WrapManager's Wealth Management Blog

Many estate and trust professionals recommend hiring a corporate trustee to carry out the terms of your trust.1 This approach makes good sense - Given the level of experience and objectivity necessary to ensure the wishes of your trust are carried out just as you envisioned, a corporate trustee is certainly an option to consider. The alternative is to choose a friend or a relative, which may save you a little money but may not deliver the same level of expertise and unbiased decision-making that you get with corporate trustee services. Here are 6 distinct advantages you can get when you hire a corporate trustee for your trust management needs:1 [+] Read More

Does the old Wall St. adage of “sell in May and go away” really work? We will cover that in a moment, but first we think it is more important to focus on a key point – It doesn’t make sense to try and time the market over such a short period of time in the first place. A prudent investment approach should be based on your goals for your assets and a longer-term outlook for the markets, not on a historical adage and set of data that may or may not have much predictive power. A strategy that works only sometimes and has no basis on the current market environment is probably not good enough to drive investment decisions for your portfolio. The “sell in May and go away” strategy certainly did not work last year. In the May – October period, the market rallied +10%:1 S&P 500 from January 1, 2013 – December 31, 2013 (Click chart for larger version) Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC. [+] Read More

When you’re thinking about hiring a financial advisor, here’s one tip to keep in mind: consider hiring a Certified Financial Planner professional. This special breed of advisor is required to take classes on various aspects of financial planning and has obtained a certification recognized as the standard of excellence for competent and ethical personal financial planning. CFP® professionals must meet several certification requirements, including extensive training and experience, and they are continuously held to rigorous ethical standards. As fiduciaries, they’re also ethically bound to make recommendations in your best interest. Here are 7 things you can and should expect your CFP® professional to provide and adhere to: 1) Professional and Responsible Your financial planner should take responsibilities seriously and place your interests over personal gain. The CFP® Board’s strict Standards of Professional Conduct is designed to ensure as much. [+] Read More

For many investors, a globally diversified portfolio makes sense as part of their investment plan. Within this field, international money manager Cambiar Investors' International Equity ADR strategy combines a deep level of focus and experience in international stocks, and it has demonstrated the ability to deliver positive results over time. WrapManager included it on our “Top Equity Money Manager Picks for 2014” list, and Investment Advisor Magazine awarded Cambiar and the strategy a “2012 SMA Money Manager of the Year [Award] for International Equity.” [+] Read More

There are many factors to consider when setting up a trust account – who to choose as your trustee, how to invest the assets, what guidelines to establish for distributing the assets over time, and so on. An important factor you should also consider is where to set up the trust. State laws differ in how they treat trust taxes, privacy, and protection of assets, and some are distinctly friendlier than others. States Competing for Your Trust Business In recent years, states such as Delaware, Alaska, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, and Wyoming have modified their trust laws to make them more attractive to investors looking to minimize trust taxes, shield assets from creditors, and protect an individual or family’s privacy.1 Each of those three factors plays a key role as part of a well-rounded estate planning strategy. [+] Read More

As we get older, spending habits tend to change and some things become a bit pricier. For example, health care expenses could rise and you may decide to increase your charitable contributions instead of travelling so much. Because of these changing spending habits and price increases, inflation for several items can be higher for those over 62.1 Our advice? Plan for it! A properly designed portfolio and investment plan that accounts for rising expenses can help you plan for them before they occur. We’ll touch on how to do that below. Retirees Experience Higher Inflation Relative to Other Consumers A recent study by JP Morgan shows that since 1985, inflation has increased at a faster pace for those aged 62 and older (the grey line, CPI-E, in the chart below). Older Individuals Experience Higher Inflation (Click chart for larger version) Source: JP Morgan Asset Management. *CPI-E is an experimental index from BLS that is based on elderly households with the referenced individuals at age 62 and older. **CPI-U is also referred to as Headline CPI. Source: Based on Consumer Price Indexes, BLS, J.P. Morgan Asset Management. Data as of December 31, 2013. [+] Read More

Chairman, Chief Investment Officer, and Co-Founder of Good Harbor, Neil Peplinski, aptly describes the Good Harbor Tactical Core US strategy using a short quote: “Investing in the stock market is important for long-term success…but so is capital preservation during times of market stress.” [+] Read More

Emerging Markets money manager Lazard Asset Management believes emerging market equities are nearing a bottom and valuations represent significant opportunity. “As emerging economies exit a period of China-led growth and cheap credit, attention has turned to the economic imbalances that developed during the boom years. These imbalances and their solutions vary by country. For example, China will probably reduce investment and increase consumption while the reverse is true for Brazil. The announcement and implementation of reforms is a crucial next step, and could result in a strong upside opportunity for emerging equity markets in 2014.” Download Lazard Asset Management's Full Commentary Here Get Free Research Reports on Lazard Asset Management [+] Read More

Choosing a trustee is one of the most important decisions you’ll make if your estate plan includes one or more trusts. After you've reviewed your estate planning strategy, but before you appoint a trustee, it's important to evaluate whether or not the trustee can handle the duties of administration. Trustee (noun): A trustee is responsible for understanding and interpreting trust terms, distributing income and principle to the beneficiaries of the trust according to the guidelines set forth by you, preparing trust accountings, and filing tax returns – all while adhering to state and federal laws regarding appropriate standards of care. In other words, a trustee has control or powers of administration of your property and/or money in trust. For reasons that should be very clear, this means that you need to know how to choose a trustee that you trust, and that the person or entity is qualified to handle the duties. [+] Read More