By Jimmy Bisharat I see this more often than you might think. Someone has done a great job building up an investment account, but when we review their overall financial setup, they have very little cash available. When I ask about their emergency reserves, they point to the brokerage account. That is where I see a potential problem. A brokerage account can be a great tool for long-term investing, but relying on it as your emergency fund can expose you to unnecessary risk. If

By: Brett Sifling, CFP®, CEPA® Every August, a handful of states briefly stop collecting sales tax on the things families buy for school. That's a sales tax holiday. For a few days, the state waives its sales tax on specific categories (clothing, shoes, supplies, sometimes computers) almost always with a price cap on each item. Buy a $90 pair of shoes during the window and you skip the tax entirely. Buy a $110 pair and you don't. They're a newer invention than you'd guess, an

By: Jimmy Bisharat For years, SpaceX equity has been something employees accrued, tracked, and occasionally sold through tender offers. Now, with the IPO behind us, the lock-up period becomes the final gate between paper wealth and true liquidity. That is a big shift. For many SpaceX employees, the first question is simple: “When can I sell?” But the more important question is, “How should I think about selling?” Based on the current lock-up structure, liquidity is not expect

By: Zach Bainter, CFP® A provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) is opening the door to Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) for many more people. Previously, if you were enrolled in a Bronze or Catastrophic-level plan through the ACA marketplace, you weren't allowed to open or contribute to an HSA, even though these are often the most affordable plan options. That restriction has been removed, meaning individuals and families with these plans can now take advantage of

By Kaytlin Hall The Glass Castle is a book that stayed with me long after I turned the last page. It's a memoir about Jeannette Walls and her nomadic family as they navigate extreme poverty, instability, and a childhood unlike most of us can imagine. I had a true love-hate relationship with this story. As a parent, I was often frustrated with Jeannette's parents, Rex and Rose Mary. Every time Rex showed glimpses of becoming the father his children deserved, I was hopeful. The

A lesson most financial advisors are afraid to tell their clients By: Chase McCormick In my first couple of months as a financial advisor, I've come to realize my job is a lot like being a fitness trainer. I spend my days pushing young professionals to do the hard, unglamorous thing: save more, spend less, delay the reward. Do it now, and you'll be thankful you did. A little cardio each day and you'll be absolutely shredded in thirty years. And that's real. The discipline mat

By: Ashley Guapo Just a year ago, I graduated from Loyola Marymount University, where I received an amazing education. I was raised by two parents who instilled in my sister and me the value of financial independence. At 15 years old my mother immigrated to the United States from Cuba, where she grew up without the resources and knowledge to have financial security. Like many immigrants, her decisions weren’t driven by choice but rather by necessity. My father put himself thr

By: Steven Evensen, CFP® · Wealth Advisor, Gerber Kawasaki Financial independence has less to do with the size of your paycheck than with what you do with it. Two true stories, one chart, and the quiet math that separates them. Ronald Read spent almost 25 years pumping gas in Brattleboro, Vermont, then another 17 sweeping floors part time at a JCPenney. He drove a used Toyota Yaris, cut his own firewood into his nineties, and held his winter coat together with safety pins.

By: Bryan Miranda One of the more common questions we get as advisors regarding life insurance is about what type of coverage is most appropriate. There are 3 main types of insurance that I'll cover today. In the end, maybe this will shed some light on how these might fit together for you. Term life insurance is a policy that provides financial protection for a specific period—often 10, 20, or 30 years. If the insured person dies during the term, the beneficiaries receive a d

By: Nico Anduze My daughter turned 11 in May. The day was filled with fun, family, and friends. Like every one of her birthdays, I looked back at old photos and some of her arts and crafts to see the evolution of her intellect, creativity, and character. As a parent, I feel all the emotions and joy of watching her grow into the person she's becoming. As a financial planner, I also take time on her birthday to benchmark her financial preparedness for the future. It is importan

By: Ashley Guapo Health insurance is one of the largest expenses for families and can play a crucial role in financial planning. The Affordable Care Act introduced the Health Insurance Marketplace, allowing families without access to employer sponsored plans to find and purchase plans. Although this has provided access to health insurance for millions, the costs are dependent on income, tax credit qualifications, and constant changing rules set by Congress. The rules have dra

By: Mia Samson As an LMU graduate, I've seen firsthand just how expensive higher education can be. My family used to joke that attending LMU came with an "LMU mortgage." Looking back, that joke wasn't too far off. Today, the estimated cost of attendance at LMU is approaching $99,000 per year. College costs have been climbing for decades, increasing at roughly twice the rate of inflation. That's one of the biggest reasons I encourage parents to begin saving early through tax-a

By: Hatem Dhiab June 21, 2026 The excitement is palpable. It has been difficult to go a single day this past week without a conversation about the SpaceX IPO, at dinner tables, in group chats, and across financial media outlets. The fear of missing out is real. That is precisely why discipline matters most right now. After years of a closed window, the market for new public companies has reopened in a meaningful way, and 2026 is shaping up as one of the most consequential yea

By: Ben Rosbach The World Cup is here, and for the first time ever it's being played in our backyard: forty-eight nations, sixteen cities across the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, and matches happening just down the road at SoFi through mid-July. Walk around L.A. and you'll hear a dozen languages and see flags from every corner of the planet, all sharing that once-every-four-years feeling of the world watching the same game at once. If you've caught any of the group stage, you kno

By: Chase McCormick Let's be real: Gen Z is out here tipping $3 on a $7 coffee, dropping $400 weekly on Uber Eats, and buying anything TikTok tells them while saying "I can't afford to invest." No judgment. But there's a conversation to be had about what social media tells you is self care compared to what actually buys peace of mind. Spoiler: it's not another Stanley cup. Money Stress Is a Mental Health Crisis in Disguise Financial anxiety isn't just about numbers. It's the

By: Jimmy Bisharat Many athletes eventually ask whether they really need a financial advisor or if they can manage their finances on their own. It is a fair question. With access to investing apps, financial content online, and constant market coverage, it has never been easier to learn about stocks and investing. The truth is, some athletes can handle parts of their finances on their own, especially early on. But as soon as income becomes real and consistent, the question be

Happy 5/29: The College Account That Quietly Became a Lifelong Planning Tool By: Ben Rosbach Happy 529 Day to all who celebrate! Every May 29th (5/29), those of us in the planning world get a little excited about a date most people scroll right past. It's a nod to one of the most flexible, underappreciated tax-advantaged accounts in the code, and this year the timing is especially good: the 529 you think you know just got a meaningful upgrade. If your mental picture of a 529