Hopefully you have started to envision your life without restrictions. What are you yearning to do? Perhaps it is taking a special trip that was delayed or getting back to volunteering or gathering with family as much as possible.

Personally, I (Dave) am looking forward to hopefully being able to go on an Alaskan Cruise this summer with my family that was cancelled last year. We are also looking forward to spending time with family at several weddings this summer as well as being able to go see movies in an actual theatre. We would love to hear what you all are looking forward to the most so please go to our DFS Facebook page and let us know!

As we turn the page on 2020, the word that comes to mind is “hopeful.” Hopeful that the vaccines will allow businesses to open fully again and that people will feel more and more comfortable socializing and traveling again. Hopeful that we won’t forget the lessons learned through this COVID crisis: that we need each other; that the simple things in life are vital; that we need to learn to slow down so we can rejuvenate and stay healthy; that no matter how hard we try we can’t always control things and the best we can sometimes do is make the “best next choice.”

The investment markets continue to be hopeful as well it seems. A recent article indicated that strength in the equity markets is fairly broad, which is a good sign. Of course, there are still concerns about overconcentration in the mega cap stocks within indices, about the rich valuations created by increasingly optimistic economic growth projections (that may or may not play out based on how virus containment goes), about how fast policies will be enacted by the new administration that may either boost near-term growth or start to constrict longer-term growth, and about what might happen with inflation and long-term interest rates in light of the growing national debt.

So, we stay vigilant—not reactionary, but vigilant. Focusing on the long-term and keeping the short-term obstacles in perspective and sometimes even using them to our advantage.

A summary of market outlooks and current portfolio positioning for 4th Quarter 2020 for some of our Managers. Please see the following PDFs:

• Litman Gregory

Just wanted to get a quick note out to kind of play "cheerleader" as we continue the last few weeks of the year and finish out the election coverage.

We have been watching and listening diligently as we have gotten closer to Election Day. There have been numerous webinars and podcasts put out by our various investment partners trying to frame the possible outcomes and what that might mean to the markets. As you can imagine, they have run the gamut as to what to expect, but most have generally agreed that it is particularly to handicap any outcome this year.

The key things we have gleaned from our listening and reading:

- Historically, volatility typically spikes leading up to the election (which we have seen again this year) and then the markets have tended to calm down quite a bit once the outcome is know (so this year we might expect continued volatility up until and following the election if they are still counting votes, but hopefully we experience some measure of calm once the outcome is indeed known...remembering that the markets always prefer certainty, even when it may not be the preferred outcome of the prognosticators)

- It is challenging to make any market predictions tied to any particular outcome because there are so many moving parts this year. First, the focus will be on who wins what (the Presidency, the Senate). Then the focus will change to how quickly and calmly the transition of power is likely to happen. Then the focus will be on what near-term policies are likely to be implemented, specifically stimulus and infrastructure spending and containment of the pandemic. And then the focus will move further out to what might happen in the areas of trade, taxation, and regulation (and even fiscal policy that will impact inflation projections).

We have tended to feel that it will be wise to be appropriately cautious in the coming weeks (especially with new money) but not to make any big bets one way or another. We are reminded that markets have often had decent, and even sometimes really good, performance in the year following an election, so we will want to be judicious in any major changes we make to long-term investment plans in particular.

We know these continue to be anxious times for many, and our hope is that we can be a source of confidence and reassurance for you as our country continues to address the challenges we are facing.

We are here for you... please let us know if there is anything we can be doing to be a resource as we start thinking about 2021. We will continue to pray for our country and our leaders and endeavor to stay focused on the things that we can control.

All my best,
Darrell

We thought it would be beneficial to provide you all with tips/resources to prevent scammers from getting your personal information as unfortunately, during times like these, activities such as these typically increase.

Phone Tips

·        Never provide personal information such as social security, credit card or bank account numbers to anyone even if they say they are a government worker, especially if they called you.

·        Government agencies like the IRS, SSA and the FBI will not call you on the phone if they need to communicate but rather send you a letter or email.

Internet Tips

·        When making online purchases, use only one credit card for all purchases

·        Ensure that websites have secure payment process prior to submitting payment

·        Never open or respond to an email that you are not familiar with or recognize

General Tips

·        Get and review a free copy of your credit report at least every 12 months from each credit report company @ www.annualcreditreport.com

·        Monitor your credit statements monthly for any fraudulent activity.

·        Report unauthorized transactions to your bank, financial firm or credit card company ASAP.

Learn more on the Bloomington Police Department website @ www.cityblm.org/police or www.facebook.com/cityblmPD. They have several informative brochures that you can download.