Daily Intent

A few weeks ago my little brother was struggling at the plate.  A new season had got underway, expectations were high, and “fall ball” had been a huge success; however one hit in over twenty at-bats and a coaching staff demanding less fly balls and more ground balls, had him questioning himself.

The problem: he wasn’t playing within himself.  He was trying to do things that weren’t practiced and natural to his style of play.  He is a gap hitter, not a ground ball up the middle type player as the coaches wanted.

Upon this realization, he came alive.  He turned inward and began to play the way he knew worked best “for him”.  3 home runs in a week and a half of play; RBIs began to funnel in.  The coaches were both silenced and elated.

In reading up on Warren Buffett, I’ve noticed one of his greatest assets is his ability to maintain discipline in carrying out the functions that he knows works “for him”.  He plays his style of investing.  He is methodical.  He studies constantly.  Warren doesn’t let others tell him how he should play the market.  He knows his tool set and operates accordingly.  He has confidence in himself that he is doing the right thing.  It is his anchor when the future looks hazy.

So as this market continues throwing curve balls, look within yourself first, wait for your pitch, then YOU choose how to best attack it.

Buzzword: Acquisition Indigestion
“A slang term describing an acquisition or merger in which the companies involved have trouble integrating with one another. Acquisition indigestion may also describe a situation in which the purchasing company has difficulty making the most of a takeover.

Investopedia explains Acquisition Indigestion
Indigestion occurs when you eat too much or when you consume food that doesn’t agree with your stomach. The same outcome relates to mergers and acquisitions that have gone sour, as companies may get indigestion when acquiring too many targets or purchasing firms that don’t integrate well. “  Investopedia.com

  Six Points to Ponder:

   1. Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan.  $275Bn plan to halt falling home prices and foreclosures detailed.  A statistic you need to know: there are roughly 40 million US homeowners.
   2. Markets suffered this past week.  The Dow down to 6626.  S&P 500 at 683 and the Nasdaq down to 1293.  Oil at $45.
   3. 1 out of 4 US homeowners are underwater on their mortgage.  1 out of 8 homeowners at the end of 2008 were behind on their mortgage or in foreclosure. 
   4. The Obama administration urged fellow countries to increase their spending in efforts to boost demand simultaneously.
   5. Warren Buffett says, “everything will be all right. We do have the greatest economic machine that’s ever been created.”
   6. The World Baseball Championship is underway with the USA 2-0 thus far.  UNC takes down rival Duke.  Tiger Woods is back!

Positives:

    * The Homeowner Affordability plan has been written up with the intent to help 9 million families stay in their homes.  Some quick details: Lender reduces your debt levels to 38% of your income.  The government then aids in getting debt levels down to 31%.  Must be a hardship.  The house must be an owner occupied property.  The interest rate floor is 2%.  All receive incentives to provide a solution for the homeowner to stay in their home.
    * The price of owning a home in certain areas is now cheaper than renting.  Start researching which areas.  Phoenix is one of them.
    * A long term view at the economy still provides optimism.
    * Sports always offer hope, excitement and thrills.

Negatives:

    * Fear continues leading the markets downward.  The American public’s fear has dramatically shifted their behaviors and paralyzed their spending.
    * Nearly 10 million homeowners underwater on their mortgage and 5 million behind on payments.  Ghost towns will result if the government’s actions aren’t swift enough…or creative minds like ourselves don’t create companies that offer these families high paying jobs.

Services: Tax Return Concern
I often get the comment, “I don’t think we can qualify because we write so much off on our taxes.”  It is true, CPAs can at times make it difficult to qualify if you write too much off, however there are many instances where first glances aren’t the entire story.  Often we can pull out the necessary income to create some excellent opportunities.  Feel free to drop by.  I’d be happy to go over the returns with you in efforts to give you firm basis for your decisions.

Local:

The How of Happiness - Sonja Lyubomirsky
Where: The Lobero
When: Tonight, 7:30pm
Cost: Free
Why: Is it possible to become happier, and, if yes, how? …it’s a scientific approach.

Live and Be Well,

Jeff Bochsler