Tarheel Advisors

Preparing for Retirement

2018
Fake News

Insert Outlandish Headline Here

"If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're mis-informed." This is a quote from Mark Twain, and it is just as apropos today as it was over a century ago. There is a deluge of information in the world today...

Student Debt

Scaling the Student Debt Mountain

Some of you may have seen the recent article in the Wall Street Journal about a dentist in Utah who has accumulated $1 million in student loan debt. Before you write this off (pun intended) as a rare, one-of-a-kind case, you should know that according to the Department of Education, 101 people currently owe that much or more in federal student loans! In fact, around 2.5 million people owe...

China Trade War

All is Fair in Love and Trade War

Star Wars fans endured a 16 year lull in between the end of the original trilogy and the launch of the much anticipated prequel films. What were fans rewarded with after all that time? For all their anticipation all they got in return was one of the most hated and mocked films of all time. And, at the center...

Bear Market

Is This Market Just Right?

Goldilocks was an expert on a wide variety of subjects. Whether it was mattresses, porridge temperature, or 19th century furniture construction techniques, she was never afraid to let her opinions be known. Despite her impressive array of knowledge, it is safe to bet that Goldilocks knew very little about bears. After all, she spent the majority of an entire day inside a bear den with little to any sign of her impending doom. The modern day investor is very similar to Goldilocks in his/her lack of knowledge in regards to bear markets...

Investors Final Four

March Madness

What a crazy year of epic upsets, shocking meltdowns, and volatile outcomes — and I'm not talking about basketball! This roller coaster of a first quarter has left nobody with a perfect investment bracket, but there's still time to position yourself correctly to claim your one shining moment by year end. With that in mind, let's take a look at the top investment themes thus far in 2018 and see which ones...

Congress

Tax Cut and Jobs Act

As many of you probably know, the House and Senate approved the final version of the tax reform legislation in the last week of 2017, and President Trump signed into law the Tax Cut & Jobs Act ("The Act"). This new legislation will have a profound impact on many aspects of the tax system in the United States and is likely to impact both individuals and businesses significantly over the next decade. Due to procedural nuances of how the bill was passed as part of a budget resolution (known as the Byrd Rule), the new tax provisions expire...

Investment Outlook 2018

2018 Predictions

The big question for market prognosticators is how much gas is left in the tank of this nearly decade long bull market? The answer to this question is predicated on a debate that has raged in economic and political circles for nearly 40 years. The Reagan administration coined the term of "trickle down economics" based on the idea that individuals are better stewards of their money than the government, and if given...

Our Book - Preparing for Retirement

Tarheel Advisors, LLC has produced an educational text on financial planning available at Amazon. In order to have a successful retirement, you must have a plan that allows you to identify risks, reduce taxes, find good investments, understand insurance, save for education, and manage your estate planning. Preparing for Retirement: A Comprehensive Guide To Financial Planning does this with a 176 page guide that is full of easy to read charts, examples, and an appendix of commonly used financial planning forms. Whether you have managed your money for decades or you're new to financial planning, this 2018 edition of Preparing for Retirement provides the information and techniques needed to successfully create and maintain a financial plan.