Trending Articles

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NAHB: "Builder Confidence Levels Indicate Slow Start for Spring Housing Season" in April

Calculated Risk

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported the housing market index (HMI) was at 40, up from 39 last month. Any number below 50 indicates that more builders view sales conditions as poor than good. From the NAHB: Builder Confidence Levels Indicate Slow Start for Spring Housing Season Growing economic uncertainty stemming from tariff concerns and elevated building material costs kept builder sentiment in negative territory in April , despite a modest bump in confidence likely due t

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What Are the Best & Worst-Case Tariff Scenarios?

The Big Picture

I discussed much of this in my Q2 2025 RWM client quarterly call on April 5. I am sharing this now because so many questions have poured in. Best Worst Cases Last Monday, I discussed the consequences of chaos. While the purposes of the new tariff policy were not well explained some of the goals were muddled and unclear it seems a large part of the problem was the roll-out.

Economics 190
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YoY Measures of Inflation: Services, Goods and Shelter

Calculated Risk

Here are a few measures of inflation: The first graph is the one Fed Chair Powell had mentioned two years ago when services less rent of shelter was up around 8% year-over-year. This declined and is now up 3.3% YoY. Click on graph for larger image. This graph shows the YoY price change for Services and Services less rent of shelter through March 2025.

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Weekend Reading For Financial Planners (April 12–13)

Nerd's Eye View

Enjoy the current installment of "Weekend Reading For Financial Planners" - this week's edition kicks off with the news that the U.S. Senate has confirmed Paul Atkins to be the next Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In terms of enforcement actions, Atkins is expected to prioritize instances of investor harm and be less inclined to issue sanctions for technical rule violations (which were more frequent under previous SEC Chair Gary Gensler).

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Data Talks, CFOs Listen: Why Analytics Is The Key To Better Spend Management

Speaker: Claire Grosjean

Finance teams are drowning in data—but is it actually helping them spend smarter? Without the right approach, excess spending, inefficiencies, and missed opportunities continue to drain profitability. While analytics offers powerful insights, financial intelligence requires more than just numbers—it takes the right blend of automation, strategy, and human expertise.

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Top clicks this week on Abnormal Returns

Abnormal Returns

Top clicks this week Why this is different than the GFC. (morningstar.com) What is the basis trade? (apolloacademy.com) 'Sell America' includes selling Treasurys. (morningstar.com) How long does it take for the stock market to recover from a bear market? (ofdollarsanddata.com) How often do corrections turn into bear markets? (awealthofcommonsense.com) Markets are moving faster than ever before.

Marketing 170
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The Kitces FinTech Map: Charting Wealth Management's Tech Evolution

Wealth Management

The Kitces Financial Advisor FinTech Solutions Map has nearly tripled in size since 2018, reflecting the rapid growth and evolution of technology solutions in wealth management.

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Cutting Through Financial Noise

The Big Picture

In the latest edition of more or me, I chat with my friend Eric Golden: I speak My guest today is Barry Ritholtz. As the founder & CIO of Ritholtz Wealth Management Barry manages assets of over $5B. He is also a famous author and commentator, fondly known as the ‘Prickly Prophet of Wall Street’ for his contrarian views. In this conversation, Barry shares the origin story and the ideas behind his latest book, “How Not to Invest.” We also talk about how hes remained a

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#FASuccess Ep 433: When You 10X Your Advisory Firm To Over $20M Of Revenue…And Want To 10X Again, With Cameron Passmore

Nerd's Eye View

Welcome everyone! Welcome to the 433rd episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast ! My guest on today's podcast is Cameron Passmore. Cameron is the CEO of PWL Capital, a wealth management firm based in Ottawa, Canada, that oversees just over $5 billion Canadian dollars (or approximately $3.5B U.S. dollars) in assets under management for 2,400 client households.

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Personal finance links: a team sport

Abnormal Returns

Podcasts Christine Benz and Amy Arnott talk with Jean Chatzky about what women need to do different with their money. (morningstar.com) Barry Ritholtz talks with the Slate Money crew about "How NOT to Invest." (ritholtz.com) Adam Grant talks with Dan Gilbert about why we are often wrong about what will make us happy. (podcasts.apple.com) Investing If your portfolio is too risky, take less risk.

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Large IBDs Sweeten Their Recruiting Deals for Commonwealth FAs

Wealth Management

Firms including Osaic, Cetera, Raymond James and Kestra are boosting their typical deals to capture Commonwealth advisors in the wake of the acquisition by LPL, sources said.

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What Your Financial Statements Are Telling You—And How to Listen!

Speaker: David Worrell, CFO, Author & Speaker

Your financial statements hold powerful insights—but are you truly paying attention? Many finance professionals focus on the income statement while overlooking key signals hidden in the balance sheet and cash flow statement. Understanding these numbers can unlock smarter decision-making, uncover risks, and drive long-term success. Join David Worrell, accomplished CFO, finance expert, and author, for an engaging, nontraditional take on reading financial statements.

