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02
I S S U E
Efficient Frontier A p r i l – J u n e
2 0 1 6
WORDS OF WISDOM
Benjamin Franklin
“An investment in
knowledge pays the
best interest”
Ralph Waldo
Emerson
“It is one of the most beautiful compensa-tions in life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping him-self”
Abraham Lincoln
“Always bear in mind
that your own reso-
lution to succeed is
more important than
any one thing”
THIS ISSUE
If a Tree Falls? P.1
Thief in the Night P.2
Here Comes Summer! P.3
Upcoming Events P.4
If a Tree Falls?
If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around
to hear it, does it make a sound? This is a
popular philosophical question that was
posed hundreds of years ago. I cannot think
of a better way to describe the first quarter of
2016. There were countless articles written
and financial programs running with, “This is
the worst January market drop in history.”
The follow up pieces were dedicated to
whether or not the U.S. economy was head-
ing toward a recession and how this latest
drop is “the beginning of the end.”
Naturally, most were concerned as the Janu-
ary doldrums extended into February. As you
checked your accounts online and waited
patiently for your statements, the reality of
seeing your hard earned assets fall, tested
your resolve. And rightly so. You have spent
a majority of your life working and saving to
build up the necessary resources to meet
your goals. For many of you, your next step
was to reach out to me, for which I am grate-
ful. It is during these periods of turbulent
markets that I believe you need me most. I
appreciate the time we spend discussing the
current state of affairs and helping you un-
derstand how we will continue working to-
ward meeting your goals.
However, March provided some much need-
ed relief (Surprise! If you haven't checked
your account). As it turned out, the perfor-
mance in March allowed most to recover all
of their January/Febuary “losses,” while some
have even experienced a gain.
I regularly counsel my clients against viewing
their accounts too frequently. The reason
being, the short term fluctuations in the stock
market have very little effect on your goals,
but more importantly, cause unnecessary
fear. In fact, there is a considerable amount
of data that suggests emotional based deci-
sions are the primary cause for underper-
forming investors.
I will leave you with this final question. If
your portfolio goes down in January, but you
don’t check your statement until March, did it
really go down?
Matt
Thief in the Night
Thieves have been an issue since
the dawn of civilization. However,
their schemes have become more
elaborate as of late. In fact, the
most common form of theft today is
identity theft. Practically every per-
son I speak with has either been a
victim of identity theft or can name a
person that has. Their latest method
of utilizing your identity to make
money is through the IRS. Thieves
are getting enough personal infor-
mation (e.g. name, social, date of
birth) to file a tax return as though
they were you. They then get a
“refund” from the IRS. Most will not
realize that they have been compro-
mised until they attempt to file their
taxes (This exact situation has oc-
curred to me personally, as well as
to friends, family, and coworkers).
The follow up questions when people
hear this for the first time are, ”How
did they get my information” and
“What do I do if it happens to me?”
How Did They Get My
Information?
One of the most common ways that
thieves are getting access to our
personal information is by us giving it
to them. In fact, sometimes they will
actually call you directly. The thief
will call you and it will typically go in
one of two ways. You will receive a
call from someone and your caller ID
will display that it is either from the
IRS or some law enforcement agen-
cy. In the case of the IRS, they will
request your personal information
because you didn’t file your taxes
correctly. Some will attempt to just
get the personal information, while
others will take it a step further and
attempt to get funds
directly from you. In
the case of the law
enforcement agency,
they will claim that
they are attempting
to collect debts owed
to the IRS. If that
debt is not paid they will claim that
you will be subject to legal ramifica-
tions ranging from seizing of assets
to jail time. Unfortunately, the afore-
mentioned methods are most com-
monly used on elderly victims in an
effort to scare and/or intimidate them
into giving personal information.
What Do I Do If It Hap-
pens To Me?
If you receive a call from someone
claiming to be with the IRS or law
enforcement agency simply hang up.
If you are concerned that you may
owe taxes to the IRS, always contact
them directly. The IRS has a cus-
tomer service line that is available to
answer any questions you may have.
More than likely you will find that you
were the target of a scam. The next
step is to reach out to the Treasury
Inspector General for Tax Admin-
istration to report the incident. The
more details they have the greater
likelihood they will be able to prevent
these scams in the future.
However, if you find yourself in the
precarious situa-
tion of receiving
a letter from the
IRS stating a
refund has been
filed in your
name, or you are
unable to file
your taxes due to someone fraudu-
lently doing so, you should contact
the IRS Identity Protections Special-
ized Unit immediately. They will then
be able to walk you through the nec-
essary steps to rectify the situation. I
have provided the contact numbers
for all the aforementioned depart-
ments of the IRS in the “Eye on the
Numbers” column to the left.
Please share this information with
your friends and family. Especially
those you believe may be suscepti-
ble to potential thieves. The time
and aggravation of sorting out your
personal finances after your identity
has been compromised can be im-
mense. After all, the best defense is
a good offense.
