All Articles
Weekly Market Digest: Enthusiasm for Stocks Overcomes Coronavirus Fears
Enthusiasm for stocks, especially large growth stocks, once again overcame fears of the widening coronavirus crisis. Last Friday’s solid jobs report provided support and earnings continue to generally exceed expectations. Analysts are expecting modest earnings growth...
Dear Tori: Should I Combine Finances With My Partner Before Marriage?
Tori Dunlap is a millennial money and career expert. After saving $100,000 at age 25, Tori founded Her First $100K to fight financial inequality by giving women actionable resources to better their money. A Plutus award winner, her work has been featured on Good...
Guide to Filing Your Taxes in 2020
They say only two things in life are certain, and the time of year has arrived for one of them. It’s tax season! The Personal Capital Guide to Income Tax Filing will provide you with everything you need to know to file your income taxes this year.
2020 Love & Money Report – Is Love Really All You Need?
Is love really all you need? According to a recent survey, couples say they ultimately don’t care how much money their partner makes, but having the “money talk” does help.
The 5 Most Common Self-Directed Investing Mistakes…And How To Avoid Them
For do-it-yourself investors, self-directed investing means managing your portfolio and making trades by yourself, without a financial professional advising or doing it for you. A lot of people think that this is the most cost-effective way to manage their portfolio,...
Weekly Market Digest: Fears Ease that Coronavirus will Sap Global Economy
Global equities rallied with U.S. stocks once again touching record highs. This was a sharp reversal from the previous two weeks when fears of the coronavirus and its impact on global growth weighed on markets. Investors shed safe haven assets such as bonds and gold,...
What Moved the Markets in January?
Every month, Personal Capital Chief Investment Officer Craig Birk recaps major market-moving events. Coronavirus fears began to hit markets late in January, offsetting a respectable start to earnings season and pushing global stocks lower for the month, especially in...
Is Market Timing a Myth?
This article was updated in February 2020 Market timing is an investment strategy that involves going in and out of the market or switching asset classes based on predictions that attempt to measure how to market will move. The problem with this method is that it's...
When is the IRA Contribution Deadline?
Like many people, you may be working on finalizing your 2019 tax return before the April 15 tax-filing deadline. If so, there might be an opportunity for you to obtain a valuable tax deduction and boost your retirement savings at the same time, so it's important to...
Weekly Market Digest: Debt-to-GDP Ratio Nears All-Time High
Tesla, Apple, Amazon, and Facebook announced strong earnings this week while the Fed announced no changes to the Fed-Funds rate. By keeping the Fed-Funds rate as is, the Fed indicated that the US economy is doing well in some areas, but not well enough for the Fed to...
How to Manage a Windfall
Photo by Meredith Nierman for WGBH, (c) WGBH 2020 This week, a guest on the PBS series Antiques Roadshow became a viral sensation: the 1971 Rolex Cosmograph Daytona Oyster he purchased in 1974 for $345.97 was valued at up to $700,000 on the show. The watch was unworn,...
What to Know Before Opening a Joint Account
Should you share a joint bank account with a spouse or partner? It’s a good question to consider, but there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Circumstances differ across families, and there are different types of joint accounts with varying features and benefits. Here...
Making Sense of the Mega Backdoor Roth
Roth IRAs are one of the greatest gifts ever given to retirement savers. They enable individuals who qualify to enjoy tax-free withdrawals of their money after they retire, or even earlier in some situations. This can help retirees stretch their nest eggs even...
What Is The American Opportunity Credit?
Many families today are struggling with the cost of higher education for their children. Due largely to a lack of college savings, student loan debt is soaring. There are currently 45 million student loan borrowers in the U.S. who owe a collective $1.5 trillion in...
Weekly Market Digest: Calculation of FICO Credit Scores Will Change
The Impeachment trial commenced within the Senate this week – as a reminder, the Senate, which is Republican controlled, needs a 2/3rds majority to convict the President. While a sudden change in leadership would likely impact the markets, no outcome is certain at...
What is the Lifetime Learning Credit?
