Blog

Most of you have heard the news that the more than 60 million Americans who are receiving social security will get an increase of 3.6 percent in 2012. The government is also providing some inflation relief for many tax benefits in 2012. Here are some of the changes: Your personal exemption is in...

There is no lack of scary economic news this year. The steady drumbeat of unemployment and bad-banking stories is enough to make you think we're headed for a dreaded "double-dip" recession. I don't believe it. Growing companies create jobs. One good sign of a growing company is higher earnings, a...

Doug Hendee is quoted in this morning's Democrat & Chronicle in a piece about home improvement retailer Lowe's. GTC (This article contains the current opinions of the author but not necessarily those of Brighton Securities Corp. The author's opinions are subject to change without notice. T...

There are two good local stories in the national media today, both worthy of a look (or listen): Deep Lakes, Icy Climate, Great Wine Here's a piece from today's New York Times about our booming Finger Lakes wine region. The well-written article has a slide show attached and quotes local news a...

I don't mean the weather here, of course. We just had one of the most beautiful Indian Summer weekends I can remember. Nor am I referring to the Buffalo Bills, with 4 wins in their first 5 games this season. No, that cold wind blowing this fall is for America's banks. Over the next few weeks, ban...

The medical world seems littered with acronyms; ADHD, AIDS, CPR, DRG, EEG, HIPAA, HMO, HSA, ICU, LPN, MS, PCP, RN, and of course AMT. AMT or Alternative Minimum Tax has been a growing epidemic. In 1970 only 19,000 people in the US suffered with AMT, in 2010, millions were inflicted with this calam...

In our office, when I am planning to be out of town we chuckle about what calamity will occur while I'm gone. That I was away when AIG, Merrill Lynch, and Lehman Brothers collapsed in September 2008, or during the brief-but-harrowing "flash crash" of May 2010 serves to reinforce the idea. And so nat...

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the "zero" percent tax rate on long term capital gains for individuals in the 15% tax bracket (or lower). I concluded that post by saying "a little pre-planning before year-end should be on your agenda." This "zero" rate can be of great benefit to many people, but in...

Ben Bernanke, Chairman of our Federal Reserve System, announced the other day that the Fed will attempt to stimulate the economy and drive interest rates even lower through a series of bond market maneuvers that traders have dubbed "the Twist." In the Twist, the Fed will invest $400 billion (yes, n...

Back in the day we called them "Conglomerates" and the name had a strange appeal among some investors. My corporate finance professors used to extol the advantages of diversified businesses (insurance, hotels, and aerospace, in one instance) as delivering potentially better returns with less risk. T...