Freedom Investing in Review (June 2024)
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This quarter, we saw that in 1-year returns using the dynamic tilt and ending June 30, 2024, Developed Freedom Investing had a -0.14% disadvantage, Emerging Market Freedom Investing had a -0.02% disadvantage, and Overall Freedom Investing had a +0.36% advantage.

2024 Market Outlook for Global Stock
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We agree with Kleintop’s assessment that valuations suggest that international equities are poised for more gains.

Lower Expense Ratios, Higher Returns
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This simple example demonstrates the importance of expense ratio.

Q&A: How Should I Invest My Cash?
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Our recommendation is to keep money that may be needed within the next six months invested in a money market fund.

What to Expect Now That the S&P 500 Reached 5,000
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If this level of volatility isn’t your expectation, you are not yet familiar with normal volatility in the markets.

Investment News You Maybe Missed (2022 Bear Market)
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Hopefully, you didn’t bother looking, and I can be the first to tell you.

Today Was An Intraday Recovery (January 2024)
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While we still cannot call the end of the Bear Market from this performance, today’s returns strongly suggest that 15 months ago, October 12, 2022 was the end of this bear market.

Don’t Increase Your Bond Allocation In Bear Markets
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There is an artistry to a bond allocation, and while historical analysis can only be suggestive, it does tell a strong narrative.

Why Did My CD Lose Money?
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Many people don’t understand how fixed income is priced, so let me take you through the math.

The Fickleness of Five-Year Returns
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Return reporting can create either darker or rosier pictures depending on the dates selected.

How to Prepare Your Investments for World War 3
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These strategies are strong in both good times and bad.

Johnson and Johnson Corporate Offer (August 2023)
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We recommend ignoring this offer if you want more Health Care and taking this offer if you want more Consumer Staples.

FAILING to AVOID This Could RUIN your Financial Plan
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If this title attracted your attention, you may be prone to viewing clickbait.

Real Return of Stocks and Bonds by Inflation Type
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If you are expecting high inflation, it may be stocks which offer the greatest security against the diminishing dollar.

Did the 2022 Bear Market Continue Into 2023?
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The incongruity between feeling like we are in a bear market for 61.66% of trading days and actually being in a bear market for only 24.81% of those days unfortunately makes bear markets feel longer than they really are.

Four Fidelity ETFs Cheaper Than Vanguard (2022 Analysis)
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In the past, we’ve shown some preference to Vanguard funds, but going forward we plan to show some preference to the cheaper Fidelity funds.

Using Franklin Funds in 2022 Saved Clients Over $360,000
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Reducing expense ratios by a theoretical 0.42% is a significant result. It is good to know that what works in theory has also worked even better in practice.

Even Down, Biotechnology Still Had a Place in Efficient Portfolios (2022 Analysis)
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Biotechnology’s low correlation, the very thing that makes you dislike it, is specifically what gives it a place in efficient portfolios.

Bear Market Continues Through Third Quarter 2022
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While it is counterintuitive, the lower the market falls, the safer it is to be invested.

Stocks are On Sale (October 2022 Dynamic Tilt)
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The lower the market falls, the safer it is to be invested.

U.S. Investing in Review (Sept 2022)
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This quarter, we saw that in 1-year returns ending September 30, 2022 our U.S. Stock Strategy had a +4.11% advantage over VTI.

Why I-Bonds May Not Be As Great As They Seem
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If you’re thinking about buying an I Bond, make sure it fits properly into your financial plan, and you aren’t just chasing the high interest rate.

I Bonds vs. TIPS: What is the Difference?
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Both are U.S. debt obligations which are adjusted by the Consumer Price Index, but they do so very differently.

Home Bias or Foreign Bond Funds?
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Home bias is the tendency of investors to invest a majority of their assets in companies domiciled in their home country.

A Closer Look at Freedom 100 Emerging Markets ETF (FRDM)
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FRDM is interesting, but using our country specific funds plus a low cost Vanguard Emerging Market fund allows us to emphasize freedom for as low a cost as possible.

