Saved by a Crash
Andrew Forsythe | Sep 23, 2020
THIS IS THE STORY of a bitter life lesson that taught me two things: the desirability of managing my own investments and the perils of putting almost all my eggs in one basket. In the late 1980s—and early in our marriage—my wife and I were busy raising four kids, while also managing two demanding careers. Our dream was to build a beautiful house on a large wooded lot that we owned in the hills west of Austin, Texas. We had already hired an architect, who was drawing up the plans, and we expected to pay for the house from our stock portfolio. When I graduated from law school, I was fortunate to have a few stock market investments, courtesy of my parents, who were firm believers in working hard, saving and investing. This was back before the internet, the explosion of low-cost brokerage firms and the popularity of index funds. In those days, it was common to use a stockbroker, the old-fashioned kind who charged hefty commissions and did all the trading for you. We lived in a different city from my parents, so I needed to find a stockbroker on my own. I wasn’t sure quite where to begin. I finally decided to call up the only rich guy I knew and ask him who his broker was. The rich guy’s broker was, by all accounts, very reputable. He was a partner in a big brokerage firm, with a fancy office in a skyscraper downtown. To my inexperienced mind, he really knew his stuff. Between the kids and my career—I was working 60 hard and stressful hours a week—I had neither the time nor the interest to worry about our investments, so I was content to have my new broker take care of them. It soon became clear that…
Read more » Seeking Input on Medicare Supplement Carriers
Andrew Forsythe | Jul 27, 2025
After just being hit with an almost 30% premium increase from Mutual of Omaha (MOO), I'm shopping around for a new Medicare Supplement carrier. I actually like MOO for their generally good customer service, user friendly website, and fast claims processing. Twice in past years, I've been able to stay with MOO but avoid a price hike by switching to one of their sister companies, which I wrote about here. It seems that option is no longer available, hence my looking into other carriers. I'm fortunate to have good health and should be able to pass medical underwriting. I've gotten somewhat lower quotes from Humana and Cigna. I've gotten substantially lower quotes from two less familiar names: Banker's Fidelity (part of Atlantic Capital Life Assurance Co.) and Wellabe (formerly Medico). I'd appreciate a post from anyone who's had experience with any of these companies, including their recent history of premium increases, customer service, website user friendliness, and claims processing. I'm particularly interested in hearing about Wellabe/Medico. Thanks!
Read more » Getting Better
Andrew Forsythe | Aug 9, 2021
WHEN I WAS A KID in the late 1950s, if a toy was stamped “Made in Japan,” it meant it was cheap and poorly made. A decade or so later, that label began to mean something entirely different: If you wanted a top-notch TV, you were considering a Sony. If you were shopping for the most reliable car, Toyota, Datsun (later renamed Nissan) and Honda were on your list. There’s a parallel today with China, and it became obvious to me via two hobbies: collecting pocketknives and collecting flashlights. As recently as a few years ago, pocketknives made in China were usually cheap and of inferior quality. But that began to change. Now, there are Chinese manufacturers producing first-class knives—with first-class price tags to match. Ditto for flashlights. Almost two decades ago, flashlights using an LED emitter—instead of an incandescent bulb—appeared on the scene. From the beginning, Chinese manufacturers led the market in LED flashlights. Several companies, such as Fenix, Nitecore and Olight, quickly emerged, producing innovative and high-quality lights at very reasonable prices. Today, while there are still a few U.S.-based flashlight manufacturers, the LED flashlight market is completely dominated by Chinese companies, with literally dozens putting out high-quality and cutting-edge products. They offer incredible bang for the buck: I have numerous excellent Chinese-made lights that cost me under $30 and a few even under $20. Several of those I’ve ordered directly from the manufacturer in China, or else from Ali Express—the Amazon of China—with no-hassle China-to-Texas delivery in about three weeks. The current ascendancy—and even domination—of manufacturing by China is no surprise to anyone who isn’t living under a rock. But my two little hobbies have brought home to me in a microcosmic and very personal way this simple truth: China will be the manufacturing force-to-contend-with for decades…
Read more » Heightened Interest
Andrew Forsythe | Nov 14, 2022
