Category: NBBJ

On September 18, at the age of 96, Warren Buffett stepped down as Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway after 56 years in the role. His farewell letter left investors with four words, "Father Time always wins." On its face, the line is about getting older, but the lesson we take from his career is one he has repeated for decades: stick with a good investment and let it play out. 

The SpaceX initial public offering was the largest IPO ever, by a significant margin, and it made its founder a trillionaire. Share prices surged in early trading, making it one of the most valuable companies in the world. This was the kind of debut that gets everyone talking. What does all this mean for the markets and investors? Is it the entry point for one of history’s great companies, or part of an overhyped mania? 

There are moments when discussing financial markets can feel like the wrong place to begin. The world feels uncertain right now - and it's okay if that has you thinking about your portfolio. Here's what we know: markets have weathered moments like this before, and the historical record is more reassuring than today's headlines suggest.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), signed into law on July 4, 2025, will have varying impacts on taxpayers in 2026 depending on their income levels. The bill will have the most sizable benefit for lower and middle-income taxpayers, especially those age 65 and above. For higher-income families, the impact is more mixed – there are some benefits, but many of the law's more generous provisions phase out as income rises. 

Over the next 20 years, an estimated $84 trillion will pass from older generations to their heirs. This "Great Wealth Transfer" brings both tremendous opportunity and significant challenges. So, whether you're preparing to pass on wealth or expecting to receive it, thoughtful planning is essential. 

This past quarter brought plenty of ups and downs – and ultimately, higher than expected returns. It also serves as a powerful reminder of two core investment principles: (1) markets can change direction quickly, making it hard to time them, and (2) maintaining diversification remains one of the best ways to weather uncertainty. While these ideas are often repeated, they can be easy to overlook in the heat of short-term market swings, when emotion tempts investors to make decisions that could be harmful in the long run. 

A famous 20th century investor and fund manager, Sir John Templeton, once called the phrase, “This time it’s different,” the four most dangerous words in investing. The idea that the present is somehow “different” often arises from our natural tendency to magnify the present. The challenges we face today tend to feel monumental because they’re immediate and personal. And yet, history has shown that patience and perspective are powerful tools, especially in uncertain times. 

Wouldn’t it be great to just skip the bad periods and enjoy only the good ones? Unfortunately, trying to time the market based on the perception of market valuation has been academically proven to be nearly impossible to accomplish on any consistent or reliable basis. Success hinges on time in the market, not in timing the market. The longer you stick to your allocation, the more likely you are to achieve the return your portfolio was designed for.

With all the benchmarks we follow currently at or near record highs – coupled with US political concerns, interest rate uncertainty, and major global conflicts – clients have raised some big questions. How do we, as investors, reconcile a soaring stock market with such negative world news? Will the markets continue to rise to even greater heights despite so much turmoil? Unfortunately, the answers to these questions are simply unknowable. There is good news though: as a diversified investor, your portfolio has been carefully crafted to adapt to whatever may be on the horizon. 

With the 2024 US presidential election on the horizon, many investors are understandably concerned about how the outcome might affect their portfolios. Given the polarized political climate where both sides see the other as a threat to the nation’s future, it's only natural to wonder how your investments will fare. However, history shows us that a disciplined, long-term investment strategy will weather the storms of political change.