Category: Blog

Return Expectations By Brad Thomason   Well, unless something dramatic happens, it looks like we are on track to see a rise in US stock markets of about 24% for 2017.  Notably, that follows a rise last year of about 21%. That’s what the level changes in the Dow imply.  Depending on how you owned […]

Tax Law Changes By Brad Thomason   Well, tax reform is now a thing.  I see ahead of myself a rather lengthy homework assignment in which I read a lot and listen to a lot of folks who specialize in taxation and know more about this stuff than I do.  I expect the changes to […]

Bitcoin By Brad Thomason Since everyone else is talking about Bitcoin, I thought that maybe I should chime in, too.  I’m not going to tell you if it’s a good thing or a bad thing, nor am I going to tell you where the price is headed.  There are already enough people talking about those […]

If I Only Knew… By Brad Thomason, CPA   Fitbit stock is down to $5, off a peak of around $48 just after its 2015 IPO.  About half of its 50 million registered users aren’t actively using their devices anymore.  So says a recent article in Fortune magazine. One of the eternal sources of hope […]

What’s Falling Now? By Brad Thomason, CPA   A lot is written about investment theory.  Less about investment practice.  What I mean by that is that you can find a ton of content (much of it repetitive…) about broad principles.  But when it comes to actual steps, you have to look harder.  There’s a lot […]

RE Investing:  DIY or hire a pro? By Brad Thomason, CPA   A client referred a friend to us. He was contemplating the purchase and fix up of a three-plex.  We reviewed his project and pointed out a few things to keep in mind. We also quoted him a fee to have our project management […]

Rental Real Estate: Nature’s Small Loss Generator? By Brad Thomason, CPA   Mebane Faber had Steve Sjuggerud on his podcast earlier this year.  As they were wrapping up at the end of the interview, Meb asked Steve if there was a common mistake that he saw investors making, one which could be easily avoided.  Without […]

The Selection Paradox By Brad Thomason, CPA   What you invest in matters.  What you invest in doesn’t matter.  Let’s discuss. What you invest in matters because if you are putting your capital into things which don’t contribute to your overall goals, you are wasting time and opportunity, and are likely to fail. The specific […]

Numbers That Matter, All of Them By Brad Thomason, CPA   Grant got a ticket from the US Fish and Wildlife Service.  This was back when we were in college, and we’d stopped off to make a dive at Crystal River, probably on a road trip down to the Keys.  Near the spring that we […]

The Squirrel Principle By Brad Thomason, CPA   If you have ever watched squirrels perform their acrobatics, you have probably been just a little amazed.  I always have been.  I love watching them.  So much of what they do seems impossible. Many years ago, I started thinking that a major contributor to their ability to […]