Tariff Turbulence Fades, Underlying Trends Hold Firm
Executive Summary Markets were choppy last week as policy headlines drove shifts in risk sentiment. Tariff-related developments sparked early-week volatility, though conditions stabilized as concerns eased. The S&P 500 finished the week in negative territory for the second consecutive week, where leadership continued to rotate beneath the surface. Small-cap, value, and equal-weight indexes outperformed, while technology […]
Top Financial Planning Priorities for 2026: New Tax Rules, OBBBA Changes, and Key Risks
Last year, the enactment of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) preserved many key provisions of the federal tax code for individuals, including lower marginal income tax rates and a higher estate tax exemption. However, several planning rules have changed quietly. Provisions from recent legislation – most notably the SECURE 2.0 Act – are now taking […]
Shutdown Risks and a Fed Decision: Markets on Alert
Congress moves unexpectedly back into the economic picture, as talk of a partial government shutdown on Friday has re-emerged with power and possibility. If investors thought that the only news hitting them this week would be just another boring Federal Reserve meeting, the fight over Department of Homeland Security funding should spice things up nicely. […]
Markets Hold Steady as Value and Small Caps Lead
Executive Summary Equity indexes were mixed last week, with small-cap and value stocks adding to their year-to-date leads over large-cap and growth-oriented shares. The Russell 2000 and S&P MidCap 400 Indexes advanced, reaching all-time highs during the week, while large-cap indexes pulled back from the prior week’s record levels. Value stocks outpaced their growth counterparts for the third straight […]
Why a Comprehensive Wealth Plan Is Your Most Important Financial Investment
In personal finance, conversations often center on strategies like Roth conversions or generation-skipping trusts. These tools can be useful in the right situations but using them without a broader framework is risky. The real risk isn’t missing a sophisticated strategy – it’s making decisions without a clear plan. That’s why we recommend starting with a wealth plan. A wealth plan provides structure and […]
Rethinking ‘Data‑Driven’: Why Friedman’s Long‑View Philosophy Matters Again
Slightly more than a week before a critical Federal Reserve interest rate meeting, the outlook on prices has been muddied once again by uncertainty over tariffs. Potential fiscal policy actions involving credit card rate caps, oil price manipulation, or home buyer subsidies have also been disruptive. The best way for monetary policy authorities to think […]
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 […]