Investing
Web 2011
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09/27/12Sound Advice from a Source You Can TrustIn a time of economic and political uncertainty, it can be highly stressful and perplexing to make financial decisions. This is why we need people like John Dovich, President of John D. Dovich & Associates, LLC, to lend his knowledge and experience and guide us through the proverbial trenches of financial uncertainty. John Dovich discusses: In addition to this year being a presidential election year, 2012 brings a number of tax changes at year’s end. The current environment that we are in was borne out of an extension to tax rates back in late 2010. We are in an environment referred to as a “patch.” This patch necessitates action from Congress or rates will revert to those in effect under the George W. Bush presidency. The professional... Posted at 01:45 PM | Permalink |
08/27/12For Financial Peace of Mind, Trust John D. Dovich & Associates, LLCThe mission of John Dovich, president of John D. Dovich & Associates, LLC, is to provide clients with strategic financial planning. He and his staff accomplish this by coordinating the elements of portfolio management; retirement, estate, and education planning; as well as insurance needs. They strive to effectively implement and monitor their strategic planning approach necessary to help clients achieve their goals. The main objective is to provide clients with financial peace of mind. The firm accomplishes this through a top down comprehensive look at both their client’s personal and business objectives. This approach fully encompasses the client’s wide spectrum of financial wants and needs. The firm provides comprehensive services to three specific groups... Posted at 09:00 AM | Permalink |
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02/24/12P & G AnnouncementP&G Announcement This week, P&G announced plans to make cuts to non-manufacturing jobs to the tune of 4,100. This is in addition to the 1,600 already announced cuts in the form of early retirements. While the local impact to jobs and the company overall is unknown, it is a mixed bag of news as this will certainly bring some level of turmoil to the 12,000 P&G employees in our area. On the other side, it could be the restructuring investors need to get the company back growing in the manner it has for generations. Much of the area media covered the announcement and its impact on local investors. I was honored to be a part of WCPO’s coverage. As the news likely impacts, either directly or indirectly, many Venue readers... Posted at 12:56 PM | Permalink |
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02/07/12How Quickly Can You Change Your Finances?This week I want to look at some things you can do to tackle that personal financial to-do list. By this time of the year, resolutions are pretty well behind us and we’re left with the stark reality of what needs to get done here and now. Our finances, while extremely important, are rarely urgent matters and, therefore, get put on the back burner. Don’t have enough time to get things addresses? Phooey. Over the next few blogs, I want to look at various tips comprised from all over the internet, magazines and other resources to find those things you can tackle in a relatively short period of time. For example, this week, is there really something you can do to help your finances in just 10-15 minutes? There sure is.... Posted at 08:40 AM | Permalink |
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01/30/12Where Should I Give?One question I get asked fairly often is for guidance on how and where to point philanthropic efforts. It’s a difficult question with no shortage of answers. There are countless non-profit groups from the arts to children’s services to helping the less fortunate that all have causes worthy of our attention. One site I regularly send people to is Charity Navigator which does a great job of assigning a point system to various charities in how efficiently they spend their resources along with breaking down organizations across countless other categories. Sometimes, more of a benchmarking tool is desired and there’s never been a great way in the past to really get a sense for where the largest donors were spending their philanthropic... Posted at 01:43 PM | Permalink |
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12/15/11Baby StepsAs we approach the end of the year, we’re often faced with a little extra free time around the house. Yes, schedules get extremely busy, but there’s generally a free moment or two where we get a chance to reflect on the year behind us and what lies ahead in the New Year. Rather than overwhelm you with a list of the 50 or so personal financial issues that should be on that list, I thought I’d cut to the chase and provide just two that would take no more than a few hours between now and when the ball drops in Times Square. Make copies of those documents most important to you. There are far too many instances of identity theft, a lost wallet or purse or the like that is inevitably made worse by the lack of proper recordkeeping. This could... Posted at 07:47 AM | Permalink |
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12/05/11Focus on Year-End FinancingFocus on Year End Finances This week, I wanted to take a moment as we hit the holiday season to remind everyone that 2011 is coming to an end. Sound obvious? How many years have you started to review your financial situation after the New Year has already begun? For many, taking just a few minutes to take stock before the hustle and bustle of the holiday moves to full throttle can be very helpful. Here are a few things to look at now . . . Take a look at annual spending Don’t wait until after you’ve done your holiday shopping to discover you’ve really blown your 2011 spending goals. You don’t need to go through with a fine tooth comb, just look at bank balances from January 1st and where that checking... Posted at 10:54 AM | Permalink |
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11/14/11Targets Are Just TargetsI tend to get suspicious anytime I see the word guarantee. Target-date funds, according to investopedia.com, are mutual funds that automatically reset the asset mix (stocks, bonds, cash equivalents) in its portfolio according to a selected time frame that is appropriate for a particular investor. . . and is structured to address some date in the future, such as retirement. These funds have become increasingly popular in retirement plans and generally do not hold themselves out to be guaranteed in any way. Despite that, I recently saw a study that more than 50% of workers believe that investing in target-date funds guarantee they’ll meet their retirement needs by the date stated in the fund. If you’re in that majority, I have some bad news for... Posted at 09:17 AM | Permalink |
