In this brand-new episode of Gimme Some Truth, we delve into a topic we haven’t covered previously on the podcast – Commercial Real Estate. MLG Capital real estate analyst Jorgio Hopkins – a Madison native and UW-Madison grad – sits down with Walkner Condon's Jonathon Jordan, CFP, CEPA, and Nate Condon to cover the basics of this potential investing avenue. They go over the essentials of the sector, how broader investing themes like COVID-19 & interest rates have impacted commercial real estate, and how potential investors can access these types of investments.

Questions about this topic or other topics you'd like us to cover in future episodes? Send us an email at [email protected]. 

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How did the markets fare in the third quarter? What trends are unfolding this year? And what’s on the horizon for the rest of the year?

Nate Condon and Clint Walkner unearth the answers to those questions (and more) in this bonus episode of Gimme Some Truth, our Q3 market recap. Armed with data from JPMorgan’s Guide to the Markets, Clint & Nate explore the drivers of inflation, U.S. market outperformance, bonds, and more.

Questions related to this podcast or topics you'd like us to cover in future episodes of Gimme Some Truth? Send an email to [email protected].

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Is it 2018 again? Several of the financial factors at play this year are very evocative of four years ago. So much so, in fact, that Walkner Condon financial advisors Mitch DeWitt and Nate Condon thought about just re-posting this 2018 market commentary episode titled, “Should We Be Freaking Out Right Now?”

Instead, we thought better of that idea and decided on using a few audio highlights of that episode in a fresh recording with advisors Mitch, Nate, and Polly Price. They cover the similarities in mortgage rates, yield curve, and the Federal Funds Rate, and once again pose the question, ‘Should we be freaking out right now?’

Questions about this episode or other topics related to investing and retirement planning? Send us an email at [email protected] or head to the links section below.

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Should We Be Freaking Out Right Now - Original Episode

The words ‘budget’ and ‘budgeting’ often carry negative connotations: “It’s not in the budget” or “let’s sit down and take a look at the budget.” 

For high-net-worth families and individuals, it might not be the negative connotations as much as a budget seeming unnecessary if you have comfortable salaries and a disposable income cushion. And while we’re not fans of the word ‘budget’ either, we felt it was important to put the word front and center to jumpstart the conversation about what high-net-worth families should think about when it comes to the topic. 

In this episode, Clint Walkner and Nate Condon are joined by Alicia Vande Ven, M.S., Candidate for CFP® Certification, to discuss cash flow management. Alicia draws on her background of scrupulously saving and spending during her college years, where she developed a cash flow management structure (and spreadsheet, of course) that she still uses to this day. Though her financial picture has changed, that cash flow management has adapted over the years to be a system that ensures her money is best being put to work. Yes, cash flow management might be a little accounting-sounding, but it's a critical exercise to make sure you’re not outspending your means and maximizing what you've earned. 

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While this episode spans 40 minutes (long for us!) and has a variety of topics, there are comparisons to be drawn between the discussion of how pointless jumping jacks are and the meat of the episode. That is, the recent market happenings over the past year reveal issues in how financial media outlets cover financial news on a daily – and even hourly – basis.

On the day of this recording, an otherwise pedestrian day in the markets, Clint pulls up one of the headlines from CNBC. That article seeks to attach reaction to Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s rate hike to the market movements, market movements that were less than 0.70% in both the Dow Jones and S&P 500. This spawns further discussion on how the financial media industry and its figureheads have trended toward being more forward-looking and predictive in recent years, forecasting that can be about as useful as jumping jacks. 

But that’s not all we cover in this episode. We also go into the recent rate hikes, inflation, proper jumping jack form (not that it matters, per Clint), and more.

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Here in Wisconsin, it’s still very much summer. But for some investors, winter has set in – crypto winter, that is. In this episode, Clint Walkner – who came dressed for the occasion – and Nate Condon discuss the sharp downturn in the cryptocurrency markets. Cryptos like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin have all plunged more than 40% in the last year. Crypto investing platforms like Voyager have filed for bankruptcy – Clint has first-hand knowledge of this, unfortunately. And there’s a lot of uncertainty about the future of crypto assets.

Clint & Nate start by trying to pinpoint what type of asset crypto is and how it correlates to other assets. They also discuss other topics like the limited supply of bitcoin and why that matters, whether you’re better off in a stock or index fund when everything is down big, and more.

Questions about the current state of cryptocurrency? Or things you’d like us to go more in-depth about? Send an email to [email protected] or check out the link section below for more information.

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Walkner Condon is committed to producing educational content to better inform our listeners, viewers, readers, and current clients on the myriad financial topics. That's how this podcast came about. But we’re also committed to the continuing education and career advancement of our staff members.

In this episode, Polly Price – who began her journey at Walkner Condon as a client service specialist – discusses her path to passing the Series 65 exam. The Series 65 is the licensing needed to become a financial advisor, and it's a big step toward Polly's goal of advising in a full-time role.

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There’s a new face – and voice – here at Walkner Condon. In this installment of Gimme Some Truth, we get to know Alicia Vande Ven, the newest fee-only financial advisor on our team that works with clients locally in the Madison area (and around the country). 

Alicia has quite the background – from working in Human Resources at Epic Systems in Madison, owning a homemade candle business, becoming a financial advisor, and being the parents of three kids. And outside of work, as she likes to put it, she enjoys being outdoors just as much as being indoors. Find out more about what makes her a self-proclaimed geek with a tan, what one of her favorite parts of financial planning is (hint: death and [blank]), and what drove her to go down the path of becoming an advisor.

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After hosting our State of the Market Webinar on July 13, we thought it important to cover similar subjects from that webinar in a more condensed, audio-friendly fashion. 

Nate Condon and Clint Walkner team up to explore trends in the market through the first half of 2022. They go over year-to-date stocks and bonds performance – plus a look back on stocks and bonds – treasuries and mortgages, inflation, the inverted yield curve, and more. 

Questions, comments, or anything else you'd like us to cover on the markets so far in 2022? Don't hesitate to reach out to us via email at [email protected].

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With a team of advisors who work with clients in the Madison area and a separate team of advisors who work with Americans living abroad, there's probably more ongoing conversation about currency in the Walkner Condon office than in most other firms our size. Which is exactly how this episode about the strength of the U.S. dollar came to be. 

After an office conversation about the strength of the dollar vs. the Euro, Nate Condon and Syl Michelin, CFA, decided to take their conversation to the studio to discuss it more in-depth. They cover the importance of the dollar on an international level, the impact of a rising interest rate environment, and whether the dollar's strength is due more to the dollar or the fact that other currencies have lagged. And while travel is expensive right now, Syl points out that it's a great time to travel to Europe because of the dollar's strength – if you can afford to get there.

Questions, comments, or anything else you'd like us to cover on this topic? Don't hesitate to reach out to us via email at [email protected].

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