I am writing this on Monday and looking forward to the election being OVER. I am tired of the ads, the in-fighting and the lack of plans. On to better.
Tis the season when we are wrapping up required minimum distributions for those over 73 and tax harvesting for those who can take advantage. I urge clients to have at least two meetings with your tax professionals; one to prep for tax deadline on April 15 and one preparation in October / November to review what has happened during the year. There are things that you can fix before December 31 but the door closes with the Stock market.
Speaking of closed doors…. We are closed on November 11 for Veteran’s Day, November 28 and 29 for Thanksgiving and December 25 for Christmas and January 1 for the New Year. A word of caution, don’t wait for the last minute for cash needs as the team will be taking days off around the holidays so it might take an extra minute to get to your request.
What’s going on in the markets?? Year to date the S&P 500 is up 19.93% as of Monday 11/4 but virtually flat for the quarter. Is there a Santa Claus Rally in our future or is the election results going to calm everything as we settle into transition? I’m thinking a bit of up, but not like Q4 last year. As we meet with clients we are talking about watching carefully as the new President begins to lead. Neither candidate has been particularly forthcoming with ideas. I would love to see a plan to balance the budget and reduce debt, but as several of you have reminded me, who likes to talk about that. Control over your net worth (Assets minus liabilities) is crucial to your life after work but especially this time of year no one wants to curb spending. Nani and I have LOTS of gifts to buy and we are trying to think meaningful as opposed to one day wonders. We’ll see how it works.
November is a month for giving thanks and I want to thank each of you for your trust and the stories. I love to hear about your triumphs as well as helping with struggles. As I headed to work this morning the sun was shining and a beautiful blue sky. There is work to do with good people and excitement and anticipation in the air. What a great life.
Best wishes for a fantastic Holiday season. And let’s hope Santa shows in the Stock market as well as Christmas morning.