The Dangers of Overconcentration in Your Employer’s Stock

One of the most common mistakes investors make comes in the form of overconcentration of their investments in their company’s stock. It’s understandable to want to invest in the company you’ve spent a great deal of time with and...

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What Are Dimensional Funds?

Investing can be a daunting task, especially with an endless stream of new options and pieces of advice that try to shape your portfolio. But what if you could simplify the process by following a tried-and-true approach with experienced...

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4 Ways to Apply the 80/20 Rule to Your Financial Pursuits

Ever hear of the 80/20 rule? It suggests 80% of an outcome is often the result of just 20% of the effort you put into it. This doesn’t always work. Sometimes, it’s worth going the extra mile. But often, by...

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When Should You Take Your Social Security?

Ever since President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed off on the 1935 Social Security Act, most Americans have ended up pondering this critical question as they approach retirement: “When should I (or we) start taking my (or our) Social Security?” And yet,...

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How Can I Reduce My California State Income Taxes?

California is well-known for its high taxes. Depending on your income, you could be looking at a hit as high as 13.30% come tax time. But what can you do about it?  In this article, we’re going to list out several...

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Back to the Investment Basics Part 5: Patience and Personal Persistence

So far in our investment basics series, we’ve explored the history of investing; how important it is to save (so you have money to invest); how to invest efficiently in broad markets; and why to avoid chasing or fleeing...

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Back to the Investment Basics Part 4: The Price You Pay Matters

In our last piece, we described our marvelous markets, and how to account for their being both robust and random at the same time. Today, we’ll look at how stock pricing works, and why Nobel laureate William F. Sharpe...

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Back to the Investment Basics Part 3: Our Marvelous Markets

In our last piece, we introduced the importance of saving, which is the first of five basics that have served investors well over time. Today, we’ll look at where stock market returns really come from, and why that matters...

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Back to the Investment Basics Part 2: First Save, Then Invest

In our last piece, we wrote about how recency bias can damage your investments by causing current crises to loom large, while rewriting your memories of past challenges. Recency tricks us into overpaying during heady times, and bailing at...

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Back to the Investment Basics Part 1: Remembering Summers Past

There were so many big events competing for our attention this summer … said nearly every investor, almost every summer, ever. We’re not making light of this summer’s uncertainties. Inflation is real, and needs to be managed; we also can’t...

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