America Is Energy Independent. So Why Are Oil Prices Still High?
It’s one of the most common questions we’ve heard this year. The United States produces more oil than it uses, yet since the Strait of Hormuz disruption began in late February, gasoline has climbed above $4 a gallon. The short answer is that energy independence and oil prices measure two different things. One is about […]
Social Security Planning for High-net-worth Families: Timing, Tax Coordination, and Your Legacy
For affluent investors, claiming Social Security goes from a routine retirement milestone into a sophisticated tax, cash-flow, and estate management decision. While benefits are capped federally, deciding when and how to claim can significantly impact portfolio longevity, top-line tax exposure, and survivor protection for decades. Integrating Social Security planning into your broader wealth strategy can […]
Blended Family Financial Planning: How to Address Unique Financial Challenges
Blended families—where partners bring children, assets, and histories from prior relationships—face many challenges as they come together. One of the biggest challenges is money matters, but this is something that can be worked through. Here’s how to address the unique blended family financial planning challenges that come with different support obligations, asset ownership, mismatched benefits, […]
Medicare Planning for High-net-worth Families: IRMAA, Timing, and Tax Coordination
For affluent investors, turning 65 means Medicare goes from a routine health insurance milestone into a sophisticated tax and cash-flow management decision. While eligibility is universal, the premiums you can pay are significantly higher due to federal surcharges. Integrating Medicare planning into your broader wealth strategy can help you anticipate—and mitigate—premium increases to enhance long-term […]
What AI Export Controls Mean for Your Portfolio
Following cybersecurity risks and the U.S. Commerce Department’s export-control directive, the world’s most capable publicly available AI model was taken offline for 19 days this June. Fable 5 (from Anthropic, the makers of Claude) has since returned alongside questions left unanswered, and while we anticipated the re-release, precedent is stickier. This report is aimed at […]
Quarterly Insights: Q2 2026 Market Outlook
By Joshua Prince, CFP® Market Stories Geopolitical tensions have continued to be a determining factor of market performance with ample volatility in tow. While conflict across the Middle East triggered March’s market sell-off, a ceasefire and memorandum of understanding (“MoU”) between Iran and the United States helped to deliver the S&P 500’s strongest quarterly performance […]
Market Minutes, June 2026
While geopolitical uncertainty continues in the Middle East and high energy prices have dampened the economic outlook, near-record earnings growth was May’s defining feature. Led by the technology sector, equities drew applause while bonds did the more honest accounting. In our view, bond markets are being more forthright about latent and emerging risks. Equities, by […]
The Horizontal Wealth Transfer: Money Flows Sideways First
The $54 trillion horizontal wealth transfer is coming for your family. Here’s what most couples aren’t doing to prepare. Everyone has heard of the Great Wealth Transfer. According to Cerulli Associates, an estimated $124 trillion in assets will change hands by 2048 as the Boomer generation passes its wealth to the next. It’s a staggering […]
Strait to the Point: Oil, Supply Chains, & Global Markets
The Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed for a month—the first time in modern history. Its impact on markets has been broad, its resolution remains uncertain, and the range of possible outcomes is unusually wide. Through our Needs, Means, & Seams framework, we examine what this situation means for clients and why proactive diversification […]
Strait of Hormuz, Inflation, and the April Rebound: A Portfolio Perspective
What the Rally Means—and What It Doesn’t Despite a still-shuttered Strait of Hormuz causing a snag in global commodity trade, equity markets staged an impressive rebound in April. The nations at war are technically bound by a ceasefire at the time of writing. But that agreement is fragile at best; progressing toward peace and backsliding […]