by David Maddux, CEO | CIO We sent the following note to clients on September 13th Are Lower Interest Rates a Good Thing? Seasons may be changing.  Sometimes we can detect the shift from one season to another, like maybe it is less hot in the early mornings and evenings.  Although it still feels like summer is in full swing, with the midday heat in Tampa at 90+ degrees and “feels like” readings of 103+, we know that climate conditions will

by David Maddux, CEO | CIO We sent the following letter to clients on January 25th. Summary: Anecdotal Update – a story we can all learn from Landscape and shifting narratives – recession to “Goldilocks thinking” Portfolio approach – Barbell of risk free (stable income) and diversified growth (expected over time) – inflation and valuations Anecdotal Update I have had enough inquiries in my sharing with clients about my now 15-year-old son’s crypto mining venture that it is worth another update. 

by Barry Brindise, CFP ®, MBA | Financial Planning Director Recent Federal Legislation Affecting Taxes And Retirement Are Set To Expire Unless They Are Extended Or Made Permanent By Congress. It’s Not Too Early To Start Planning For These Looming Changes Since 2018 we have seen a great deal of legislation affecting individual taxes and retirement planning.  Some of these changes are listed below with a summary of their original goals.  It can be difficult to keep track of these laws and

by David Maddux, CEO | CIO We sent the following note to clients on September 1st.  20 Months And Counting, But Bonds Look Great The longer I invest in liquid markets the more I appreciate how dynamic they can be.  As last year was coming to a close, stock prices were attempting a recovery from their late summer lows and the consistent, conventional thinking was that we were barreling into a recession that was virtually guaranteed to begin in the first

by Heidi Ellingson, Executive Assistant | Marketing Coordinator Where Did My Paycheck Go? I think we’ve all asked that of ourselves. If you’re like most people, you think of making a budget as a way to force us to control our spending (and ourselves). In all reality, it can help you see the light at the end of the tunnel and bring you peace of mind. It could also help you get out of debt… or keep you from getting there

 by David Maddux, CEO | CIO We sent the following note to clients on January 25th. My note this time last year was “This Is Not Normal,” in which I shared a variety of anecdotes that the environment had gotten frothy and complacent with abnormal risky behavior.  The shine has come off quicker than I would have thought, as nosebleed territory priced stocks have cascaded lower.  For example, the largest 100 Nasdaq stocks were down -32% for 2022 and Bitcoin was

January 30, 2023 by Barry Brindise, Financial Planning Director Tax Loss Harvesting When it comes to investing in any type of asset, experiencing losses can be very frustrating.  However, there is an investing strategy called, “Tax Loss Harvesting” or “Tax Loss Selling,” which can be used to take those losses and use them to offset other gains in your portfolio and thus reduce your overall tax liability (all while maintaining the target asset allocation).  Tax Loss Harvesting can also be used

January 30, 2023 by Barry Brindise, Financial Planning Director Yield to Maturity (YTM) and How to Think About Fixed Income Returns At Brightwater Advisory, our process invests client resources in a diversified portfolio of assets.  Depending on each client’s needs, an investment plan will reflect an allocation between growth assets like stocks and exchange traded funds and fixed income instruments like bonds and CDs.  This summary focuses on the fixed income side of the portfolio and describes how investment returns for

November 8, 2022 by Barry Brindise, Financial Planning Director, Brightwater Advisory Roth Conversions in Retirement Planning Retirement accounts come in many shapes. Beyond plans offered by employers to their employees, the ”Traditional Individual Retirement Arrangement” (Traditional IRA) is a very popular savings tool for workers with earned income. For those without an employer plan, the Traditional IRA may be their primary retirement savings tool. These plans were established by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). In order to

September 20. 2022 by Barry Brindise, Financial Planning Director, Brightwater Advisory Series I-bonds: The Good: Series I bonds are an alternative to TIPS that are worth consideration when seeking a higher rate of return than, for example, short term treasuries, etc. There are two components to the bonds rate of return, the “fixed piece” has recently been 0% (still 0% at 6/28/22) and then the “semi-annual inflation component” comes on top of that each year in May and November. The current