Fall is here and most are busy with football, family, and fun. However, some of you may be having some anxiety about the turbulence in the markets.
So it is a good time to remind you about why we invest in the markets.
Real investing is about matching a problem with a solution. The problem is making sure we have enough money to meet our financial needs in a world where the price of those financial needs increases by 3% every year because of inflation. The solution is to use a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds to earn not only more than 3% a year, on average, but enough to produce retirement income, leave a legacy, or any other financial goal you may have.
What that looks like is different for every person.
That is why at Chastain we spend so much time getting to know our clients. We know what each of our clients needs are, their tolerance for risk, and the people and organizations they want to support.
Investing in capital markets has been a wonderful solution for millions of people around the globe. But if you look back at what those investors endured over the past 50 years, there were many moments when they were afraid and anxious about the future. They endured multiple wars, countless political regimes, the tech bubble, the global financial crisis, 9-11, a global pandemic, etc. Each crisis was accompanied by headlines and talk from friends/family that suggested “this time is different.” Those that endured and stuck with a diversified portfolio were rewarded. The capital markets produced the income they needed to meet their financial goals.
The linked article from our investment partners at Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA) reinforces our strategy—finding out what your goals are and building a portfolio to meet those goals.
Intellectually, we all know that turbulence is very unlikely to bring down an airplane. But that doesn’t mean it is comfortable to go through it. We encourage you to sit back and trust the experts while we ride out this turbulence in the market. We expect to land safely on the other side of this storm with a solid retirement plan (after having bought stocks on “sale” during the turbulence).