A bi-weekly newsletter from our Founder & Portfolio Manager, Ryan A. Hughes. Straight talk on markets, taxes, and money. Read by 2,700+ people who value clear thinking.
Twice a year, in January and July, we record a portfolio update that walks through the markets, how we build portfolios, and where we think things are headed. This is the mid-year 2026 edition. The economy: good, not great The U.S. economy is still expanding. Growth ran about 2.1% in the first quarter, and the...
The upcoming SpaceX IPO has a ton of red flags. I am really, really wary of this deal, and so should you. If all goes according to plan, SpaceX (ticker: SPCX) will be the largest IPO in history. By a wide margin. The company is hoping to raise $75B, which would give the company a...
Stocks have been on a tear lately, which, of course, everyone seems to hate. Pick your poison: a slowing labor market, the Strait of Hormuz closure, a new Fed Chairman, midterm elections, $39T in national debt, etc. There’s plenty to be worried about. On paper, things should be worse off than they actually are. So,...
We get this question a lot. “Is now a terrible time to invest?” It’s a fair question. Everybody has something to lose if it actually is a terrible time to buy the market. Money. We’ve had a number of clients and prospective clients express their fears recently as the U.S.-Iran war unfolded. I get it....
Finding a good financial advisor can be daunting. You’re being asked to entrust your entire financial future to this person. Get it right, and it can mean financial freedom for you and your family. Get it wrong, and it can set you back years. The problem is that there are a lot of pretenders out...
A few weeks ago, when I first wrote about the Iranian War, I discussed the Strait of Hormuz blockade and its potential impact on oil prices and, by extension, inflation. At the time, the Strait had been closed for only a few days. It has now been closed for three weeks, and there is little...
Stocks are down. Oil is up. Bond yields are up. And most people are just trying to figure out what is actually going on. I thought about a few different approaches for this post. Historical geopolitical conflicts and stock returns. How the new Fed Chairman might navigate this. But I kept coming back to the...
Software stocks have lost $2 trillion in market cap over the past twelve months. Salesforce is down 30%. Workday is down 33%. This selloff has a name: the SaaSpocalypse. Here’s what it means for your portfolio. Let me preface this by saying I am by no means an AI expert. I don’t know how to...
The past few weeks have been quite pivotal for the markets and the global economy. I will talk about the SaaSapocalypse later (the AI revolution is happening in real-time, folks), but today I wanted to talk about the Fed Chair nomination of Kevin Warsh. I think this has a major impact on interest rates, inflation,...
We’re updating this list in 2026 to reflect the ongoing changes in the personal finance landscape here in San Diego. The advisory industry has continued to evolve over the past several years: through consolidation, shifting service models, and changes in how firms structure advice and client relationships. For example, we previously included Dowling & Yahnke...
Last updated: January 2026 Credit cards designed for those who spend significant amounts of money become a gateway to a world of luxury. If your income is high and this type of spending works for you, it’s something to consider as part of your wealth management strategy. Yet, with so many credit card offerings specifically...
The S&P 500 was up 16% last year, despite the many concerns we had this time last year. If you recall, we entered the year concerned about how the market would respond to Trump’s proposed policies (import tariffs, immigration crackdown, a Bitcoin Reserve, etc.). Some of the concerns we had at the time were warranted,...
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