I TEND TO KEEP MORE cash than the average investor, so the recent rise in interest rates paid on savings has my attention. In fact, 2022’s pitiful performance by bonds has caused me to shift even more money into cash. We have online savings accounts at CIT Bank, Synchrony, Marcus and American Express. CIT is currently paying 3.25%, Synchrony 3%, Marcus 3% and American Express 2.75%. The rates have climbed so frequently this year that they’ll probably be higher by the time you read this. We also have cash stashed in Charles Schwab’s Value Advantage Fund (symbol: SWVXX) and Vanguard Group’s Cash Reserves Federal Money Market Fund (VMRXX). The Schwab fund pays 3.7% and the Vanguard fund 3.6%. These being money market mutual funds, rather than money market bank accounts, they don’t enjoy FDIC insurance protection. They also don’t guarantee a constant $1 share price, though instances of "breaking the buck" are extraordinarily rare. I recently read of an online bank offering as high as 3.6%, but I’m sticking with my current lineup for now. I try to weigh the hassle and bookkeeping cost of a new account against the benefit of a slightly higher interest rate. It takes a little doing, but once you get your accounts set up and linked to one another, it’s simple to transfer money back and forth as one bank or another raises its rates. I don’t go to the trouble of a transfer just to obtain a modestly higher rate. But with the recent frequent and significant increases, there’s often been enough of a difference to make it worthwhile. Occasionally, a bank will pay extra to keep you from moving money out. Not long ago, I let a bank know of my intentions to shift my money and asked if it had any…
Read more » Paid to Play
Andrew Forsythe | Feb 16, 2022
IT SEEMS LIKE EVERY month or so, one of our kids—and, for the married ones, that includes spouse and little ones—is on vacation. A week or two in Cabo or Cozumel, a road trip out west, or a jaunt to some other interesting destination is commonplace. How is this possible? One of the reasons, I believe, is because they don’t work for themselves. Instead, they work for big institutions, such as corporations, universities, school districts and large nonprofits. I left my position as a prosecutor with the district attorney’s office in 1983, when I got a job offer from a two-man law firm. I happily remained there until I retired in 2017. I took a lot of pride in our firm and enjoyed the independence that came with being our own bosses. But the burdens of running a small business were significant. While my partners and I helped each other in numerous ways, we had an “eat what you kill” system. My income came only from the clients I signed up and personally represented. There was no sharing among the partners. This meant that if I wasn’t working, I wasn’t earning. As I often explained to my dear wife, if we took a vacation, it was a double whammy. Not only did we have the cost of the vacation itself, but also for those days when I was away from the office and not hustling, there was less income—and no new clients. With four kids to get through college, we didn’t take many vacations. Moreover, since my partners and I each did our own work, there was no one to keep up with it while we were gone. Upon return, there were always several hectic days of catchup. But our kids and their spouses enjoy a different life. They have…
Read more » Forever War
Andrew Forsythe | Nov 9, 2021
THE ABOVE HEADLINE doesn’t refer to Afghanistan. Even that 20-year struggle has finally come to an end. This is about an even more relentless campaign—against the cable company. In my case, that means Spectrum, part of Charter Communications. The first question is, why haven’t I cut the cord? The short answer: My wife loves sports on TV and cable seems to be the only way to get all her favorites. As cable victims know, after those enticing “new customer” deals expire, you’re subject to a constant series of escalating fees, which can quickly have your monthly bill skyrocketing. There’s only one remedy, I’ve found, and that’s constant negotiating. As soon as I see an increase in my bill, I examine it. If it’s just an increase in the cost of a standard component, I’m probably stuck with it. But the more substantial increases come from the expiration of whatever promotions I currently have. The next step is calling Spectrum and telling the robot I want to cancel service, which gets me to “Customer Retention.” Once there, I explain to the rep that I’m willing to remain a customer, but only with enough new promos to get my bill back to where it was. I’ve found that some reps really try to help and others have a bad attitude from the get-go. When I get the latter, I usually just claim a bad connection and spin the wheel with another call. It takes time on the phone and persistence, but I can usually get my bill back close to where it was—and occasionally even a little less. It’s crucial to take good notes, including the name of the rep, because often my next bill doesn’t jibe with the new discounts I’d been promised. That means yet another phone call is needed.…
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Adam M. Grossman is the founder of Mayport, a fixed-fee wealth management firm. Sign up for Adam's Daily Ideas email, follow him on X @AdamMGrossman and check out his earlier articles.
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