Anthony Isola

Help! I’m 75 and a Papa New Guinea Energy Co. is 42% of My IRA!

Brokers who churned $2 million dollars’ worth of commissions in a single household over 3.5 years! Chinese Internet and Papa New Guinea energy companies acting as huge components of a 70-year old couple’s retirement plan! There is good reason why some call the retail brokerage world a “Gangsta’s  Paradise”. According to The Wall Street Journal,…

Make The Neanderthals Great Again!

The century’s worst financial trade was based on the premise that home prices could not collapse in all parts of our country simultaneously. This arrogant, misguided perception almost led to a complete meltdown of the global financial system.   Unfortunately, we may not have learned our lesson. Our nation’s 2016 presidential candidates are taking us down…

Investors Need Their Own Toxic Stress Avenger

  Investors need their own super hero to save them from making awful decisions during market melt downs. The cult hero, The Toxic Avenger, exists only in fantasy. In reality, there are four ways the average investor can save himself from the stress created by financial bullies and hype men. Stress can be a powerful…

What if your Financial Advisor says President Obama is a Commie?

Mixing politics and investing is a horrible idea. What do you do if the person in charge of your hard- earned money is a rabid partisan? According to The Investment News a financial advisor ran into some regulatory issues. The advisor in question was accused of calling President Obama “evil.” He was also found to…

Bad Medicine for Public-Pension Funds

The worst cure for unfunded state pension obligations is high-fee hedge funds that underperform basic market indices.  Unfortunately, many financial physicians are prescribing this very antidote to fix this combustible issue. Too many government pension fund boards are committing this act of monetary malpractice. According to Marc Levine’s article, “Fees that Sickly Public-Pension Funds Can’t Afford”…

How to Use a Teacher’s Lesson Plan to manage your Money

Without discipline, structure, and clearly defined goals, a middle school class will descend into chaos and anarchy. The same can be said for your financial plan. Being a former middle school teacher and a current fee-only financial advisor, I have a unique perspective on these matters. Establishing routine is essential to managing a classroom. If…

MetLife Does the Ol’ Bait and Switch with its Annuities

Variable annuities bring out the worst in the financial industry. They provide the perfect product to sell to an anxious public. The promise of safety and income guarantees often conceal a dark side of egregious fees and perverse incentives. Yesterday, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) shed some light on these unsavory practices. MetLife, the large…

Capitalists Invest in Human Ingenuity, Not Gold

The Scientific Revolution changed everything. After the year 1500, progress became a word that dominated the conversation. Trust in the people and ideas suddenly became cool. The foreign concept that the future would be better than the present began to take hold. Before science and the admission of ignorance became commonplace, business resembled a zero-sum…

Did Your Financial Advisor Find His Job on Craigslist?

Too many advisors are trained to sell, not plan. Inexperienced college graduates and other unqualified individuals are often used by insurance companies as a form of asset-gathering cannon fodder. Multitudes of salespeople are sent out on this mission; few strike it rich.  Some insurers believe if you throw enough sales pitches against the wall, a portion of retirement…