Vista Wealth Management Group, LLC

A quietly-publicized tax bill worked its way through Congress last year and was signed into law on December 20th. Known as the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, it made some sweeping changes to retirement plans. Here are the two biggest changes: 1. Taxpayers who have not started taking the Required Minimum Distributions from their IRA's may now delay taking them until age 72 instead of age 70 1/2.... 2. The "stretch IRA" cannot be used as a planning strategy in the future. Existing stretch IRAs may continue making their distributions, but beginning this year only spouses, minors, and disabled beneficiaries may extend inherited IRA distributions to their own life expectancies. Other beneficiaries must take distribution of inherited IRAs within 10 years. Our letter, "Washington's SECURE Tax Act", provides more details about these and other important changes in the Act. It can be found here: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/washingtonssecuretaxact#/0

The third quarter had mixed returns among stocks, bonds, and real estate. Some asset classes were up nicely while others had slight losses. Lots of news was referenced for the movements. For the full story including our sorting of the news and the markets, please take a look at our Q3 Investment Briefing, found here: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/investment-brief-3q2019#/0

Most of us have mixed emotions about the media: we want to be informed and the media wants to draw our attention, but we don't want to worry about things we can't control. This month, we consider what the media can and can't do for us an investors. The full letter, "Muddled Markets, The Media, and Our Minds" may be found here: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/muddled-markets-media-mind#/0

The second quarter of 2019 continued the positive returns from the first quarter, although not as robustly. In our latest investment briefing we look at what happened around the world and how the largest investment markets reacted. We also consider what slowing economies in much of the world may mean for our short-term performance. Full Q2 Investment Briefing: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/investment-brief-2q2019

Vista Wealth Management & Hines Warner Merger Official We are very excited to announce that Vista Wealth Management has completed a merger with Hines Warner, a registered investment advisory firm based in Portland, Oregon (www.hineswarner.com). Hines Warner will continue to operate as Hines Warner, A Vista Wealth Management Company. Together we expect our combined firm to do great things in the years ahead, most notably, to continue the history of outstanding service our clients and business partners have come to expect.

Trade with the U.S. and throughout the world continues to grab headlines. This month, we put trade into perspective, looking at what it means for investing both at home and abroad. The full letter, "Trading the Goods" may be found here: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/trading-the-goods#/0

Quarterly Investment Briefing (Q1 2019) Stock and bond markets came back strongly in the first quarter with some returns in the double-digits. For an explanation of the most important numbers, please read the full story in our Q1 Investment Briefing, found here: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/investment-brief-1q2019#/0

Does our country have too much debt? We discuss this hotly debated issue in this month's letter, including what it may mean for your long-term plans. The full letter, "Planning in an Indebted World" may be found here: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/indebted-world#/0

We receive a number of inquiries about credit cards and financing various consumer purchases. In this month's letter, we put them into perspective by taking a look at different types of credit cards, leasing vs. buying a vehicle, and considerations when refinancing or taking out a new mortgage. The full letter, "Getting the Credit You Deserve" may be found here: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/gettingthecredityoudeserve#/0

Quarterly Investment Briefing (Q4 2018) The fourth quarter of 2018 showed the stock market can still be volatile and investors are concerned about future growth prospects; stock markets were mostly down while bonds appreciated. For the full story of what happened and what it means for the new year, please read our Q4 Investment Briefing, found here: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/investment-brief-4q2018#/0

Stock market volatility has increased this year compared to last, with the U.S. stock market dropping about 16% from its summer peak at this writing. While the current moment is always the most clear, in this month's letter we put this recent volatility into perspective. The full letter, "The Rocky Stock Market", may be found here: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/therockystockmarket#/0

The end of the year is approaching fast and it's time to think about implementing year-end actions. http://ideas.vistawealth.com/year-end-planning-2018#/0

Quarterly Investment Briefing (Q3 2018) The markets have been taking more headlines lately with their increased volatility. This makes it more difficult to find the defining signals in all of the noise so in our Q3 briefing, we attempt to sort some of the signals out. Full briefing: http://http://ideas.vistawealth.com/investment-brief-3q2018#/0

"How do bonds behave when interest rates rise and what does that behavior mean for portfolio returns?" This piece addresses how bonds work, the effects on returns when interest rates change, and the differences between holding bonds directly compared to holding them inside mutual funds: http://ideas.vistawealth.com/the-stability-of-bonds#/0