As *Jeremy Siegel says, “There is no way to sugarcoat the beginning of this year”. As you may be aware from all the headlines, the major culprits for some time, have been the economic conditions in China, along with the unprecedented drop in oil prices. Bejing continues to be overly active in efforts to control their economic conditions from …
What’s Up With Emerging Markets?
Many of you may agree that any exposure to Emerging Markets has continued to disappoint. However, this is not the time to diversify away from this sector of the market; in fact, quite the opposite is true. We need to keep in mind that ultimate success in long-term investing really boils down to the fundamental factors at work. For instance, …
Spotlight on Sher
Many of you have had the opportunity to speak with our Office Assistant, Sher Burckhalter, over the past two months since she joined Hillspring Financial. We couldn’t be happier to have her as part of our team and are pleased to announce the update to the “Who We Are” section of our website offering a bit of background on our …
A Welcome and a Farewell…
It is truly a pleasure to introduce you to Sher Burckhalter, the newest member of Hillspring Financial, Inc. Sher is highly-qualified for her new position as Office Assistant with a strong background in banking, customer service and sales. Her professional experience partnered with her positive energy and affability make Sher an ideal fit for the Hillspring Financial family. As we …
What’s All This Volatility About?
August 25, 2015 Dear Clients: It has been an exciting week, to say the least. Last week the S&P 500 was down 5.63% only to slide down another 5.9% yesterday. This makes it an official correction as markets were down 10% or more. It is reminiscent of October 19, 1987 (Black Monday), when the Dow fell 22% in one day. …
Second Quarter Economic Update – July 15, 2015
Second Quarter Performance As the quarter ended, Greece and China were making all the headlines. Greece for their June 30th default on a debt payment to the International Monetary Fund and China for their very sharp short-term stock market decline and surprise interest rate cut. And oh yea – Puerto Rico announced it would be unable to fully repay its …
Is The Market Growing Too Fast?
Since the last bear market reached bottom in March of 2009, the S&P 500 has roared back 179%. As Dr. David Kelly of J.P. Morgan points out, “with the exception of the bull markets that started in 1982 and 1987, this has been the strongest bull market since the late 1940s.” (J.P. Morgan Market Insights, May 13, 2014) The question …
38% of Social Security Recipients Regret Starting Early*
Once you begin receiving your Social Security income benefits, it can be very expensive to change your start date.** It is a good idea to put in a lot of thought, and perhaps even a pencil to paper, before making the final choice. You can either receive a permanent 25% cut or a 32% increase, depending on when you choose …
Welcoming Catherine Blair To The Hillspring Family!
We are very pleased to welcome Catherine Blair to our office as the Client Relations Manager. Catherine comes to us highly recommended and with extensive experience working in our industry, most recently as the Executive Assistant to the Branch Manager for a financial firm in Scottsdale. Catherine is a delightful person to be around and you will find her a …
Our Learning Center
Ben Bernanke, Former Chairman of the Federal Reserve, once said: “Among the lessons of the recent financial crisis is the need for virtually everyone — young and old — to acquire a basic knowledge of finance and economics.” We agree. In an effort to assist you in gaining more insight into the financial world, we have provided very helpful information …