Something More With Chris Boyd Show Podcasts

Chris welcomes Graham Silliman, Managing Partner of Better Foods LLC (aka Siena in Mashpee Commons and Tavolino restaurants) and Wendy Northcross, CEO of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce. Graham talks about the challenges restaurants are facing and how he is managing them. His restaurants are adapting with take out and curbside pickup. Wendy talks about government initiatives to ease the burden on small businesses and their employees. You can find information about COVID-19 on the Chamber’s Public Policy section of their website.

Chris welcomes Jennifer Goldman, who shares good business practices for working at home. He also talks about investor considerations during this economic environment, such as cash reserves, portfolio distribution, risk tolerance, expenses, being opportunistic, among others.

Chris welcomes Ruth Provost, Director of the Boys & Girls Club of Cape Cod and Gretchen Murphy of Dowling & O’Neil Group. With over 1,089 members, the Boys & Girls Club of Cape Cod runs before and after school, school break, and summer vacation programs for children and teens. They are funded through donations, grants, and special events. Gretchen talks about personal and commercial insurance based on how the property will be used, and the cost to replace both structure and liability risk if someone is injured. Wind insurance, whether a straight deductible or “named storm”, is something those near the water should consider. An umbrella policy provides extra coverage over and above a home or auto policy.

Chris and Brian discuss the markets - with Thursday seeing a 10% decline and a sharp rebound on Friday. Stocks have declined 25-30% from their peak, signifying the end of an 11-year bull market. America mobilized this week to slow the spread of the Coronavirus. Congress’ fiscal stimulus package is expected to pass into law soon. The Russia and Saudi Arabia oil price war created an additional drag on market prices. 

In recognition of International Women’s Day, the AMR team discusses different investment considerations that may be unique to women. Chris welcomes Barbara Cotton, the new Executive Director, and Ken McGuire, Board Chair, of the Red Cross - Cape, Islands and Southeast MA region to talk about their mission and the annual Heroes Breakfast. The Red Cross provides services that turn compassion into action, care, shelter, and hope by helping people affected by disaster get back on their feet. The Heroes Breakfast will be held on Friday, April 3rd, from 8:00 – 9:30AM, at The Resource and Conference Center in Hyannis. 

Chris and team talk about financial matters including the election, the Coronavirus, the Fed’s rate cut and the market reaction, and the 30-year Treasury rate all-time low. Closings are occurring that contain the Coronavirus, but are slowing down market activity. Cathi shared best practices regarding the virus. #SMoreCB #CapeCodfinancialplanner

Chris and Brian talk about the Coronavirus and its implication on the market. Broad indexes dropped around 12% this week, which may be a market correction as it was priced for perfection and any slowdown could have altered the course. International stocks have not suffered as much as they were not as overvalued to begin with. With the SARS and ZIKA viruses, the markets also dropped about 13%. In times like these, investors tend to flock to safer class investments like bonds. High-yield bonds can bring higher-risk and are more closely classified with stocks, which should be considered in one’s overall risk tolerance. Chris warns against annuities promising income guarantees. These types of annuities often come at a very high cost.  

Chris welcomes Wendy Northcross, CEO of the Cape Cod Chamber. Wendy talks about the Cape Cod bridge replacement, among other Cape related topics. The US Army Core of Engineers came out with a declaration to replace the bridges versus repairing them. The new bridges will include four expanded travel lanes, and acceleration and deceleration lanes. They could be built within 7 years and will be placed next to the existing bridges, which will then be taken down. Acclaimed economist Dr. Eisenberg recently spoke at a joint economic forecast breakfast hosted by the Chamber, the Home Builders & Remodelers Association, and the Association of Realtors. More affordable housing is needed on the Cape to retain and attract younger people. Wendy also discusses the renumbering of Route 6 exits to conform with the national highway numbering system. The Chamber will be hosting workshops: an Instagram workshop for those in the wedding industry, the annual Wage & Hour seminar for the hospitality industry, an ADA complian

Jeff Perry, Special Sheriff for Barnstable County, welcomes Taylor White, Sandwich Town Clerk. Taylor manages running elections, administering censuses, registering licenses, and vital record record keeping for the Town.  He has preserved 75% of vital records that date back to 1640. Jeff and Taylor also discuss the 2020 election dates and encourage everyone to vote.

Jeff Perry, Special Sheriff for Barnstable County, welcomes Representative Will Crocker. Will, Representative in 2nd Barnstable District, discusses his work on Nero’s Bill. Nero’s Bill proposes that EMTs and paramedics trained in veterinary protocol be allowed to stabilize, treat, and transport dogs like Nero. Nero was injured when Sergeant Gannon lost his life in the line of duty on April 12, 2018.  Judy Crocker talks about the Republican State Committee race. In 2012, she ran to be Cape & Islands Republican State Committee Woman, covering a district from Mashpee to Provincetown. She is running for re-election in the March 3rd elections.