Seeing as it is tax time I decided to
spend some time discussing
thieves…(wink, wink, nudge, nudge)
EYE ON THE NUMBERS
Identity Theft*
In 2010, 8.6 million
households had at least
one member age 12 or
older who experienced
one or more types of
identity theft
In 2013, government
benefits fraud accounted
for 34% of the reported
identity theft
In 2014, the number of
elderly victims of identity
theft increased to 2.6
million
IRS Customer Service
1-800-829-1040
Treasury Inspector
General for Tax Admin-
istration
1-800-366-4484
IRS Identity Protection
Specialized Unit
1-800-908-4490
*Identity theft facts and figures
provided by the National Criminal
Justice Reference Service
(www.ncjrs.gov)
One of the most common
ways that thieves are get-
ting access to our personal
information is by us giving
it to them.
EYE ON THE NUMBERS Summer Facts*
In the United States, over
650 million long-distance
summer trips are made
In the summer heat, the
iron in France’s Eiffel
Tower expands, making
the tower grow more than
6 inches
More than 40 million peo-
ple play softball each
summer, making it the #1
team participant sport in
the United States
*Summer Facts provided by
www.facts.randomhistory.com
Ask Matt
Each quarter I will answer a
question (or maybe 2) from
you. I tend to get some great
questions from my clients on a
regular basis during our meet-
ings. I have found that the
answers to those questions
are pertinent to quite a few of
you. Don’t worry though. I will
maintain the privacy of those
asking the question as well as
any personal details. Addition-
ally, if you have a question you
would like me to address in the
practice update give me a call
or shoot me an email
Q: What does it mean for my ad-
visor to be a fiduciary or for them
to be held to a fiduciary
standard?
A: The difference is in how a financial
advisor is acting. It may seem silly but
financial advisors can wear two different
hats when working with clients. The
first hat is that of a “broker.” A broker
assists you in purchasing suitable in-
vestments and is paid a commission.
The second hat is that of an “investment
advisor.” An investment advisor typically
receives a flat or asset based fee for provid-
ing you with investment advice. A significant
difference in being a broker vs. an invest-
ment advisor is that the investment
advisor must provide investment advice
that is in the best interest of the client.
In case you are wondering, I enjoy
working with you as your investment
advisor. I believe it can be what you
are truly looking for in a financial advi-
sor.
This Quarter ’s “Ask Matt”
Here Comes Summer!
Summer is just around the corner.
While I don’t get nearly as excited as
I did when I was a kid, I still look
forward to it. My family and I would
be categorized as “outdoorsy.” In
particular, we enjoy frequenting
Montauk State Park each year,
which is known for its trout fishing.
My parents would take my siblings
and me there every summer to get
away from the hustle of every day
life. In fact, on several occasions I
can remember being awakened in
the “wee hours of the morning” by
my oldest brother. The only thing he
would say is, “I’m packing up to go
fishing. You want to come?” I
would roll out of bed, barely enough
awake to get dressed, and plop
myself into the back seat of his
Chevy Nova. It was a 2 hour drive
to get there and the horn sounds at
6:30 AM to alert anglers that they
can begin fishing. We had our
“special spots” that we were con-
vinced had all the best fish. Natural-
ly, our special spots required a great
deal of effort to get to. We had to
hike through the woods and cross a
small creek in order to get there. I
recall stepping in the creek bed once
and having my foot sink deeply into
the soft mud. Unfortunately, when I
pulled my foot out of the mud, the
shoe was no where to be found. We
had no time to “waste” searching for
my lost shoe, as we had to get in
position to cast our lines before the
horn sounded. So, I happily spent
the day fishing with one shoe.
I mention one of my fondest memo-
ries of summer, because I believe
those memories are the main reason
why we plan for the future. Ultimate-
ly, we plan for the future so we are
in position to create those memories
with our loved ones. So, let’s all
make sure we take some time to
create memories this summer. I’m
glad my family and I did.
Matthew R. LaPlant, CRPC®, AAMS
®
Financial Advisor Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor
SM
14755 North Outer Forty Drive, Suite 500
Chesterfield, MO 63017
636-534-2065 (Office)
ameripriseadvisors.com/matthew.r.laplant/
Upcoming Events
Simple Safeguards for Preventing Identity Theft
May 19, 2016
6:00 PM—8:30 PM
Missouri Athletic Club
1777 Des Peres Road
St. Louis MO 63131
This seminar will focus on how identity theft happens, how to prevent it,
and the early warning signs that your identity may have been compro-
mised. Additionally, there will be time for questions with the speaker.
Presented and sponsored by Ivy Funds. Ivy Funds and its representatives are not affiliated with Ameriprise Fi-
nancial. This is an informational seminar. There is no cost or obligation.
Events
I f there i s some-
th ing in par t i cu la r
tha t ca tches your
eye, p lease do not
hesi ta te to reach
out to me . I am
ant ic ipa t ing tha t a
major i t y o f the
events w i l l reach
maximum capaci t y .
Efficient Frontier Issue 02 April-June 2016
The views expressed here reflect the views of Matthew R. LaPlant as of 3/31/2016. These views may change as market or other conditions change.
Actual investments or investment decisions made by Ameriprise Financial and its affiliates, whether for its own account or on behalf of clients, will not
necessarily reflect the views expressed. This information is not intended to provide investment advice and does not account for individual investor
circumstances.
Investment decisions should always be made based on an investor's specific financial needs, objectives, goals, time horizon and risk tolerance. Past
performance does not guarantee future results and no forecast should be considered a guarantee either.
Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc., Member FINRA and SIPC.
© 2016 Ameriprise Financial, Inc., All rights reserved. 1455119ACMR0416