No Way To Tell If This Bear Market Is A Bull Yet
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Rather than trying to time your investments based on one or the other, the advice is simple. Stay the course. Invest. Rebalance.

Current Inflation vs. Expected Inflation (June 2022)
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Currently, 12-month inflation is 8.58% and the crowdsourced expected inflation is 2.88%. Here’s what to do.

A Second Dip Turns to Bear Market (June 2022)
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Stay the course. Rebalance. Don’t peek.

How to Survive High Inflation
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Inflation is like the rain. You must prepare in advance in order to stay dry.

Today Was An Intraday Bear Market (May 2022)
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The S&P 500 saw an intraday bear market today, dipping over 20% down from a prior high and then correcting back before the day’s close.

Bond Markets: Worst Quarter in 40 Years & Not That Bad (April 2022)
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We think holding your next seven years of spending in relatively safe bonds is always a good idea. But holding too much in bonds may not keep up with inflation and is not ideal for your long-term investment strategy.

Q&A: What One-Fund Could a Twenty-Something Invest In?
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Any of these ETFs or mutual funds seem like they could be a good one-fund pick for the long haul.

U.S. Investing in Review (December 2021)
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We anticipated Consumer Staples to have a lower expected return but a larger risk-adjusted return and we expected Biotechnology to have very volatile returns with lower correlations to the other sectors. Both of those things happened in 2021.

Swap to Franklin Funds Saved Clients Over $100,000
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The estimated advantage of Franklin funds during 2021 was 0.40% or $118,955.

Individual Foreign Health Care in Review (December 2021)
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An initial equal weight strategy of these 26 companies implemented on January 1, 2021 and held without further buys or sells through December 31, 2021 had a +8.64% advantage over the foreign healthcare benchmark.

Freedom Investing in Review (December 2021)
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This quarter, we saw that in 1-year returns ending December 31, 2021, Developed Freedom Investing had a -0.12% disadvantage, Emerging Market Freedom Investing had a +1.27% advantage, and Overall Freedom Investing had a +0.21% advantage.

Freedom Investing in Review (September 2021)
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This quarter, we saw that in 1-year returns ending September 30, 2021, Developed Freedom Investing had a +0.70% advantage, Emerging Market Freedom Investing had a +1.64% advantage, and Overall Freedom Investing had a +0.71% advantage.

Freedom Investing in Review (June 2021)
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This article is part of my series where I review how Freedom Investing performs for the quarter.

Freedom Investing in Review (March 2021)
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While many have been following the domestic returns and recovery, fewer investors know how well foreign investments did this past year.

How Should I Vote My Shares?
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You are not obligated to vote just because you own shares.

The Market Isn’t Made Up. It Is Made.
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The value of a stock is simply what people are willing to pay for it.

2021 Performance Report for Marotta’s Gone-Fishing Portfolios (2012-2020)
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Our Gone-Fishing Portfolios are free to use portfolios that take advantage of the no-transaction-fee, low-cost ETFs or mutual funds of each major custodian. Over the years, we’ve changed the funds and the allocations as new research or securities reveal improvements.

2020 in Review
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Looking closer into each asset class, here’s how our top six asset classes performed between January 1 and December 31, 2020.

How to Turn Monthly Returns Into an Average Annual Return in Excel
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There are three clear options: future value schedule, a product array, or a large table.

Before You Get Out Of The Stock Market, Read This
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When you get out of the markets, you have made a huge gamble with your retirement money, and now the stakes are high.

A Market of Stocks Rather Than A Stock Market
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Individual sectors of the economy have reacted very differently to the pandemic.

Surviving A Bear Attack in the Markets
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“No decent planner would ever create a plan that didn’t account for frequent market drops.”

The S&P 500 Recovered Today from the 2020 COVID Bear Market
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Those who flat-lined to cash or who waited to invest their cash until the markets looked better missed out on the recovery.

What Is A Short Sell?
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In short selling, a bankrupt stock is the best thing that can happen, but the worst thing that can happen is that the stock price will rise.

Radio: How COVID-19 Changed Real Estate
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City real estate will be a little less expensive and suburbs and the countryside will be a little more expensive.

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