Resources and Readings

Note: These titled posts ("Resources and Reading") are intended to be informative and helpful, of items I have read or seen. I am not taking political positions, just providing the reference to something I've seen that I consider worthwhile, about the current affairs of our country and the world, which you may find informative or helpful.


Tom Friedman, New York Times: He has been traveling in Pakistan, Afghanistan and near Iran in recent weeks. His series of articles on these experiences have been clear, short and highly informative articles about what is going in in those parts of the world. Very valuable reading. Columns dated from around July 20th - ? (he is still in that area).

Health Care Reform: status changes daily, so I have not posted about this or the tax implications, as they would be outdated within a day of the post. However, for a timely explanation of the current status/stalemate, see Paul Krugman in NY Times (7/27/09) and Robert J. Samuelson in the Washington Post (7/27/09). Krugman is clearly a liberal and in favor of reform of some type. His article I cited is a good update on the current status of the Democratic party in-fighting.

Spotted in Sports Illustrated, 7/27/09, page 16: "In an ad on the (Detroit) Lions' website for streaming video of old games, fans of the team, which went 0-16 last year, were exhorted to RELIVE THE 2008 SEASON." Why??

We Are Pleased to Announce....

We are pleased to announce that Wasserman Wealth Management, LLC was named as the second largest Wealth Management firm in Michigan which is affiliated with a CPA firm and has a CPA within the wealth management firm. The rankings, based on the above criteria and assets under management as of December 31, 2008, were published in the July, 2009 issue of Accounting Today.

We thank our clients for their loyalty in helping our firm grow.




And now for the legal disclosure:

The ranking may not be representative of any one or all of Wasserman Wealth Management’s clients’ experiences because the rankings reflect only the size of the firm. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. Investments involve risk, including the risk of loss of principal.

Gadgets and Things

I thought I would write about something different...the technology that I use and my firm uses. If you have any questions or would like more information about any of the following, let me know.

I would be the last person someone would have described as a techie a few years ago, but am now incorporating many different types of technology in many business and personal parts of my life.

Amazon Kindle: This is an electronic book reader, and more. With this device, almost any book can be instantly downloaded electronically to the reader, anywhere in the country. It eliminates carrying many books on trips and you can always have something to read with you (was a great way to read the Buffet biography, which was 1,000 pages plus). I also use this to read trade magazine articles. My office emails selected articles directly to the Kindle, so that they can be read whenever I want to. Books can be sampled, so I can read a chapter or two to learn what the general concept of what an author is saying (great to learn Tom Friedman's latest thinking). Magazines are also available. I currently subscribe to Atlantic Monthly and Newsweek for a fraction of the print versions.

IPhone: I have to give credit to my son for encouraging me to get this phenomenal device. It is so much more than a phone and Ipod. I download podcasts of many types; news and interviews, Leimberg Services (tax, financial and estate planning updates), technology updates and more.

A big hit for the Iphone are the "apps" which are available. I'm not much of a gamer. My apps include Toodledo (tasks, to do list management), Ifitness (workout information, data collection, design your own exercise program), and Grocery IQ (learned about this from a recent NY Times article and it is amazing!). Amazon's website can be accessed and my Kindle can be read from the Iphone.

Voice Dictation Software: In the office, I use "Dragon Naturally Speaking" to "write" letters, emails and sometimes, these posts. It is an incredible time-saver and the technology seems to be steadily improving, meaning the program is able to more accurately type what I'm saying. If you "write" a lot, you may find this very valuable.

Cash or Credit? You may be very surprised

You pull into gas station. The price is $2.45 per gallon to pay by credit card or $2.35 for paying in cash. What do you do? How do you pay?

Most of us have gotten very used to paying for gas by credit card, almost exclusively, in recent years. In the past few months, gas stations have started to charge a $.10 differential between paying by cash or credit card. I have a feeling that most people are continuing to pay by credit card, because that is what they are used to doing.

Like our approach to investing, before you pay at the pump, you should consider the evidence and make a rational decision. The additional $.10 charge to pay by credit card, at current gas prices, is a premium of 4%. So by using your credit card, it is costing you 4%.

Even if you are participating in almost any type of credit card reward program, you will probably not be able to recoup anywhere near this 4% added cost. Thus, you will save money by paying in cash and not by paying with your credit card.

