Part 1: Historical Perspective Many clients are asking about the next market downturn. We consider it one of our primary responsibilities to evaluate “what ifs” for the companies in our portfolios. We make it our job to prepare ahead and make informed decisions about...
On the right, you can see the definition of dividend, provided by Google. We’re happy that the definition mentions profits because, over time, without profits, dividends cannot exist. But we also understand that this definition might not be that helpful. And, we want...
In this follow-up piece, we’re reviewing a real-life example of an “income” or “dividend” portfolio and its results, as compared to a portfolio built for total-return. If you missed that piece, it’s here. Recall that, while one could say the income portfolio provided...
As people consider retirement, here’s a question we get A LOT (the question has many variations): Question: I need income during retirement, so does that mean you will emphasize dividend-paying stocks? Our answer often surprises people: NO. We don’t find that to be...
We often get the question “As I get older, my portfolio needs to become more conservative, right?” Our answer is always, “It depends on what you’re trying to do.” Becoming overly conservative can be a huge mistake. We’ll get to that in a second. However, the reason...
Grandma and the EE Savings Bond Gift My family has an unusual tradition–my grandfather self-built two houses–one completed in 1957 and another in 1996. Yes, he built them, hammer-swinging and all, with family help. My father has also done the same–first completing...
1) Do you act as a fiduciary? By being a fiduciary, an advisor acts in your best interest 100% of the time. It’s important because if not, they might be recommending something that’s just “suitable” for you, so they can earn higher commissions or incentives. JSA...
At the risk of not listening to our wonderful founding father, Allen Jacobson, who advises to always accentuate the positive, this might come off as a negative piece. I’m just going to state that now, so it’s out of the way. Our goal here is really to help make GOOD...
When investing, it’s essential to understand if what you’re buying is a productive asset. What does that mean? Well, these assets produce profits or cash, which you can spend or reinvest. We could analyze any given collection; dolls, glassware, coins, stamps, travel...
The most common question we hear from clients these days is some version of the emotionally charged question, “do politics affect my portfolio?” It’s no surprise that everyone is wondering who will win and what changes will occur with the election around the corner....
Welcome to the JSA Blog! We hope these articles, written by our team, help you make better financial decisions. We hope you find it helpful and continue the conversation with our team.