Stonecreek Blog

Minimizing the Impact of Taxes

Ben Franklin is credited with saying that nothing is certain in this world but death and taxes.1 What’s interesting is that this quote by Franklin comes after he spent nearly a decade serving as the American envoy to France—a country with arguably the most unfair, burdensome, and inefficient tax system

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Navigating the Four Emotional Phases of Retirement

Each of us is a unique individual. There never was and never will be the exact same mix of personality traits and talents, woven together in a unique social environment. And yet, in some ways we’re remarkably similar to everyone else. A good example of this is how we all

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Feeling Wealthy vs. Feeling Financially Healthy

In 1902 the New York Evening World newspaper used the phrase “feel like a million bucks.” This was a brand new idiom for expressing a feeling of extraordinary well-being.1 At the time, surgeons and bankers could expect to make about $1600 per year. You could buy a new Ford for

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How a Retirement Dry Run Can Help You Make a Better Plan

Have you heard the term “shakedown cruise”? It sounds like a boat trip planned by extortionists. But the term actually refers to an age-old practice used to prepare oceangoing ships.1 When a vessel is brand new or has had extensive refitting, it can be difficult to predict how it will

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What You Don’t Know CAN Hurt You

A friend of ours was lamenting how slow and costly it was to sort out his parents’ estate after they had both passed away. His father thought that by setting up a trust, everything would be easily distributed to his heirs. Unfortunately, our friend and his siblings found out that

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Tariffs & Turbulence: A Long-Term Perspective

The recent market decline, the largest since the drop resulting from the COVID shutdowns, was triggered by the implementation of new tariffs by the new administration. While these headlines can be alarming, we want to remind you that market fluctuations—especially during times of policy shifts—are normal and expected. Your portfolio

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Staying the Course Amid Market Volatility

The past days have been a reminder that market volatility is a natural part of investing. While sudden downturns can be unsettling, they are not uncommon and should be viewed in the broader context of long-term financial goals. Perspective Matters It’s easy to focus on short-term movements but consider this:

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Wishful Thinking Is not a Good Retirement Plan

Knowledge has its limits. Just because you know all the reasons you should do something, doesn’t mean you’ll actually do it. For example, there are nurses who smoke cigarettes, paramedics who drive recklessly, and estate attorneys who haven’t written out their own wills. At least if you have the knowledge,

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Animal Spirits and the Short-Term Behavior of the Market

As last year’s robust gains continued into the fourth quarter, financial analysts were using an explanatory term you might be more likely to hear from a shaman: animal spirits.1 They were using it to refer to the strong emotions that sometimes drive economic behavior, especially the herd mentality that seems

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The Top 10 Mistakes Investors Make

The Top 10 Mistakes Investors Make While Trying To Build Wealth   Mistake #1 — Not understanding the difference between average returns and annualized returns. Some advisors report “average” returns and others report “annualized” returns. It’s important to know the difference. The difference between the two is that annualized returns

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When Money Behavior Follows the Script

In the movie Groundhog Day, Bill Murray’s character finds himself having the same interactions over and over again. In fact, early in the story he puts a great amount of effort into trying to break out of these rote exchanges. But one of the things that has made the movie

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Getting Your New Year’s Resolutions to Stick

The start of a new year is a great time to make improvements to your personal, professional, and financial life. However, as you’ve probably experienced, making significant change isn’t easy. Research shows that only 9% of people succeed at keeping their New Year’s resolutions. In fact, nearly a quarter of

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How to Be Part of a Holiday “Miracle”

There’s a long tradition of remarkable-but-true stories associated with the holiday season. After all, it’s the darkest and coldest time of year (in the northern hemisphere) and maybe that’s why stories of unexpected generosity and hope stand out. Take for instance Peggy King’s story of a last minute “Santa” who

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