http://www.blounttoday.com/news/columnists/doug-horn/?partner=RSSblounttoday.com Stories: Doug Hornen-uscolumnists/doug-hornhttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/oct/10/trading-ranges-and-breakouts/?partner=RSSThe terms “trading range” and “breakout” are often used when referring to the investment markets. In fact, the major indexes are currently in a trading range. For the S&P 500, the range is approximately 1,100 to 1,225 and for the Dow Jones Industrial 30 it is 10,800 to 11,600. Ranges typically occur when there is insufficient data to cause a breakout; for the index to continue through either the top or the bottom of the range. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 10 Oct 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19231-734420columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNTrading ranges and breakoutsblounttoday.comtrading-ranges-and-breakoutsurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19231-734420Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/oct/03/federal-budget-woes-and-their-impact-investments/?partner=RSSIn the coming months as the “super committee” meets and works toward a recommendation, we may once again see increased volatility in the investment markets. It seems like this is the same song, only the second, no make that the fifth verse. While the Federal budget is almost so large it is difficult to put the dollars into perspective, it still works just like the budgets we face in managing our own income and expenses. The Federal government has the same four options when attempting to balance the budget. They can increase taxes and thus increase the revenue. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 03 Oct 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19206-734413columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNFederal budget woes and their impact on investmentsblounttoday.comfederal-budget-woes-and-their-impact-investmentsurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19206-734413Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/sep/26/managing-amount-taxable-income-annually/?partner=RSSEvery year most of us have to file our annual tax return and pay unto Caesar what is Caesar’s as the saying goes. While we each look for every valid deduction to make sure the amount of the net taxable income is as low as possible, there may be other ways to lower the income tax due. For small businesses that file a separate return or the Schedule C, to lower the impact on the taxes due again is making sure all of the deductions or business expenses have been included. For individuals, it is making sure the Schedule A is complete which again includes a number of deductions. Thus, we are all trained to look for additional deductions as a way to lower the income taxes that might be due. But, what about the income reported on page one of the return? It could be asked if this income can be reduced and as such lower the income taxes? news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 26 Sep 2011 14:35:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19180-734406columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNManaging the amount of taxable income annuallyblounttoday.commanaging-amount-taxable-income-annuallyurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19180-734406Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/sep/19/sidestepping-estate-planning-mistakes/?partner=RSSIn previous articles I have touched on making estate distributions easy. However, easy does not always mean fair. In conversations with most of my clients, their intent is often to split their estate equally among their children. Thus, the documents are often brief with simple instructions to divide the estate equally between their children. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 19 Sep 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19148-734399columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNSidestepping estate planning mistakesblounttoday.comsidestepping-estate-planning-mistakesurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19148-734399Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/sep/12/reverse-mortgage-retirement-income-option/?partner=RSSYou cannot go a day without seeing Robert Wagner, Fred Thompson, or some other spokesperson giving their pitch on reverse mortgages. By the way this product is presented, homeowners could draw the conclusion it is the greatest thing since sliced bread. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 12 Sep 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19127-734392columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNReverse mortgage as a retirement income optionblounttoday.comreverse-mortgage-retirement-income-optionurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19127-734392Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/sep/05/making-final-distributions-easier-manage/?partner=RSSFor most of us our last act is one of generosity. We have gone through our life planning, saving, and consuming and in our final days, we make a gift to our loved ones. Through the use of a will or trust, our wishes are spelled out for a trusted family member or friend to follow instructions and disburse the remaining assets of the estate. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 05 Sep 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19099-734385columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNMaking final distributions easier to manageblounttoday.commaking-final-distributions-easier-manageurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19099-734385Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/aug/29/avoiding-running-out-retirement-income/?partner=RSSWith the investment markets behaving as they are, the likelihood of running out of retirement income may appear to be a real possibility. Throw in the murky future of the Social Security Administration and the huge future demands on its assets to meet the promises to the baby boomers, and retirement may not be looking all that rosy. