NORTH STAR OFFERS FREE FINANCIAL COUNSELING TO THOSE IN NEED We appreciate the people who support our lives right now - first responders and hospital workers, food preparers and deliverers, city workers who keep our city going, teachers conducting classes online, and the myriad of others who are on the front lines in the battle with COVID-19. At North Star, we would like to do our part too by offering free [...]
While many are using this unique time to reflect and evaluate, this may be an appropriate time to review existing life insurance policies. Whether life insurance is for personal reasons, such as: Family or income protection Estate planning Wealth accumulation …or business purposes, funding: Buy sell agreements Key person protection Succession planning Deferred compensation programs …policies should be regularly reviewed. As life changes, coverage should be evaluated. Depending on when a [...]
The North Star Family Office is pleased to announce that Eric Papenhagen and Harry Petruleas to the North Star Team. Eric Papenhagen has joined the Company as a Vice President. Eric will be advising clients on their investments, acting as a fiduciary liaison, and assisting them with their estate, retirement and financial planning needs. And Harry Petruleas has joined the Company as a Vice President. Harry will be acting as a fiduciary [...]
Last Week: My standard opening: “Hang in there! As expected, more evidence of the economic fallout, combined with a continued ramp up in global coronavirus cases, has resulted in a 24/7 stream of disturbing headlines.” New Home Sales, Durable Goods Orders, and Consumer Sentiment all plunged, while Initial Jobless Claims surged. Those readings were in-line with expectations, given that most of the country remained under stay-at-home orders. Meanwhile the number of [...]
Last Week: My standard opening: “Hang in there! As expected, more evidence of the economic fallout, combined with a continued ramp up in global coronavirus cases, has resulted in a 24/7 stream of disturbing headlines.” Unemployment claims surged and retail sales plunged. Global COVID-19 cases and deaths continued to climb, although the curve did flatten further in the U.S., leading to guidelines for a three-phase plan to reopen the economy. The [...]
Reminder regarding 1st Quarter Performance Reports: We are suspending mail copies of this Quarter’s Performance Reports. If you would like to receive an electronic version of your report, please let us know. For those who receive these reports electronically, you will be receiving notification next week when they are posted to your portal. Monthly statements from your custodian will continue to be issued. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ It has been said that people spend [...]
Last Week: According to the CDC’s website, the practice of quarantine began during the 14th century in an effort to protect coastal cities from plague epidemics. Ships arriving in Venice from infected ports were required to sit at anchor for 40 days before landing. This practice, called quarantine, was derived from the Italian words quaranta giorni which mean 40 days. I guess some things haven’t changed much in the last seven [...]
North Star will be closed on Friday, April 10, 2020 In recognition of Good Friday, April 10, 2020, all domestic equity and bond markets, as well as North Star, will be closed. The bond market will also close at 2:00 PM ET on Thursday, April 9. Please note that the banking system is open on Good Friday. Money Movement: - No outbound cashiering items (checks, wires, EFTs) will be processed on [...]
Last Week: Hang in there! I hope to only have to open the commentary with those three words for a few more weeks. From last week’s blog we offered the following thoughts: “More evidence of the economic fallout will combine with a continued ramp up in global coronavirus cases to result in a 24/7 stream of disturbing headlines. Hopefully the number of new cases and deaths in Italy will begin to [...]
April 2, 2020 As you know, our offices are closed and all North Star employees are working remotely. We have not encountered any interruption of services and we can still be reached at our normal phone numbers and email addresses. As a reminder, PLEASE DO NOT PLACE TRADE INSTRUCTIONS IN VOICEMAIL AS THEY WILL NOT BE EXECUTED. Please keep us updated and informed about any changes regarding your personal situation. We [...]