A longtime client of mine, one who generally isn’t prone to panic, called me unexpectedly one afternoon. “I just saw a headline about the market dropping and I’m wondering if we’re in for another 2008.”
What he saw was a sharper-than-expected decline. No breaking news. No explanation. Just that sinking feeling: Did I miss something?… Read more
A few weeks ago, a man walked into my office carrying a folder full of paperwork. His father had passed away recently, leaving him heir to his sizeable account.
He sat down and said, “I don’t even know where to start. I never knew he was so rich. We never talked about this.”
It’s a moment I’ve seen many times…. Read more
A potential client came to me after years of managing his own portfolio. He wasn’t in crisis—far from it. His accounts were healthy, his retirement on track. But he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. “I feel like I’m coasting,” he told me. “I’m not losing, but I’m definitely not growing the way I could be.”
Like many Americans who made aliya,… Read more
A friend of mine called me, audibly shaken. He had just checked his investment account and saw a sudden drop in a week. “What if this keeps going?” he asked. “I don’t know if I’ll have enough to get through retirement, let alone leave something behind for the kids.”
He had made aliya years ago,… Read more
Most olim with traditional Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) see them as a safe way to grow wealth for retirement. And they’re right—until taxes hit. The IRS lets you defer taxes for decades, but once you start withdrawing, you could face hefty tax bills that shrink your savings fast…. Read more
For years, a potential client followed a plan. Patient. Disciplined. Steady. His portfolio mirrored that mindset: high-growth tech stocks and long-term strategies designed to pay off over decades, not days. And for a long time, it worked.
Then one phone call changed everything.
His daughter’s husband had lost his job. They couldn’t cover basic expenses,… Read more
After decades of working with American retirees living in Israel, I’ve found that the hardest financial lesson isn’t about investing or taxes. It’s knowing when you have enough. Too many people move the goalpost just when they’re about to reach it. When expectations continually change, what defines financial success? … Read more
“Does This Still Make Sense?”
That was the question a retired client in Israel recently asked me, not about a specific stock or fund, but about his entire financial setup.
He’d had a health scare, the kind that makes you pause and take stock. Like many American retirees doing legacy planning from Israel,… Read more
Ever check your portfolio before breakfast and lose your appetite?
If you’ve experienced cross-border investment anxiety, you’re not alone. One minute you’re thinking about coffee, the next you’re staring at a red number that wasn’t there yesterday. For Americans living in Israel, investing across time zones adds a layer of uncertainty…. Read more
“Is the risk really worth it?”
That was the question a retired professor asked after a dividend-paying stock he picked dropped nearly 8% in just a few weeks.
He had researched it carefully, attracted by a 15% yield. He wasn’t chasing quick wins, he simply wanted steady income from his U.S…. Read more
