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As equity markets catch a nasty case of the coronavirus, what’s an investor to do? Four things to focus on amid the downturn.

In periods of elevated volatility such as the fourth quarter of 2018—when we saw the largest quarterly decline in the U.S. market, as measured by the S&P 500, since the third quarter of 2011—investors have many opportunities to harvest losses. Preserving tax benefits by avoiding wash-sale violations becomes even more important during these periods. However, there are occasional circumstances that make wash sales unavoidable. It's important to understand why they occur and why they aren't necessarily a negative.

The robust steps taken by the Federal Reserve to shore up the front end of the money markets are essential to the free flow of capital and global economic stability. Whether the Fed will bring back some of its financial crisis-liquidity and lending facilities to address the escalating Coronavirus crisis in the financial system, the bottom line is that well-functioning money markets are necessary for commercial activity.

In a world of low expected returns, finding alpha becomes more important than ever. Given the significant amount of capital looking for alpha in private markets, family offices will need to bridge the performance gap in this slower growth environment by leveraging their longer time horizon and partnering with experts in private market investments. Alpha, while elusive, can be found if one knows where to look.

In a time of equity market volatility, municipal bonds are doing what they’re supposed to do: diversify portfolios. Learn what may come next in the muni market.

From a historical perspective, the odds for a strong volatility risk premium (the "VRP") in 2020 are in your favor. Although it can't be predicted with any level of certainty the returns derived from exposure to the VRP this year, the range of likely outcomes can be determined based on empirical evidence while respecting known and unknown sources of uncertainty. If you're willing to wait and see, history suggests you'll be compensated.

Educating children about money, wealth, and financial planning is a critical step in helping them build their futures. As a wealth creator and thoughtful investor, you want to be sure your children understand how to manage finances and make good, informed decisions when it comes to spending, saving, and investing. But talking to children about money and wealth can be tricky. A workbook with resource links and checklists is provided to help make the process easier for families.

The equity markets took a painful hit at the end of February this year as fears about the coronavirus drove investors out of stocks and into correction territory. As one would expect, the impact and outlook for each asset class varies based upon the underlying exposures, market drivers, and pricing dynamics. We summarize the developments surrounding the market stress resulting from the coronavirus and provide specific commentary on what to watch for across the major asset classes that constitute investor portfolios.

As families explore investment opportunities in real property, many are turning to farmland for a portion of their portfolio. It is a unique class of real property that performs best as a long-term hold that carries with it a counter cyclical performance to stock investments. The application of best practices in this different type of ownership will help ensure quality planning and investing.

Shareholder engagement is not a new activity, and it is on the rise in 2020 as millennials continue to drive more interest in responsible investing. Today’s investors see the shareholder engagement as an even more powerful tool—one that can have a direct impact on corporate behaviors and business activities, and therefore, general society.