Higher education costs are continuing to soar with no end in sight. Over the past decade, tuition at public four-year universities has risen by 35 percent, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The average annual cost for tuition, fees, and room and...
Plan Together with Personal Capital Cash™ Joint Account
When we first introduced Personal Capital Cash™ last June, we were pleased to offer the opportunity for individuals to earn more interest on their cash. Then we then started thinking about how we can continue to meet the needs of modern families—whether it’s putting...
When Can You Withdraw From Your 401k Or IRA Penalty Free?
If you are forced to withdraw funds from your IRA or 401k early, it’s helpful to know the rules and regulations around early withdrawals. 401ks, IRAs and other pre-tax retirement savings accounts are common ways to save for retirement, and millions of Americans pour...
Managing “Sudden Wealth Syndrome” – Lessons Learned From Pro Athletes
"Sudden wealth syndrome" is a term used to describe the adjustment issues, stress, confusion, and often money mismanagement that can accompany coming into sudden wealth or a large windfall. Some examples of a windfall situation that might lead to sudden wealth...
Weekly Market Digest: What Does the ‘Phase One’ Trade Deal Mean for the Economy?
We are now into the third week of the new decade and so far, so good it seems. The first few days of the year would have made you think otherwise with terms like WWIII being thrown around amongst heightened unrest between the U.S. and Iran, but it appears we can go...
The 401k Rollover – Is It Right For You?
Leaving your job is a BIG life change. So, we don’t blame you if your 401k isn’t immediately top-of-mind. Nonetheless, thinking about a 401k rollover is something that we really urge you not to forget. Don't Forget Your 401k Rollover Decision The 401k rollover is a...
Quarterly Market Commentary: Will the Bull Market Lose Steam in 2020?
Each quarter, our investment team comments on what happened in the markets and the economy over the last quarter and looks forward at what the next period might bring. Fourth quarter gains punctuated a big year for stocks and a remarkable decade in capital markets....
5 Tips for Filing Taxes for Freelance Work
In today’s “gig” economy, a growing number of people are leaving the 9-to-5 corporate grind and choosing instead to work as full-time freelancers. While being a freelancer can be an amazing career choice as it offers flexibility and lets you be your own boss, there...
Weekly Market Digest: What Will the Next Decade Bring?
We kicked off the first full work week of 2020 with plenty of geo-political controversy. Tensions flared after the U.S. killed Iranian General Soleimani in a drone strike, leading Iran to retaliate with a missile attack on two U.S. bases in Iraq. This fueled fears the...
The Right Way to Deal with Stock Market Volatility
The past year was largely positive for stock market investors as major market indices notched record highs on a regular basis. Between the highs, however, were some dizzying drops, like in late July and early August when the S&P 500 experienced declines of nearly...
What Moved the Markets in December?
The Trade War Stocks rose in December, punctuating a big year for stocks and a remarkable decade in capital markets. The trade conflict between the US and China finished 2019 on a positive note, with a “phase one” deal being agreed to in principle. While productive...
Personal Capital Named #3 on RIA Channel’s List of Top Wealth Managers
We’re pleased to announce that Personal Capital was ranked #3 on RIA Channel’s list of the Top 100 Wealth Managers in 2019, as featured on Forbes.com. The ranking is based on size and growth in assets under management. To learn more about the Top 100 Wealth Managers...
Roth 401k vs. Roth IRA – How Are They Different?
Roth 401k vs. Roth IRA: How Are These Accounts Different, and Which Option is Better? We consistently hear from clients that saving for retirement tops the list of their most important financial goals. So it’s a big decision, and a highly personal one, to determine...
How Do ESG Ratings Agencies Work – And Why Should You Care?
If you are a socially-conscious investor, you may wonder who determines which companies are deemed “socially responsible” and what criteria is used. After all, one person’s view of social responsibility often differs radically from another person’s view. Socially...
How Will the SECURE Act Impact You?
What You Should Know About the SECURE Act On December 20th, The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2019, was signed into law by President Trump as part of a late-cycle appropriations bill. SECURE is the product of a bipartisan effort...