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Slate: Economics on a Whim…

The Big Picture

I had a fun and wide-ranging conversation with Felix Salmon, Emily Peck, and Elizabeth Spiers to unpack all of the wildest tariff news. We discuss the “uniquely unpredictable situation” where markets are trading based on the whims of a single person. This mercurial unpredictability is having a huge effect on prices. I try to help the hosts understand investing in this environment with lessons and ideas from How NOT to Invest.

Economics 180
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A 3-Meeting Framework To Vet And Establish Productive COI Relationships

Nerd's Eye View

Centers Of Influence (COIs) play a vital role in the growth and service capabilities of a financial advisory firm. When cultivated with care, these relationships can become valuable sources of client referrals and collaborative insight – especially because COIs and advisors often work with similar client profiles. However, establishing these relationships isn't always easy.

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Misbehaving in a Volatile Market

A Wealth of Common Sense

Volatility is heightened right now. We have volatility in markets, government policy, trade and supply chains, which translates into emotional volatility. Let’s look at some of the ways this manifests through a host of behavioral biases that impact us all in some way: Recency biasis when you give more weight or importance to recent events. Stocks are up.

Marketing 114
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The Diamond Podcast for Financial Advisors: Michael Kitces on the Secrets to Accelerating Growth

Wealth Management

Industry thought leader Michael Kitces shares insights on the factors that impact efficiency and growth.

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Are Robots Replacing You? Keeping Humans in the Loop in Automated Environments

Speaker: Erroll Amacker

As businesses increasingly adopt automation, finance leaders must navigate the delicate balance between technology and human expertise. This webinar explores the critical role of human oversight in accounts payable (AP) automation and how a people-centric approach can drive better financial performance. Join us for an insightful discussion on how integrating human expertise into automated workflows enhances decision-making, reduces fraud risks, strengthens vendor relationships, and accelerates R

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U.S. Demographics: Largest 5-year cohorts, and Ten most Common Ages in 2024

Calculated Risk

Eleven years ago, I wrote: Census Bureau: Largest 5-year Population Cohort is now the "20 to 24" Age Group. Those people are now in the 30 to 34 cohort. This month the Census Bureau released the population estimates for July 2024 by age, and I've updated the table from the previous posts. The table below shows the top 10 cohorts by size for 2010, 2024 (just released), and the most recent Census Bureau projections for 2030.

Economy 200
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Stand Up with Pete! on How Not to Invest

The Big Picture

Yeah, yeah, more of me, I know. But this is a fun conversation with Pete Dominick discussing the economy, the market and of course, the new book! Here’s Pete’s description: Check out StandUpwithPete.com to learn more How Not To Invest: The ideas, numbers, and behaviors that destroy wealth – and how to avoid them T he GREAT Barry Ritholtz whohas spent his career helping people spot their own investment errors and to learn how to better manage their own financial behaviors.

Investing 130
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4 Ways And 5 Charts To Talk Tariffs With Clients With Empathy And Strategy

Nerd's Eye View

The White House's tariff policies have dominated headlines in recent weeks, raising concerns among investors, consumers, and businesses. A rapid sequence of policy announcements and reversals has created volatility across nearly every asset class, with the S&P 500 falling to near-bear-market levels before rebounding sharply. In these moments, the conversations that advisors have with their clients play a crucial role in helping clients maintain perspective, avoid emotional decisions, and sta

Clients 130
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Buying When the Stock Market is Down 15%

A Wealth of Common Sense

At the worst point of this correction the S&P 500 closed down 18.9%. That was before the giant 10% gain the next day. I don’t know if that was the bottom or not but it’s possible we just had another near-bear market (for now): I don’t know why we’ve had so many close calls over the years but there have been a number of near bears over the years that were a hair from being down 20%.

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Book of Secrets on the Month-End Close

Based off SkyStem's popular e-Book, the book of secrets to the month-end close will be revealed in this one-hour webinar. Learn leading practices when it comes to building a strong and sustainable month-end close that has room to grow and evolve. Learn about the power of precise estimates, why reconciliations are critical to closing the books, how and when to automate, and how the chart of accounts play into your close process.

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How Equita Empowers Women-Led Firms Through Community, Growth, and Tech

Wealth Management

Equita Financial Network was built to solve a problem: solo women advisors lacking the support, pay equity and flexibility to grow on their own terms.

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Watch Inventory and Why Measures of Existing Home Inventory appear Different

Calculated Risk

Today, in the Calculated Risk Real Estate Newsletter: Watch Inventory and Why Measures of Existing Home Inventory appear Different A brief excerpt: We are in a period of significant policy uncertainty and there isnt a good historical analog for the current period. However, for housing, the key will be to watch inventory. Existing home inventory will provide clues on house prices, and a combination of existing and new home inventory will indicate what will happen with housing starts.

