Articles of Interest / Blog Posts
Homeowners Insurance & Dogs
There are over 63 million U.S. households that own a dog. You may not have known that, when buying homeowners insurance, many insurance companies have a list of dog breeds they will not provide liability coverage for.
When a dog bites or causes other dog-related injuries (think: somebody falls because a dog jumps […]
Population Changes
Recently, the Census Bureau published the official 2020 state population counts. The data, which gets updated every 10 years, will be used in Congressional redistricting efforts this fall, but for now we can see which states are net gainers of seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, and which states have lost seats.
The […]
State Tax Return on Investment
State governments provide, by taxing its citizens, a variety of services such as police and fire protection, schools, roads / bridges, and a social safety net. But are we getting what we pay for?
A recent study by the WalletHub website asked a team of experts to calculate which states offer the highest return […]
What is mRNA Technology?
mRNA is the technology that Moderna and Pfizer used to develop their coronavirus vaccines. The technology may revolutionize the way diseases are treated – and prevented. Scientists are sequencing HIV, seasonal flu viruses, and certain cancers. These pieces of RNA may be used to teach the body to fight off a virus […]
Investments for the Long Run
A common tool used by financial advisors is something called the Callan Periodic Table of Investment Returns. As you can see from the following chart, the rank order of different asset classes (color coded; top is highest performers, lowest is worst returns), is generally random.
See for yourself whether you can discern any pattern. […]
Costly States
Which state has the highest (lowest) taxes? The answer turns out to be surprisingly complicated.
If you look at state income taxes, and assuming a decent to high level of income, California immediately jumps to the bottom of the list. It’s highest state income tax bracket is 13.3% — higher than second-place Hawaii […]
ESG Investing
An increasing number of investors considering the social impact of their investment dollars – for a variety of reasons. Some investors want to avoid supporting companies or industries which, in their opinion, are not making the world a better place — such as weapons manufacturers, tobacco companies, or firms that have a track record […]
Challenges of Being an Executor
When you are asked to be an executor of someone’s estate, what are those responsibilities?
A NerdWallet website article provides many insights into the various tasks you would be agreeing to take on. For example, the executor must find the deceased’s relevant documents, inventory the assets and debts, and arrange appraisals for the […]
Reading Benefits
Today, reading a book does not seem to be as common. Other forms of news, information, and entertainment such podcasts, TED talks and YouTube videos have become much more popular. With that said, there is a growing body of scientific literature that suggests reading books may be more important than we realize for […]
Spending and the Brain
Many people will spend money irrationally – and for a variety of reasons. Maybe to make themselves feel better, satisfy a mid-life crisis, or to “keep up with the Joneses”. What is less commonly known is that these behaviors are embedded in our brains? But, what is the actual reason why spending […]