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 29 Aug 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19073-734378columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNAvoiding running out of retirement incomeblounttoday.comavoiding-running-out-retirement-incomeurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19073-734378Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/aug/22/reminder-there-risk-reacting-headlines/?partner=RSSKnee-jerk reactions to troubling headlines may cause investors to fall into the common pit of selling low after buying high. Lately, we have had a multitude of these headlines from civil wars, earthquakes, tsunamis, tornados, nuclear disasters, recession fears, debt ratings… Whether or not we have personally been affected by a natural disaster, the impact on our wallets can be felt by the increases in oil prices or higher utilities caused by the heat wave currently gripping the nation. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 22 Aug 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19043-734371columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNReminder: There is risk in reacting to headlinesblounttoday.comreminder-there-risk-reacting-headlinesurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19043-734371Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/aug/15/roller-coaster-ride-continues/?partner=RSSI have always enjoyed roller coaster rides, but in part I think my enjoyment came from knowing when and where the ride will end. The past three weeks or so the financial markets have provided that same feeling in the pit of my stomach as many coasters have, only this time I am not sure when the ride will end. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 15 Aug 2011 14:30:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19015-734364columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNThe roller coaster ride continuesblounttoday.comroller-coaster-ride-continuesurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-19015-734364Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/aug/08/panic-not-investment-strategy/?partner=RSSAt the time I am writing this article the market recently closed down 512.76 points, or 4.3 percent with the upcoming jobs report, being the next indicator of how the market may move. Clearly, the decline was not reassuring and perhaps déjà vu of fall 2008 when the Dow Jones Industrial 30 declined 3,991.26 points or 34.5 percent over two and a half months. No crystal ball can predict the direction of the market in the days following this most recent move. Whether the recovery will continue and this selloff will ultimately recover, or the economy will slip back into a recession which is what this selloff may be anticipating is hard to predict. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 08 Aug 2011 15:11:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18988-734357columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNPanic is not an investment strategyblounttoday.companic-not-investment-strategyurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18988-734357Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/aug/01/benefit-insurance/?partner=RSSThe cost to own a home is not just the mortgage payment. And for the business person, there are more costs to running a business than just the cost of its inventory. When budgets are stained due to less income or when expenses are increasing faster than the income, the natural thing we all do is evaluate where the money is currently going and then determine which items can be reduced or eliminated. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 01 Aug 2011 14:21:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18960-734350columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNThe benefit of insuranceblounttoday.combenefit-insuranceurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18960-734350Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/jul/25/coming-down-photo-finish/?partner=RSSIf you are unfamiliar with the current tug-of-war going on in Congress, you must be “living under a rock” to borrow a line from the GEICO commercials. At the center of all the discussion is a very simple process, Congress needs to pass a resolution permitting the United States to borrow more money than the current limit. If the limit is not increased, then the U.S. cannot pay all of its obligations because our government is spending more than it is taking in. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:11:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18931-734343columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNComing down to a photo finishblounttoday.comcoming-down-photo-finishurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18931-734343Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/jul/18/investing-and-staying-course-through-noise/?partner=RSSHave you consider the impact of "headline risk?" Managing investments is not an easy task. Whether it is the professional or someone managing their own accounts, to do this job well requires patience, research, time, money, discipline and the occasional use of a crystal ball. After all of this, the non-professional manager may still seek confirmation the decisions made were in fact the best ones. Most often, the items causing doubt are the headlines we read and hear each and every day. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 18 Jul 2011 14:19:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18909-734336columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNInvesting and staying on course through the noiseblounttoday.cominvesting-and-staying-course-through-noiseurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18909-734336Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/jul/11/making-correct-decision-based-upon-numbers/?partner=RSSManaging investments and making financial decisions is hard enough without someone intentionally trying to confuse the issues. Here is one decision that should be made. For those of you who have a home mortgage with an interest rate 5 ½ percent or higher, it is time to refinance. I have been surprised lately of those who still have a 6 or 6 ½ percent or higher mortgage rate and have not refinanced. