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The Blame Game Over Silicon Valley Bank’s Failure – The Federal Reserve’s vice chairman for banking supervision, Michael Barr, was grilled by lawmakers this week over Silicon Valley Bank’s (SVB) collapse. Lawmakers were frustrated that Fed regulators were unable to prevent the bank failure, especially considering that many of the problems with SVB were identified almost an entire year earlier. In response to questions and requests for explanations, Mr. Barr made it clear his position that SVB’s executives were to blame, in what he called a “textbook case of mismanagement.” Supervisors at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco had issued SVB six citations in the previous year, warning the bank that it was vulnerable to trouble and had “matters requiring immediate attention.” By July of last year, the SF Fed had put SVB in full supervisory review and rated the bank as deficient in governance and controls. In the fall, regulators met with the bank to discuss their exposure to losses as interest rates rose. While regulators were effective in spotting vulnerabilities and alerting bank executives of problems, it appears they stopped short of any kind of enforcement, which in lawmakers’ minds shifts the blame back to the Fed.¹

8 of the Biggest Financial Mistakes You Should Avoid

The market is unpredictable, and many investors may be wondering how to prepare for what’s to come. In a volatile market, there is no definite answer. However, we believe that it’s better to prepare for any given financial situation.
 
We believe there are eight common mistakes that many investors make when planning for retirement. In our guide, 8 Retirement Mistakes to Avoid, we outline these mistakes and how you can potentially avoid them.
 
If you have $500,000 or more to invest and want to learn more, click on the link below to get your free copy:
 
Learn About the 8 Retirement Mistakes to Avoid!²

A Tale of Two Housing Markets – For the seventh straight month, home prices fell month-over-month, marking the longest streak of declines in over 10 years. But whether or not your home price fell depends on where you live. In an analysis from real estate research firm Black Knight, it appears clear that housing prices are still rising in some areas while falling in others, and the division largely appears as an east-west phenomenon. For the 12 major housing markets west of Texas, home prices fell on an annual basis in January. But in the 37 largest metro housing markets east of Colorado, home prices increased year-over-year – sometimes by double digits. Some of the dispersion has to do with the starting point of affordability. Many of the housing markets in the West were already experiencing high prices due to supply constraints and previous years’ price growth, while the East appears to have benefited from many workers shifting to remote work – while also looking for larger homes at lower prices.³

Credit Card Balances are on the Rise – Credit card balances are starting to rise at arguably just the wrong time – as interest rates are climbing, too. In Q4 2022, the average household’s credit-card balance was $9,900, which was up 9% from Q4 2021.⁴

Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis⁵

Over that time, the average credit-card interest rate has also risen, to a record high of approximately 20%. Part of the problem is that many households have preconceived ideas for what they generally spend on groceries, rent, mortgage, gas, and so on. But now those expenses are higher with inflation. This makes the less predictable spending every month – on items like car repairs or nights out – push many households over budget each month, which ultimately tends to land on credit card balances.

For Many Americans, Working from Home is No Longer an Option – It was good while it lasted. An increasing number of companies are asking employees to return to the office, as fear of a recession has many focused on productivity measures. In a survey conducted by the Labor Department, 72.5% of businesses said they do not have employees working remotely, a large increase from the 60.1% of businesses giving the same answer in 2021. Before the pandemic, the figure stood at 76.7%, indicating the work-from-home revolution may have lost steam. The Labor Department also surveyed businesses to see how many offered ‘hybrid arrangements,’ where workers could split time between home and the physical workplace. Across the entire private sector, hybrid workers plummeted by 13.4% from 2021 to 2022.⁶

Working on Your Retirement Plan? Here Are 8 Mistakes to Avoid – There are common mistakes and habits that we believe can help some investors succeed while others fail.
 
To help you understand some of these mistakes and how to avoid them, we have created the guide, 8 Retirement Mistakes to Avoid.⁷
 
In this guide, we provide our thoughts on what we believe are 8 of the biggest retirement mistakes investors should avoid. If you have $500,000 or more to invest and want to learn more, click on the link below:

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