Chris welcomes Adam Howard, Visual Effects Supervisor, who shares stories from his work in television and films. Adam started working in television on the Simpsons and Will & Grace. His first feature film in the US was Sandlot. He also worked on Star Trek, Pirates of Caribbean, Mission Impossible, and Star Wars. He did some ground breaking visual effects on the Titanic, where George Harrison of the Beatles visited to see his work. The business has changed significantly since Adam started, but he enjoys creating entertainment that makes people happy. In honor of American Heart Association Heart Health Month, Matt Regan, President of Cape Cod CPR, joins Chris. He and his wife started the South Yarmouth business, where 17 instructors offer community and physician certification training. There is no one sign for a cardiac event – look for tightness of chest and shortness of breath, discomfort in other areas of body. Heart disease is the number one cause of death for women.  

Brian talks about private equity funds and fractional share investing. Private equity investments are potentially high return investments, but carry extra risk since they lock money up for typically 7 years, need to be an accredited investor, and come with high fees. Investment firms are competing by selling fractional stock shares so investors can afford higher prices stocks as one way to build a diversified portfolio. Scott answers questions from the mailbag. When should I take social security? Does my money need to last until 100 years old? Do I need long-term care insurance?

Chris and Cathi are joined by Josh Flanders (General Manager) and Jacobi Reid (Head Brewer) from Bad Martha’s Brewery. Last year they opened a Falmouth location, expanding from their Edgartown location that opened in 2014. A 15-barrel system allows 10 batches of beer to brew consecutively; taking 2-4 weeks to brew a batch. Offering 50-60 different beers per year, they source local ingredients to offer seasonal beers such as a honey house in the spring, Shark Bite (jalapenos and cucumber) in summer, and cranberries in fall. Their beautiful building is a post & beam barn built by Amish crew out of PA and local builder Architecture Innovations.  In addition to great beer, they offer lite snacks, merchandise, music, and fun games. Bad Martha’s also donates to local charities and hosts events.

Chris and Brian discuss financial issues such as the GDP, ISM manufacturing index, durable goods, the Corona Virus, and investment price vs. value. The GDP reported on target at 2%. Business growth slowed last quarter as expected due to heavy inventory; however, US import/export numbers were strong. The January ISM manufacturing index was over 50 for first time in a while. Technology companies did well in Q4; where materials, energy, and industrials were lagging. The Corona Virus is spreading more quickly than 2003 SARS – contributable to enhanced transportation infrastructure in China. Stocks like Clorox and 3M expected to get a bump due to the virus. When considering mutual funds and ETFs – its not just return vs. price - cost, risk, total return, and tax considerations are all relevant.

Chris and Brian discuss the notion of people investing for income (dividends, interest) versus total return, and being cautious of hidden risk when investing purely for income. Scott joins Chris to talk about an IRS financial scam reported on by the Wall Street Journal recently – protect yourself by: registering your number with National Do Not Call Registry, installing a call screening or blocking on your landline, and installing a robocall blocking app on your cell phone. They also discuss the Democratic Presidential candidates’ income and investment tax proposals, and lessons of the week.

Bob Vandy, President of Advisors Insurance Brokers joins Chris to talk about long-term care insurance and some of the newer generation products that combine traditional long-term care insurance with life insurance or annuity benefits. Care for a chronic condition that is not improving needs to be covered under long-term care insurance vs. Medicare. Long-term care can be provided at home, as well as in assisted living or a nursing home. Long-term care may be a way to save against spending down all of one’s assets or restricting access to savings through an irrevocable trust. Four areas to consider when enrolling in long-term care insurance are: benefit amount, benefit period, elimination period, and inflation.

Chris and his Kristen Boyd welcome Sara Hines from Eight Cousins Bookstore in Falmouth and Val Royal from Brewster Bookstore to talk about books and reading. Both are independent stores, and sell books, audio tapes, and gifts for all members of the family. Local bookstores offer a community service by helping to match books to readers and hosting events (author signings, story times, book clubs). Sara and others started the Cape & Islands Book Store Trail in 2019, with participation from 21+ independent book stores on the Cape.  AMR recently held a Q1 Economic & Market Outlook seminar for clients. The webinar version is available on the AMR website and the information is in the latest AMR newsletters. If you’d like to receive AMR newsletters email radio@amrfinancial.com or signup on the website.

Daniel Schwenk joins Chris to talk about tax preparation and tips. Many people experienced large withholdings last year and asked for advice on how to remedy throughout the year. There is still time to set-up a SEP IRA, etc., to provide benefit for 2019 taxes.  Mid-March is a good time to file as statements may be coming in until then, but filing can be amended if something substantial was missed. The higher number of exemptions on a W4 means less is taken out, so individuals may need to budget for additional amounts due at filing. The IRS and State have payment plans if needed. Visit www.capecodtaxes.com.

Chris talks with Marie Stevenson, who shares her home exchange and travel adventures. Marie started using home exchange lodging in 1997 with Intervac, and now uses both Intervac and Home Stay. She has exclusively stayed in home exchange lodging since then and has visited most European countries, Canada, and several US states. Both charge a small annual fee, but Marie finds she is able to save money overall by traveling this way. Today’s home exchange services offer both reciprocal and non-reciprocal exchange options.

Chris and Brian discuss the markets, manufacturing, and the 2020 economic outlook. Brexit moving ahead and Phase 1 of the China Trade Deal signed. Consumer confidence is up, but we are looking for an uptick in corporate earnings (Q1 earnings mixed). Join AMR on Jan. 23rd for the Quarterly Investment Outlook seminar by registering at 508-771-8900. Scott talks about travel hacks, including the FIRE Movement and credit card rewards.