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11/01/11Are You Protected?Last week marked “Protect Your Identity” week across the nation. Did you miss it? I have to admit, I did too. That said, it’s still an important conversation to bring up from time to time. I’ve recently been reading some concerning stories about identity theft that involve victims that few of us even knew were vulnerable, your children. Yes, we’ve all heard about visiting www.annualcreditreport.com to check our credit reports for accuracy, www.creditkarma.com to check our scores and reviewing our credit card and bank statements for suspicious activity on a regular basis, but, the kids? They don’t have credit. Are they even vulnerable to these kinds of attacks? The unfortunate answer is, yes. ... Posted at 08:16 AM | Permalink |
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10/14/11Tracking Your RewardsAdmit it, you’re nearly drowning in points, miles and rewards programs. Your key chain identifies you as a loyal patron of at least half a dozen stores. You belong to points programs at no fewer than four hotel chains. Through the years, you’ve accumulated miles on five or six airlines and you have two or three credit cards that give you some combination of cash, points and miles. Worst of all, you have no idea how many points you have where or what you need to do to redeem them. You’re not alone. In fact, most of those companies you’re so loyal to count on you misplacing, losing track of or just plain forgetting that you have those points and miles and they profit nicely when you do. Well now, there’s help. ... Posted at 02:43 PM | Permalink |
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10/03/11Slow & SteadyThe market responded largely positively to the news this week that the economy is growing, albeit at an extremely slow rate. That said, the response by many in the media was to berate the growth rate as simply not enough. Many a comparison is made to how our current economy and stock market compares to the highs seen in 2006 and 2007 to defend these rants. I won’t begin to get into the political debate that surrounds all of this, but will touch on this need for constant growth and to get back to where we were. We, as a society, went through an absolute credit and spending binge in the middle part of the last decade. A binge that we will pay for for years to come. We should not hope for the days of getting back to that economic data. It is... Posted at 02:53 PM | Permalink |
08/29/11The B WordDo I dare take up room on this very fashionable, up and coming website to talk about something foul and unpleasant? Posted at 04:31 PM | Permalink |
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08/29/11The Ups & Downs of Low Interest RatesLast week, Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke made it clear that interest rates are likely to stay low for the next two years or so. While this is somewhat depressing news for the growth of the U.S. economy, it begs the question what can you do to make sure you’re benefiting as much as possible. Posted at 04:26 PM | Permalink |
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08/20/11The Case for Stocks in RetirementI heard a great analogy recently from a fellow advisor that’s apparently been making its way around in light of recent volatility. Posted at 04:21 PM | Permalink |
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08/12/11Downgrades, Debt Ceilings & Market Bears, Oh My!Unless you’ve been in hiding, you’ve heard something in the last few weeks about a little quarreling in Washington over the nation’s debt ceiling Posted at 04:24 PM | Permalink |
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08/05/11We Have a Deal, What Now?As I write this, President Obama is signing the “debt deal” into law. Posted at 04:27 PM | Permalink |
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07/22/11Groupon or Groupoff?I get a surprising number of questions on whether I think Groupon is a good deal or not for consumers. Posted at 04:39 PM | Permalink |
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07/15/11Is Your Financial Plan “Plugged In”?I heard an interesting question recently that I thought would be a good question to pose to the readers that have gone through the time, money and effort to put together a financial plan only to find it lost in a stack in a home office, Posted at 04:34 PM | Permalink |
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07/08/11Easy Ways to Check Your Financial HealthAs we make the turn towards the second half of the year, it’s a good time to do a quick check up on where things stand in our lives financially. Here’s a couple quick and easy ways to do just that. Posted at 04:32 PM | Permalink |
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06/27/11Beware Unknown CostsThere was an interesting article in this past weekend’s Wall Street Journal on the importance of understanding all the costs involved in a given investment. Posted at 04:48 PM | Permalink |
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06/24/11Planning to GiveI was inspired earlier this week at the Venue Awards Luncheon by a powerful room of those so committed to giving back to our community. Posted at 04:49 PM | Permalink |
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06/10/11When Average Isn’tReturns in any given portfolio are largely due to two factors. The first is how the portfolio is allocated, or the overall mix of stocks, bonds and cash. The other is the overall cost of maintaining that portfolio, including the underlying expense ratios of any mutual funds, advisor management fees, transaction costs, etc. Posted at 04:51 PM | Permalink |
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05/27/11A Time to ReflectOver the last month, severe storms and unbelievably destructive tornadoes have wreaked havoc all over the country. We’ve all seen the devastating photographs of the horrific damage. Posted at 04:51 PM | Permalink |
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05/18/11Lose Weight, Look Great, and Get Rich Today!What do diet fads and financial services have in common? More than you might suspect. Posted at 04:52 PM | Permalink |
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