Calculated Risk

JANUARY 17, 2025

Today, in the Calculated Risk Real Estate Newsletter: Housing Starts Increased to 1.499 million Annual Rate in December A brief excerpt: Total housing starts in December were above expectations and starts in October and November were revised up. The third graph shows the month-to-month comparison for total starts between 2023 (blue) and 2024 (red). Total starts were down 4.4% in December compared to December 2023.

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Nerd's Eye View

JANUARY 17, 2025

Enjoy the current installment of "Weekend Reading For Financial Planners" – this week's edition kicks off with the news that at a time when brokerage firms' cash sweep programs come under increased scrutiny (and as the Federal Reserve has cut interest rates), Charles Schwab (the largest RIA custodian) continues to slash sweep rates for client cash (down to 0.05%), well below the rates available on other cash-like products, leaving advisors on the platform with the task of determining wheth

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Calculated Risk

JANUARY 17, 2025

From housing economist Tom Lawler: Based on publicly-available local realtor/MLS reports released across the country through today, I project that existing home sales as estimated by the National Association of Realtors ran at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.15 million in December , unchanged from Novembers preliminary pace and up 7.0% from last Decembers seasonally adjusted pace.

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Sales 147

Abnormal Returns

JANUARY 17, 2025

Listening How Google's Daily Listen turns your interests into a short podcast. (engadget.com) Do you really want to listen to AI podcast hosts? (forbes.com) Economy Danny Crichton talks with Byrne Hobart and Tobias Huber authors of the new book "Boom: Bubbles and the End of Stagnation." (podcasts.apple.com) Katie Gatti Tassin talks about the economics of weight loss drugs.

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Automation generally supercharges any process and brings its value to the forefront. See how infusing automation such as ART (our month-end close solution), into your close can get you to the next level of closing. We will share a live demo of SkyStem's solution, ART and share the key elements of month-end close automation. Through ART, we'll take a look at: What month-end close automation entails Which process steps can and should be automated Benefits of achieving process automation, and Why i

Accounting

Calculated Risk

JANUARY 17, 2025

From the Census Bureau: Permits, Starts and Completions Housing Starts: Privately-owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,499,000. This is 15.8 percent above the revised November estimate of 1,294,000, but is 4.4 percent below the December 2023 rate of 1,568,000. Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 1,050,000; this is 3.3 percent above the revised November figure of 1,016,000.

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A Wealth of Common Sense

JANUARY 17, 2025

Derek Thompson wrote the story of the year so far at The Atlantic about how anti-social we’ve become as a society: Some facts and figures from Derek’s excellent piece: 74% of all restaurant traffic is takeout or delivery (up from 61% pre-Covid) The share of people have dinner or drinks with friends on any given night has declined by more than 30% in the past 20 years.

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Marketing Marketing 142

Wealth Management

JANUARY 17, 2025

The yield differential between the firms' bank deposit sweep programs and other alternatives was nearly 4% higher, according to SEC claims.

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Banking 279

Alpha Architect

JANUARY 17, 2025

Because AI systems can produce hundreds of seemingly coherent theoretical explanations for mined empirical results, investors need to establish high hurdles before allocating to anomaly-based strategies. Artificial Intelligence and the Risks of Harking (Hypothesizing After-the-Fact) was originally published at Alpha Architect. Please read the Alpha Architect disclosures at your convenience.

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Wealth Management

JANUARY 17, 2025

Also, Advisor360 acquires Parrot AI, Wealthtender introduces a testimonial marketing tool and Bloomberg rolls out AI-produced news summaries.

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Marketing Marketing 278

Discipline Funds

JANUARY 17, 2025

Here are some things I think I am thinking about this weekend. 1) Buy Versus Rent. I enjoyed this conversation between Ben Carlson and Duncan Hill about buying versus renting. I’m increasingly convinced that almost every asset purchase we ever make is just a temporal decision. How do your assets relate to your liabilities and expenses across time.

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Assets Planning Economy Accounting 98

Speaker: Kim Beynon, CPA, CGMA, PMP

The most overlooked, yet most critical, element of transformation is preparing people for change. Automation and AI aren't just technical upgrades, they’re cultural shifts which can challenge identities. That’s why change management isn’t a side project—it’s the foundation. In finance, where precision and process rule, navigating change can feel especially disruptive.

Management

Wealth Management

JANUARY 17, 2025

Matthew Eickman, chief legal officer at the Fiduciary Law Center, answers three probing questions about ERISA lawsuits, providing an open, honest and candid dialogue.

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Advisor Perspectives

JANUARY 17, 2025

The yield on the 10-year note ended January 17, 2025 at 4.61%. Meanwhile, the 2-year note ended at 4.27% and the 30-year note ended at 4.84%.

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Wealth Management

JANUARY 17, 2025

Scott J. Mason of Rubicon Wealth Management defrauded at least 13 advisory clients out of more than $20 million, spending it on country club dues and a miniature golf course in New Jersey, the regulator claims.

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Random Roger's Retirement Planning

JANUARY 17, 2025

I stumbled into a recently listed fund in Canada whose name checks a lot of boxes for what we like to explore here, WaveFront All-Weather Alternative Fund (WAAV.TO). I don't think it could be bought through a US brokerage firm but there could be something to learn from the allocation. Or not, that's the reason to dig in a little. The asset mix is comprised of equities, REITs, gold, bonds and "diversified futures" which I take to mean managed futures.

