Our Typical Client

We have two goals for clients: peace and profits. Peace is achieved, in part, by:

• both of us understanding your safety preference and its opportunities and limitations,
• your knowing the volatility normally expected of your portfolio and its components,
• taking responsibility for choices you make.

Profits are gained, in part, by:

• investing well, in part by sticking to our discipline in inevitable times when we wish returns were higher.
• exercising patience, generally measured in years.

Profits cannot be assured because no one knows the future. With excellent research, wisdom, experience, and innovative thinking, however, we can succeed admirably.

Your total financial portfolio

Most clients enjoy placing their total investment portfolio under our management. However, we are happy to manage a portion of your money, given that it’s over $1 million. Money we manage is held at Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. We have limited power of attorney to invest it and remove fees. A complete description of our service is available.

Things we are not

Unlike most investment advisers, we are not “relative return” managers who ride stocks and bonds up and down, with no sell discipline other than exiting an asset the investor is unhappy with. We employ our own “absolute return” investment strategy.

We are neither estate nor tax planners. We live in an age of specialization and a serious tax expert works only on taxes. Someone who will manage your money, plan your future, compute your taxes, and prepare your will cannot be good at all (or any?) of them.

We do not sell insurance nor consult on it.

We sell no products nor accept commissions. We are not paid by any investment you buy, nor are we are paid by Schwab – we are paid only by you.

We do not buy expensive assets (buying high) and we do not sell cheap ones (selling low). We buy only quality. This means that we often sell an expensive asset before its final top.

Some of our favorite investment quotes

“To buy when others are despondently selling and to sell when others are avidly buying requires the greatest fortitude and pays the greatest ultimate rewards.” and “Invest at the point of maximum pessimism.” and “Trouble is opportunity.”

— John M. Templeton (1912-2008), self-made investment billionaire.

“Buy when there’s blood in the streets, even if it’s your own.”

— Nathan M. Rothschild (1777-1836), co-creator of the Rothschild fortune.

“Diversification is protection against ignorance. It makes little sense if you know what you’re doing.” and “Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful.”

— Warren E. Buffett (1930- ), world’s most successful investor.

“The loser is the trend-chasing, comfort-seeking investor. The market doesn’t reward comfort. It rewards discomfort.”

— Robert D. Arnott (1954- ), investor, writer, money manager.