Articles by Chad Smith

Chad's Profile

While finishing his B.S. degree at NC State University, Chad came to Financial Symmetry as an intern and began a lifelong career track in the financial planning and investment management profession. By using his decade of experience and the education he earned with his CFP license, Chad works with clients as a Primary Advisor.

Link to Chad's Full Bio

http://financialsymmetry.com/our-team/chad_smith_cfp/

If you think back to your childhood, what were the biggest influences on how your view of money developed?  If you’re anything like me, this question triggers memories of the struggle between saving my hard-earned allowance and spending it on the newest pack of baseball cards in hopes of obtaining the rare 1989 Ken Griffey [...]

Have you seen the new CFP® TV commercial yet (take a look here)? Pretty Interesting.  The commercial is currently airing on stations that include History Channel, Travel Channel, HGTV, ESPN, MSNBC, CNN and Fox News.
The CFP Board, who issues the CFP® designation, is making a new effort to help define what being a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL [...]

This is one of the more common questions we hear about the amount of prospectuses, annual reports, etc. that our clients receive from their investment companies.  Would you believe that this much disclosure could actually be bad for you?  Especially when it comes to the financial services industry, more disclosure is a benefit to the [...]

“I can calculate the movement of heavenly bodies but not the madness of men.” – Sir Isaac Newton
In Jeremy Grantham’s latest quarterly letter, he profiled a story about Sir Isaac Newton in which one of the most highly regarded intellects in human history was lucky enough to enter the South Sea stock bubble rather early.  [...]

It’s very possible that you could be saving more money tax-free.  If your company offers a Roth 401k option, then this could be your ticket.  In recent weeks, the question we’ve heard most from clients is “should I be taking advantage of a Roth 401k?”  To help you make a decision we’ve answered the most [...]

In today’s economic environment, safety is at a premium but bank account rates remain at historical lows.  This has persuaded many investors to look for higher yields with their safe money.  In some of these situations, they are finding products that are advertising a 7-9% return.
We found a real-world example described in this Bloomberg article [...]

Over the last few weeks, we’ve had a few clients call us with some understandable concerns regarding current stock market conditions.  They have asked whether it makes sense to sell stocks and move their money in to cash and bonds.  Given the performance of stocks recently, and over the lost decade of the 2000’s, it [...]

HBO has a popular series they air in the fall called “Hard Knocks.” The aim of the program is to uncover the intricacies and nuances that make the training camp of an NFL team so fascinating.  They pull the curtain back and give us a peek at the events that lends a revealing perspective to [...]

No one likes potholes.  Not only because of the annoyance they create, but also the added cost of getting your car realigned as a result. Often times, you may not hit anything major but your steering wheel begins to shake and your car starts to pull to the left after reaching 45mph.  This more subtle [...]

On most days when people start their cars, they trust that by pressing the pedal, their car will run smoothly. They don’t have to think about the complicated mechanics of how the engine will power the car to their next destination every time the key is turned.  Many investors have a similar mindset when thinking [...]