"Don't Panic"

It appears as though the correction we've been anticipating and talked about for the last couple of quarters is now upon us. Since July there has been quiet erosion in the equities markets, becoming what many have called a 'landslide' or 'free fall'. As of Friday, the S&P was down 7. 7% and the Dow down 10. 3%. Although, we understand stock market declines are emotional and anxious periods of time we would like to remind you, this was expected. The market has gone 46 months without a correction which is substantially over the 18 month norm

We urge you to not succumb to downside and sell, we have spent much time positioning your portfolio to mitigate the downside risk as much as possible based on your risk tolerance.We DEFINITELY don't think this is a prelude to another 2008-style market decline. Leading indicators are still positive and lower oil prices and interest rates should help stabilize growth. One key takeaway is that the downturn and the selling in the last 4+ days has restored some value to some areas of the market. The fact that the market was down over 1,000 points in the first several minutes of trading today and currently, approximately 2 ½ hours later it is down under 200 points, shows how a knee-jerk reaction can be harmful to your portfolio. We believe we are close to the bottom but expect further volatility in the coming weeks as the market tests and retests the bottom.

We are here, as always, for questions or concerns if you would like to speak with us feel free to reach out – as a reminder we are now officially in our new office in Suite #5 – and can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by phone at 209-636-4931.