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Portfolio Management Taxes Numbers 52

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Where are top advisors focusing in 2025? AcquireUp’s 2025 Industry Index reveals it all. Based on insights from 200+ financial professionals nationwide, discover why 74% say seminars and referrals deliver the best ROI, how automation is helping advisors scale faster, and why only 8% are tapping into niche marketing (a major growth opportunity!). Whether you're refining your client acquisition strategy or scaling your practice, this report gives you the real-world data, benchmarks, and action ste

Clients

Wealth Management

JANUARY 17, 2025

The independent broker/dealer has agreed to pay a $18 million penalty and improve its procedures.

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Advisor Perspectives

JANUARY 17, 2025

Despite challenges, the U.S. market saw strong returns in 2024 with a "soft landing" for the economy, leading to key questions and emerging themes for investors in 2025.

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Investing Investments Economy Marketing 98

Wealth Management

JANUARY 17, 2025

The SEC claims Vanguard made misleading statements about capital gains distributions and tax consequences to retail investors who held target date funds in retirement accounts.

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Retirement Distribution Retail Accounting 256

Mullooly Asset Management

JANUARY 17, 2025

Price Targets for 2025 Here are some key takeaways: – The S&P 500 finished 2024 at 5881, up 25%, significantly outperforming analysts’ price targets – These price targets are often viewed as not very useful, as they tend to cluster around historical averages – Since 1950, the S&P 500 has only finished within 2% of […]

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Speaker: Claire Grosjean, Global Finance & Operations Executive

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.

Management

Wealth Management

JANUARY 17, 2025

Matthew Eickman, chief legal officer at the Fiduciary Law Center, answers three probing questions about ERISA lawsuits, providing an open, honest and candid dialogue.

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Advisor Perspectives

JANUARY 17, 2025

Industrial production jumped 0.9% in December to its highest level in six months, increasing much more than the expected 0.3% growth. Compared to one year ago, industrial production is up 0.6%.

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Carson Wealth

JANUARY 17, 2025

Gain key insights on the markets for the upcoming year with Ryan Detrick, Chief Market Strategist, and Sonu Varghese, VP, Global Macro Strategist. Download Guide The post Market Outlook 2025: Animal Spirits appeared first on Carson Wealth.

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Marketing Marketing Investments Investing 40

Advisor Perspectives

JANUARY 17, 2025

Official recession calls are the responsibility of the NBER Business Cycle Dating Committee, which is understandably vague about the specific indicators on which they base their decisions. There is, however, a general belief that there are four big indicators that the committee weighs heavily in their cycle identification process.

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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.

Numbers

The Big Picture

JANUARY 17, 2025

This week, we speak with Jonathan Clements. He has been a personal finance reporter at the Wall Street Journal for over twenty years and has written more than 1,000 columns. He discusses how he became a financial journalist, and eventually Director of Financial Education for Citi Personal Wealth Management. Last summer, Jonathan received a terminal diagnosis and announced it at his site and on social meda.

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Wealth Management Financial Services Education Insurance 321

Advisor Perspectives

JANUARY 17, 2025

BlackRock Inc. is tapping into a fast-growing corner of the options-powered ETF world with an offering aimed at Wall Street investors bracing for the S&P 500 to tread water.

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The Big Picture

JANUARY 17, 2025

My end-of-week morning train reads: The Plethora of Unknowns Means Questions for Bond Investors in 2025 : Private and global credit offerings could provide diversification as debt markets deal with political and policy uncertainty. ( Chief Investment Officer ) After a Great Run for Stocks, Be Ready for Something Different : Sizzling returns may well continue, but our columnist suggests that it would be wise to prepare for the next storm. ( New York Times ) Mega Cap World Domination :Markets a

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Valuation Medical Portfolio Investments 130

Advisor Perspectives

JANUARY 17, 2025

There will be more humanoid robots than people by 2040, Elon Musk recently bragged.

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Speaker: Erroll Amacker

Automation is transforming finance but without strong financial oversight it can introduce more risk than reward. From missed discrepancies to strained vendor relationships, accounts payable automation needs a human touch to deliver lasting value. This session is your playbook to get automation right. We’ll explore how to balance speed with control, boost decision-making through human-machine collaboration, and unlock ROI with fewer errors, stronger fraud prevention, and smoother operations.

Accounting

MainStreet Financial Planning

JANUARY 17, 2025

If you have been impacted by the California wildfires or if you are in a surrounding area here are some actions you may want to take. We have also gathered some resources that may provide information and guidance to help you or your family during this time of crisis. Financial help Financial help for individuals is available through FEMA. There are three ways to apply: Online at DisasterAssistance.gov.

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Medical Insurance Taxes Financial Planning 96

Advisor Perspectives

JANUARY 17, 2025

In the latest report by the Census Bureau, building permits ticked down to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.483 million in December. This marks a 0.7% decrease from November and a 3.1% decline compared to one year ago.

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Calculated Risk

JANUARY 17, 2025

From BofA: Since our last weekly publication, our 4Q GDP tracking estimate has moved up three-tenths to 2.1% q/q saar. [Jan 17th estimate] emphasis added From Goldman: Following this mornings data, we boosted our Q4 GDP tracking estimate by 0.1pp to +2.6% (quarter-over-quarter annualized) and our Q4 domestic final sales forecast by the same amount to +2.6%.

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Sales Investments Investing 173

Advisor Perspectives

JANUARY 17, 2025

The S&P 500 rose 2.91% this week, its best weekly performance since November. The index is now 1.54% below its record close from December 6th, 2024 and is up 2.18% year to date.

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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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