Marketing 179
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Transcript: Anthony Yoseloff, Davidson Kempner CIO

The Big Picture

The transcript from this weeks, MiB: Anthony Yoseloff, Davidson Kempner CIO , is below. You can stream and download our full conversation, including any podcast extras, on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , YouTube , and Bloomberg. All of our earlier podcasts on your favorite pod hosts can be found here. ~~~ XXXXX insert transcript here XXXXX ~~~ The post Transcript: Anthony Yoseloff, Davidson Kempner CIO appeared first on The Big Picture.

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5 steps for rewriting your investment commentary

Investment Writing

Investment commentary authors often know the markets well, but lack writing and editing expertise. After all, theyre earning big bucks to manage money, not to write. Ive learned some lessons about how to edit investment commentary that I share below with you. The lessons are based on my years of experience editing and writing commentary for a diverse group of clients.

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Stop Falling Short When It Matters Most—The Elite Advisor’s Playbook to Success

Like being inches from the end zone, many advisors are frustratingly close to their next level of success. You work hard. You put in the hours. But if your closing rate is stuck or your pipeline feels like a revolving door… something has to change. Most advisors are just one small shift away from dramatically increasing their revenue. The difference?

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Time-saving AI note-taking tools to transform client meetings

Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT)

By Antoinette Tuscano, MDRT senior content specialist AI note-taking tools can transform financial advisors’ productivity and engagement in client meetings, and this is likely only the beginning of its possibilities. These tools are becoming more comprehensive and mainstream. How AI note-taking tools are used Financial advisors can use AI note-taking tools to record client meetings, attach the notes in their CRM, create post-meeting tasks for the team, draft a post-meeting recap email to t

Clients 68
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Direct Indexing Still Only Used By 'Small Segment' of RIAs

Wealth Management

Cerulli finds that the direct indexing boom still has significant runway among advisors, with 26% actively choosing not to use it despite having access.

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Housing April 14th Weekly Update: Inventory up 1.6% Week-over-week, Up 33.4% Year-over-year

Calculated Risk

Altos reports that active single-family inventory was up 2.3% week-over-week. Inventory is now up 12.5% from the seasonal bottom in January and is increasing. Usually, inventory is up about 5% or 6% from the seasonal low by this week in the year. So, 2025 is seeing a larger than normal pickup in inventory. The first graph shows the seasonal pattern for active single-family inventory since 2015.

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Money Life: How NOT to Invest

The Big Picture

Chuck Jaffe: “How NOT to Invest — which is about 375 pages of cautionary tales and 75 pages of the right things to do — notes that it’s easier to invest well than most people think.” I come in around the 4:40 mark… [link] The post Money Life: How NOT to Invest appeared first on The Big Picture.

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The Future Of Finance: How To Manage Spend The Right Way

Speaker: Aaron Berson

Managing spend is more than a cost cutting exercise – it's a pathway to smarter decisions that unlock efficiency and drive growth. By understanding and refining the spending process, financial leaders can empower their organizations to achieve more with less. Explore the art of balancing financial control with operational growth. From uncovering hidden inefficiencies to designing workflows that scale your business, we’ll share strategies to align your organization’s spending with its strategic g

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Facts Vs Feelings Take 5 – Will the Good News Last?

Carson Wealth

After weeks of volatility, the markets finally gave us something to smile about! In this episode of Carson’s Take 5, Ryan and Sonu break down what sparked the historic market rally, what it could mean for investors, and whether this good news has staying power. Spoiler: It might all come down to tariffs, catalysts, and a little bit of July 4th optimism.

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A Positive Spin On Living Stingy: Mindful Spending!

Clever Girl Finance

Living stingy might not sound like the most glamorous lifestyle. In fact, most people associate the term with being cheap, skipping out on fun, or pinching pennies until they scream. But it doesnt have to mean sacrificing joy or depriving yourself. In fact, it can be the gateway to financial peace, clarity, and freedom. Table of contents What does living stingy actually mean?

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Deals & Moves: Endeavor Advisors Adds Advisors, Perigon Wealth Names New Partners

Wealth Management

Also, a South Carolina RIA snags a former Schwab high performer; New York-based Lenox Advisors promotes one advisor to partner, another to managing director; RIA NorthRock bolsters its Chicago office with a veteran advisor.

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BLS: CPI Decreased 0.1% in March; Core CPI increased 0.1%

Calculated Risk

From the BLS : The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) decreased 0.1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis in March, after rising 0.2 percent in February, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 2.4 percent before seasonal adjustment. The index for energy fell 2.4 percent in March, as a 6.3-percent decline in the index for gasoline more than offset increases in the indexes for electricity and natural gas.

Food 147
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Less Stress, More Success: Accounting Best Practices & Processes for 2025

Speaker: Duke Heninger, Partner and Fractional CFO at Ampleo & Creator of CFO System

Are you ready to elevate your accounting processes for 2025? 🚀 Join us for an exclusive webinar led by Duke Heninger, a seasoned fractional CFO and CPA passionate about transforming back-office operations for finance teams. This session will cover critical best practices and process improvements tailored specifically for accounting professionals.