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 11 Jul 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18889-734329columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNMaking the correct decision based upon the numbersblounttoday.commaking-correct-decision-based-upon-numbersurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18889-734329Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/jul/04/managing-cost-healthcare/?partner=RSSOf all the costs we incur in our lifetime, the cost of healthcare is one that is difficult to control. Often there is little time to shop for required healthcare. My wife recently needed to have her gallbladder removed, and she would not let me shop the cost of the removal on the Internet. I asked, “How else we can control the costs, if I cannot do a price comparison?” I shop prices for my hunting equipment, so why not a gallbladder surgery?! news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 04 Jul 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18859-734322columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNManaging the cost of healthcareblounttoday.commanaging-cost-healthcareurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18859-734322Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/jun/27/maintaining-liquidity-within-investment-portfolios/?partner=RSSThe phrase, “Cash is king” is often used regarding investments. Generally, this is used when the markets are volatile and thus the value held in cash is not falling like other segments of a portfolio. Having cash in the portfolio also creates flexibility to take advantage of sudden price drops in the market or particular stocks. However, cash is not the only way to create or maintain liquidity. Liquidity is the ability to convert a holding to cash with minimal loss due to fees or charges and relatively quickly. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 27 Jun 2011 14:48:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18835-734315columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNMaintaining liquidity within investment portfoliosblounttoday.commaintaining-liquidity-within-investment-portfoliosurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18835-734315Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/jun/20/will-your-family-recognize-your-treasure-your-tras/?partner=RSSDuring our lifetimes, most of us tend to accumulate a great deal of “stuff.” Many times, this is a result of hobbies, such as collecting Hummels, coins, stamps, guns or any number of other items. Sometimes the collections do not really have any significant value, like a collection of baseball caps. But, there are times when one or more of the items purchased during our lifetime has value and it may not be recognized by our children or heirs. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 20 Jun 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18814-734308columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNWill your family recognize your treasure from your trash?blounttoday.comwill-your-family-recognize-your-treasure-your-trasurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18814-734308Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/jun/13/your-financial-professional-advisor-or-salesperson/?partner=RSSFinancial professionals like any other profession are in the business to earn a living. It is unfortunate the compensation structure in this industry often leaves clients questioning the recommendations they receive. Whenever there are commissions involved, a question could arise as to the integrity of the advice or recommendation. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 13 Jun 2011 13:52:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18778-734301columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNIs your financial professional an advisor or a salesperson?blounttoday.comyour-financial-professional-advisor-or-salespersonurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18778-734301Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/jun/06/getting-back-financial-track-and-value-time/?partner=RSSThis conversation could focus on the fragile economic recovery of our economy or the personal recovery of individual budgets and debt. For those starting to benefit from this recovery or have received a lump sum of cash, my focus today will be personal budgets and debt. There is no right answer and unfortunately many professionals as well as non-professional financial columnists will differ in opinion on getting personal budgets back on track. For me, paying off personal debt is beneficial, but there are two other objectives which need to be met rather than solely focusing on paying off debt. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 06 Jun 2011 15:36:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18753-734294columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNGetting back on financial track and the value of timeblounttoday.comgetting-back-financial-track-and-value-timeurn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18753-734294Change0Usablehttp://www.blounttoday.com/news/2011/may/30/taxing-future-and-tackling-federal-debt/?partner=RSSAs you should be aware, our legislature is grappling with the Federal budget, Federal services, and its revenue. In other words, they are grappling with our future and potentially how we live. Many of the changes coming out of this legislative tug-of-war will most likely have its impact on the American citizens in 2012 and beyond. Everyone should be aware, this is by design and not by chance. If bad news is tucked away or its impact until late 2012 and beyond, many of those drafting and supporting the upcoming tax increases may already be safely reelected. news@blounttoday.com (Doug Horn)Mon, 30 May 2011 04:00:00 -0000urn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18719-734287columnists/doug-hornDoug HornMaryville, TNTaxing the future and tackling the federal debtblounttoday.comtaxing-future-and-tackling-federal-debturn:publicid:www.blounttoday.com:news-Story-18719-734287Change0Usable