Mountain Vista Wealth Management
Guiding from Valley to Peak
The growth in the cost of attending college has outpaced both general inflation and wage inflation over the last 30 years. According to the College Board, the cost of attending a pubic, four-year institution grew 3.2% faster than inflation between over the last decade. [Read more…] about Introducing 529 Plans
Over nine years have passed since the March 6, 2009 low in the S&P 500. Over that time SPY has gone on to produce a total return of greater than 400%. That should be cause for celebration, right? Apparently not if you write about the markets for a living.
As we close out the first half of 2018, we long for the market returns of 2017 when the S&P 500 returned 19.4% and the Barclays Aggregate returned 3.6%. Despite knowing that things would not continue to be so easy, it does not make it any less frustrating to see increased volatility in our portfolio value without the commensurate returns. [Read more…] about June 2018 Market Commentary
While stock indices are at or near their highs, it is easy to say that everyone should have just put their money into an S&P 500 ETF and kicked their feet up. After all, assuming the reinvestment of dividends, SPY is up 369% since the 2009 low. [Read more…] about Risk Matters!
Investing can be confusing and even scary to the average saver, but while staying in cash may give you a sense of security in the short term, one is almost guaranteed to lose purchasing power over time. This is because of inflation, defined as a general increase in prices and the fall in the purchasing value of money. [Read more…] about The Scourge of Inflation