Happiness and fulfillment are personal. We believe that much of the “financial advice” people receive comes in the form of mass marketing and advertising. Our goal is to help people recognize their own individual view of happiness and fulfillment so they can determine which personal expenditures further their progress toward that goal.
Market timing doesn’t work. At Cornerstone Investment Advisors we do not believe in the concept of “hot stocks”. Nor do we believe in attempting to time the market, which usually means moving investments completely out of the markets when a manager thinks they are going to go down, and moving back in when a manager thinks the markets will go up.
Stocks for the long term. We believe that if your time horizon is greater than 3-5 years, you should accept some level of volatility risk from the stock market. However, for financial needs that must be realized sooner than that, we believe you should invest in ways that do not involve this risk.
Diversify your investments. The investment techniques we use are supported by a set of established principles known as Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT). One of the primary findings of MPT is that broad diversification into many different types of investments (called asset classes) can reduce a portfolio’s volatility without reducing its expected long-term return.
Team approach works best. We believe in the value of synergy—in other words, the “team of experts” approach to financial planning. For example, our firm does not prepare tax returns or provide legal documents. However, when these needs arise we will gladly work with outside professionals and monitor the relationship to ensure that the work done on your behalf is of the highest standards and that it integrates with your overall plan. Of course, we would never share your financial information with outside persons unless we receive direction from you to do so.