We have developed and fine-tuned our investment strategy over the last 40 years, and shared with our clients. Our first article by American Funds, on Lessons from 5 Decades of Investing, parallels our strategy. Hopefully you will find it interesting.

A common question asked by our clients is whether to save money for their children's education prior to creating their own retirement plan. Our second article discusses why it is important to double check your retirement contributions before saving for anything else.

This month's "What's Happening Now" section shares interesting stories on what a Presidential election means for your investments, how market forces are working against first-time home buyers, and the 5 books that Warren Buffet really wants you to read.

One of Claudia Huntington’s most successful investment decisions hinged on a single question. She was meeting with Lotus Development Corp., a pioneer of spreadsheet software, while the company was struggling through a challenging product cycle. The beleaguered CEO was facing heavy criticism and less than thrilled about meeting with her.

“My initial meeting was hard to get, but I was finally granted 15 minutes,” Huntington recalls. “When I entered the room I could see he was tense, bracing for the inevitable questions about the coming quarter.”

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Double check your retirement
contributions before saving
for anything else

Saving money has arguably gotten easier with the rise of technology and the many savings account options designed with consumers in mind. It’s never been easier to link multiple accounts, access your money online and automate transfers between checking, savings and investment accounts each month.

But what’s not so simple is deciding how much to save and for what. Especially in our current economic recession, many Americans struggle to make ends meet, let alone think about the future.

A positive quarter for markets, despite choppy September
Markets dropped early in September before partially recovering throughout the rest of the month. The S&P 500 fell by 3.80 percent during the month, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) lost 2.18 percent and the Nasdaq Composite declined by 5.10 percent. Despite a disappointing September, all three indices ended the quarter in positive territory. The S&P 500 gained 8.93 percent in the third quarter, and the DJIA managed an 8.22 percent gain. The Nasdaq, with its large weighting toward technology, led the way with an 11.24 percent increase.
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Public health picture shows mixed results
The public health situation in the U.S. was mixed during the month and quarter. We saw a notable rise in case growth in July, but we were able to make progress in reducing local outbreaks in August and early September. More recently, however, the data has started to show some concerning signs. Although the national case growth rate finished the quarter below July’s highs, we did see an uptick in case growth toward the end of September.
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