A client called recently to review her accounts. She and her husband are both in their sixties. She still teaches full-time, and he’s retired. Their combined Israeli pensions are modest. They own their home outright and live simply. She wanted to know if they would be okay.
Their U.S. account held over $700,000 in Certificates of Deposit (Bank CDs) structured as a ladder,… Read more
A couple sat across from me explaining that they had sold their home in Israel, downsized, and now had a significant sum sitting in their Israeli bank account. They also held another chunk of money in an Israeli investment portfolio they hadn’t examined in years.
“We don’t really need the money right now,” the husband said…. Read more
“Should we sell tech? Buy commodities? Move more money to savings?” A couple in their early 60s arrived at a portfolio review ready to rethink almost everything. Geopolitical tensions and market swings had turned ordinary fluctuations into warning signs.
Yet their own situation was unchanged. They had diversified portfolios, stable income,… Read more
A client called before leaving for vacation. His IRA held a short-term Treasury bond fund, and he had just wired in a sizable amount of cash. “What’s best to do with the new money?” he asked.
We talked through the alternatives and he clearly stated that he wanted this portion to be conservative…. Read more
A client called early one morning. His technology holdings had jumped sharply over two days, and he started asking whether this was a peak or just the beginning of more gains. It wasn’t panic, but rather the recognition that when gains come fast, something usually follows.
We walked through his portfolio…. Read more
A client called recently, unsettled by the headlines. Markets were choppy, pundits were predicting the worst, and the urge to pull back felt overwhelming. It was a familiar conversation. Every few years, there is a new reason to panic: A pandemic, trade wars, rate hikes, tariffs, a debt crisis overseas. Each time,… Read more
A client called to discuss how to protect his sons after he was gone… without creating any conflict.
Several years earlier, he had worked with an attorney to establish a trust. A professional trustee would manage the assets, a trust protector would provide oversight, and both sons would be protected from outside pressure or impulsive decisions. … Read more
“I keep hearing about this blockchain thing,” a client said on a recent call. “Now it seems like it’s actually happening in a big way.” She wanted to invest in a blockchain ETF, but when I asked what caught her interest, the conversation revealed a pattern I see often: investors confuse the blockchain with Bitcoin. … Read more
A client called while commuting between cities in Israel. The connection was noisy, but the question came through clearly: semiconductors had been performing exceptionally well in his portfolio, and he wanted to know if it was time to trim before a correction.
We reviewed his holdings. He owned several major chip stocks and a semiconductor-focused fund…. Read more
A client called about a maturing bank deposit (CD). She had significant cash available and wanted to discuss reinvestment options. But halfway through the conversation, she paused and asked about something else: credit card debt she’d been carrying for months.
She hesitated before bringing it up. The debt wasn’t from careless spending…. Read more
