2019 served as a reminder of just how unpredictable the market is. It’s crystal clear to observers that the prediction game is often a losing one for investors. Our friends at Dimensional wrote an insightful piece on the futility of forecasting. We think the story and the data shared here are both worth your attention. (Estimated reading time of 5-7 minutes)

Read Now

One of the services we provide for our clients is social security optimization. We like for you to get the maximum benefit from the system you’ve paid into for most of your life. For as much bad publicity as the Social Security Administration receives, it does oversee one of the few guaranteed programs backed by the federal government. Social security may not be the primary source of one’s income but it can provide a stable stream in retirement.

REMINDER: It is important to ensure your benefits reflect what you’ve earned over your working life.

In an attempt to reduce costs, the Social Security Administration has greatly curtailed the number of statements mailed each year and encourages workers to check their information online. In fact, for people under 60 the SSA no longer mails statements and only allows users to view their information online. We recommend that all individuals establish an online account and check it annually. This allows you to see your estimated benefits at different ages as well as provides an opportunity to safeguard against identity theft and fraud by checking your earnings history.

To review your Social Security information, go to www.ssa.gov to set up your personal account.

Dimensional’s 2019 analysis of US-based mutual funds shows that only a small percentage of funds have outperformed their primary benchmarks after costs—and among those who have had good results, only a small percentage have repeated their past success.