Happy holidays! I hope you enjoyed time off with friends and family. I had a great holiday this year, and the holiday was made even sweeter by the outstanding upside we saw in our portfolio in this final full week of the year. Although the week was shortened due to Christmas, the market’s gains were […]

“It came without ribbons! It came without tags!” “It came without packages, boxes or bags!” And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! “Maybe Christmas,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a store.” “Maybe Christmas…perhaps…means a little bit more!” –Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole

This week’s ETF Talk introduces an international real estate investment trust (REIT) fund, the Vanguard Global ex-U.S. Real Estate ETF (VNQI), which complements the domestic REIT we featured last week. While last week I suggested that domestic REITs might be a good safe haven in a potential market downturn, this week I’m looking ahead to

Every year has its surprises, and 2014 definitely is no exception. This year brought about what I call the “big four surprises.” I call them that because A) each was truly a big development that influenced the entire global market, and B) because nearly all of these were completely unexpected. The big four surprises are

The Biggest Surprises of the Year Every year has its surprises, and 2014 definitely is no exception. This year brought about what I call the “big four surprises.” I call them that because A) each was truly a big development that influenced the entire global market, and B) because nearly all of these were completely

If there’s one big takeaway from this week’s market action it’s this—a little “patience” goes a long way. That’s because this week’s big market surge, which saw the S&P 500 log its second-best  weekly gain in two years, was largely fueled by Fed Chair Janet Yellen and her “patience” when it comes to raising interest […]

Setting up a Successful 2015 The clock is running out on 2014, and though the fireworks in the market courtesy of the Fed’s signal on interest rates aren’t over yet, now is the time to start really thinking about how to be successful in the year ahead. Given that there are only 12 more days

Said, woman, take it slow It’ll work itself out fine All we need is just a little patience –“Patience” by Guns N’ Roses We all know patience is a virtue, but who would have thought that a little from Fed Chair Janet Yellen would translate into a 4.5% spike in the S&P 500 in just