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Wall Street and international markets have had mixed feelings about how these tariffs could affect financial markets and the stability of global trade. These tariffs have the potential to rebalance trade between the United States and all of its trading partners—the uncertainty of how this will shake out has created volatility in the markets. As investors, we have to stay focused on our long-term objectives and not jeopardize those goals because of short-term volatility.

As we all settle down to have dinner with our family and friends this Thanksgiving, we wanted to make sure that we personally reached out to all our partners, clients and members of the greater Rochester community to let each of know how thankful and appreciative we are for those who contribute to making Brighton Securities what we are today. We here at Brighton Securities have dedicated ourselves to putting both our clients’ needs and ensuring the strength of the Rochester community ahead of all else.

There was a time when several Rochester-based companies were household names when discussing stocks you’d want to hold in your portfolio. Kodak, Xerox, Bausch & Lomb, the heavy hitters of yesteryear. It’s no secret that those three companies have seen ups, downs, bankruptcies, takeovers, and more. What’s interesting to note, however, is that while some companies headquartered, or with significant operations in Rochester have struggled over the years, others have gone on to flourish.

You can rest a bit easier when it comes to thinking about your readiness to retire, at least for a moment. This week’s reveal of the much-anticipated Republican tax bill is leaving the pretax 401(k) contribution cap at $18,000 after much speculation that the pretax cap would be reduced as low as $2,400 per year. Hey, Congress – thanks!

In time, as more opportunities for investment arise and the technology becomes more mature, digital currencies may become a reasonable long-term investment. For now, they remain speculative at best and anyone considering them for an investment should heed the Latin phrase for let the buyer beware: Caveat Emptor.

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Change is a constant in today’s world. One of the biggest insurance policies of modern times, social security, is no stranger to change. Based on recent numbers from the USA TODAY article, 61.5 million people receive benefits and more than 42 million (or 62%) of them are retirees. Bottom line, any changes to social security affects a large number of Americans.

Last week, Equifax—one of the nation’s largest credit reporting agencies, reported that hackers stole personal data from an estimated 143 million Americans. The breach lasted from mid-May through July—the hackers accessed people’s names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, and in some cases, driver’s license numbers.

Concerned yet? It can be an overwhelming thought that your information is in the hands of criminals looking to profit at your expense. Here are some steps to consider:

When talking about early stage company valuations, all opening paragraphs should start out with: it’s really hard. That’s why convertible notes are popular, why Y Combinator created the SAFE, (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) and why Draper is creating TATS (Tradable Automatic Term Sheets) effectively letting investors and entrepreneurs get around trying to value things today, and agree to try to figure it out later.

Business succession can be an emotional, financial, and timing issue for business owners. Do you have a business succession plan?