitics took center stage last week as Israel and Iran continued to launch missiles at each other, culminating with the U.S. joining the war with strategic strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities over the weekend. Markets had initially taken the Israel-Iran hostilities in stride, rallying early in the week. However, as the possibility of […]
Senate Tax Bill Draft: How Proposed Changes Could Affect Your Wealth Plan
Tax Bill Negotiations Heat Up as Senate Releases Draft The Senate has officially released its draft of the sweeping tax and budget bill, setting the stage for negotiations with the House. While the House passed its version last month, the two chambers must reconcile key differences before any legislation reaches the president’s desk. This latest […]
Economic Commentary – June 23, 2025
Any business looking for calm seemingly can’t catch a break. The Federal Reserve feels that pain, too. Just as inflation was on the verge of becoming a lesser concern, albeit at the expense of increased worries about economic growth, a war in the Middle East raises the specter of gas and oil price spikes working their way […]
Don’t Forget to Fund Your Trust: Why Retitling Assets Is Critical to Estate Planning
Don’t Just Sign Trust Documents, Retitle Even the most thoughtfully designed estate plans can fail when trusts aren’t funded—a common and avoidable oversight. Often, someone works with an attorney to establish a revocable trust. Yet afterward, all or a portion of their assets remain titled in their individual or joint name rather than in the […]
Investment Commentary – June 16, 2025
Executive Summary Last week, stocks were down and bonds up (price up/yield down). The MSCI Emerging Markets index outperformed the S&P 500 and MSCI EAFE. The best performing sectors in the S&P 500 were energy, healthcare, and utilities. Across U.S. Russell style & market cap indices, large-cap value did the best, and the value factor […]
Economic Commentary – June 16, 2025
One of the practical implications of an economy that is growing at 1% versus an economy growing at 2-2.5% is that a more slowly growing economy tips into negative territory far more readily, with attendant implications for employment, earnings, and tax revenues. Thus far in the second quarter of 2025, the data persistently indicates that the US economy is growing at a pace greater […]