This may require a change in what you are accustomed to doing. But rationally, it is the correct strategy.

For readers of this blog who are not currently clients of our firm, this is similar to an investor who has been using a traditional brokerage firm (and their "strategies") and has not considered the academic evidence that supports our investment philosophy. They are used to what they've been doing and they are comfortable with it. It may not necessarily be in their best interest, but they haven't considered an alternative strategy.

So the next time you fill up your tank, think about your choices.... and hopefully you'll make the rational one.

Thoughts About Oil

Various thoughts and information about the price of oil and it's impact:

• Prices of a barrel of crude oil:
• One year ago: $136/barrel
• February 2009: $45-50/barrel
• Early June, 2009: $73/barrel
• July 8, 2009: $61/barrel

• In another example of the unpredictability of the financial markets, the price of crude oil has dropped for 6 straight days, declining by 16% during these 6 days. That is a huge change. I don't think that two weeks ago, anyone would or could have predicted this steep decline over such a short time period. The lesson for investors should be that you cannot predict the future accurately (and then try rely on these predictions for investment decisions).
• The steep decline was partially a reaction to the increase in unemployment figures that were released last week. The thought was that if more people are unemployed and companies are not hiring, there will be less demand or use of oil in the future. Based on supply and demand basics, with less anticipated demand, the price would go down.
• However, the drop in the price of a barrel also means that gas prices will go down. For our economy, this is good. Consumers will have more to spend on things other than gas. The cost that companies will incur will also be less, which is good. The downside to reduced oil prices is that reduces the movement towards more efficient vehicles and investments in alternative energy.
• Other interesting items:
• Saudi Arabia cut the official price for exports to the US on Sunday. The Wall Street Journal indicated that this would mean more oil being shipped from Saudi Arabia to the US.*
• OPEC future demand estimates have declined. They predict a decline in 2030 oil usage to 105 million barrels a day, which is an 8 million barrel decrease from the same estimate a year ago (a 7% decline).*
• OPEC's demand forecast for 2013 also dropped by 5.7 million barrels a day. *

* Wall Street Journal, Oil's Rational Retreat, July 8, 2009

College Financial Aid Form Simplication Coming

The U.S. Department of Education announced recently that the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will be shorter in length and more user friendly. The government uses this application to determine a student’s eligibility for financial aid, as well as, most colleges use it to gauge a student’s financial needs.

The Department of Education has promised to reduce the number of questions by 25% and to reduce the online screens from 30 to 10. The changes to the form include eliminating questions that don’t apply to a specific student, providing quicker estimates and streamlining information from the IRS. Some of the changes are currently in place with the rest to follow over the next few months.

Beginning in January, students will have easier access to income information from the IRS when applying on-line (which 98% of students do) for the spring semester. The goal is for tax return information to be downloaded from the IRS to the FAFSA form, which will save time and increase accuracy.

Go Figure

As a long time reader of Sports Illustrated, "Go Figure" is the name of one of my favorite features. "Go Figure" is a collection of interesting and surprising statistics.

Investment News, a publication for financial advisors, had the following items in their "Go Figure" section in the June 15, 2009 issue:

*80% of institutional investors (professionals, pension plan managers, etc.) thought the S & P 500 index will return to 1,200 by the end of 2011. It is currently around 895. That would be an increase of 34% from today's level.

*However, in an Associated Press poll, 52% of the people surveyed thought that now is a bad time to invest in stocks.

While we do not believe in crystal balls and cannot predict the future, think about the above 2 figures. If an item is on sale, people are more likely to buy it. However, when it comes to stocks, many people will invest only when it "feels right."

Our role as financial advisors is to help our clients have the discipline to adhere to their financial plans. We assist our clients in being able to stick to their planned asset allocation. This discipline can lead to buying low and selling high.

So even if it does not "feel right" to be invested in stocks now, we think it makes sense for investors, after analyzing and determining an appropriate investment plan, to purchase stocks now or maintain their stock positions for the long run. By doing this, if the market does increase as many professionals above predict, our clients will benefit. They will not benefit by sitting on the sidelines waiting for "the right time to invest."

We'll check back in 2011 and see who is right!