Tax season is always hectic for taxpayers and the professionals who help them: details, deadlines, and often negative surprises. Recent law changes exacerbated this dynamic. Still, numerous taxpayers have been pleasantly surprised at the size of their refunds this year. The Tax Foundation reports that as of late March refunds averaged about $3,500 and are up about 11%, or around $350, from last tax season. I’ve read elsewhere this might end up being around a 20% i…

The first quarter of 2026 (Q1) ended with a surge in stock and bond prices, which was a nice change after a string of down days that seemed to stretch on and on. In a way, the market’s positive about-face to close Q1 was fitting. Abrupt price swings dominated throughout most of the quarter, although the impacts were uneven across sectors and industries and the catalysts were categorically different. The quarter began with continued concerns about how fast the AI in…

Good morning. We’re ending the quarter this week and I’ve been accumulating several updates to share, so here’s a grab bag of various information. My website is back up and running. The path of least resistance was to recreate my former site essentially as it was, and I took it, but I’m planning to update the content over the coming weeks.   The Iran War continues and so does its impact on markets. Oil prices had a sustained run over $100 per barrel last week and…

It's that time of year again when the calendar seems to speed up as Dec 31st approaches. Of course there's lots of holiday spirit and fun in the meantime, but year-end also brings financial deadlines that can be stressful. Let's take a few minutes to review some of the bigger ones from my perspective. Leveraging capital gains… Consider your spending needs. Do you need to generate cash for monthly spending into next year or do you have a large expense coming up? I…

Things are busy here this Thanksgiving week and I'm sure the same is true for you. Lots going on and lots to think about. Still, I often quip that, "all my problems are good problems", and it's true; family, friends, clients, projects, hopes and dreams, etc, all vying for time. But who can complain about that? I'd rather have too much than not enough and I'm thankful for all I have, all we have, and for a future full of possibility. On that note I want to wish you…

It seems like more now than ever how the economy is doing depends on who you ask. People with assets like houses and stocks have been saying they’re doing well even if many are worried about the health of the republic. The wealth effect (the psychological boost from rising asset prices) is in full force for affluent folks. This shows up in consumer surveys and spending on categories like premium seats on flights, fancier cabins on cruises, and “sustainable luxury”…