Zizzi Investments, LLC

Call Directions Website

Zizzi Investments, LLC Fee-only Investment Management, Financial Planning, and Retirement Plan Consulting.
(1)

We didn't move in 2018 because we knew home prices and interest rates were going to eventually skyrocket. We moved becau...
10/22/2026

We didn't move in 2018 because we knew home prices and interest rates were going to eventually skyrocket.

We moved because my wife was pregnant with our second baby and we decided we wanted to be in a new home before he arrived.

A home with the same floor plan in our neighborhood just listed and went pending.

The total monthly estimated payment would be 100% higher than when we bought eight years ago.

This isn't a post about young people versus older people and who had it harder.

Every generation has hardships and different opportunities.

It's just a reality of where we are at today.

As a young person I still think the best option is to work hard, master a skill that makes you valuable, live below your means, and figure out a way to invest.

And let's not get confused, sports betting is not investing.

Otherwise inflation is going to leave you in the dust over the long term.

10/21/2026

In 2020 you had to pay the French government for them to hold your money in their 10 year government bonds.

Can you think about the lunacy of that?

Imagine loaning someone money with the promise they are going to pay you back less at the end.

In the movies they usually want to break your kneecaps for that type of behavior.

ZIRP or zero interest rate policy was crazy monetary policy.

Some people want to tell you all bonds are blowing up, in reality they are normalizing and credit quality is getting separated.

French government bonds are still getting whacked because of their fiscal situation. The CCC rated junk bonds and the weakest AI players have been crushed recently.

That's the market working to sort out winners and losers.

And the yields on US treasury bonds have actually been pulling back in a bit in the last few weeks as you've seen a continued sell off in some of these weaker areas of the bond market.

Even with two hot inflation reports and the war showing no signs of slowing down, bond yields in the US have actually fallen the last two weeks.

My son is old enough that he is recognizing just how nasty the political adds are now."Dad...why would you want to vote ...
10/20/2026

My son is old enough that he is recognizing just how nasty the political adds are now.

"Dad...why would you want to vote for either of those people based on what they say about them?"

And during our fall meetings, I've been getting client questions about the impact of the mid-term elections on markets.

But I keep looking back and sharing this statistic which I was sharing with clients when we started our firm back in 2022.

Then it was 18 out of 18.

Now it's 19 out of 19 and it's still is hard to wrap my head around.

Since 1950, the S&P 500 has been positive each time one year following the the mid-term elections.

As we have to say in investing, past performance is no guarantee of future results, but 19 out of 19 is a pretty good track record.

Brewers fans are lucky he did not have an advisor that understood the healthcare exchange, premium tax credits, and COBR...
10/16/2026

Brewers fans are lucky he did not have an advisor that understood the healthcare exchange, premium tax credits, and COBRA insurance.

Yes, our health insurance system is dysfunctional.

But there are definitely options out there other than employer sponsored health insurance.

Health insurance is a big expense that keeps many people from retiring early or starting a business.

The system is complex and complicated, but there are options available and good planning can save you thousands of dollars a year in premiums.

Either way, the Brewers are happy their playoff hero decided to stick it out to keep his health insurance.

My guess is after his performance this year, he won't need to worry about the expense of health insurance anymore.

If we tell our kids to clean the playroom, they come back a few minutes later and tell us they did it.But I've learned t...
10/15/2026

If we tell our kids to clean the playroom, they come back a few minutes later and tell us they did it.

But I've learned that means with no supervision, we're probably going to walk in and find that it still looks like a tornado went through there.

That's what's really interesting to me about what the TSMC CEO said on the earnings call this morning.

"We are now going one step further and sending our own teams of people to check on the data center build-out progress and power supply situation in the U.S."

With the skepticism building around AI, Taiwan Semiconductor, the primary manufacturer and chokepoint of chips used in the AI buildout, is sending boots on the ground before agreeing to invest in additional capacity.

Of course, there is no way to perfectly forecast that demand will hold up, but for now they are still giving every indication that demand is far outpacing current supply.

This also reminds me of the scene from the Big Short, where they send a team to Florida and realize the newly built houses with jumbo mortgages are sitting vacant.

It was an "oh s@!t moment."

In this case though, the TSMC teams are reporting the projects are on track and the demand is there. They aren't just taking the word of the companies requesting additional capacity.

We never no what the future holds, but this should be comforting news to investors with the recent volatility in AI related stocks.

For now there is no indication in the earnings reports of TSMC today or ASML yesterday of any slowdown in AI demand.

And these are two of the most critical companies in the AI manufacturing supply chain.

**This post is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be investment advice. Investing involves risk, past performance is no guarantee of future results.

We took a field trip to see friends in DC yesterday while the boys had off school.Made it to the National Air and Space ...
10/13/2026

We took a field trip to see friends in DC yesterday while the boys had off school.

Made it to the National Air and Space Museum in the morning, then over to campus to watch the soccer game and stopped by to see where I went to business school at Kogod.

Back in the saddle this morning and watching the start of earnings season.

Several of the big banks reported this morning, and we're still seeing the same trend in consumer spending.

While consumer sentiment remains at historic lows, actual consumer spending remains strong.

There's a huge disconnect with how people say they are feeling and how they are actually showing up to spend.

To me, the earnings this morning suggest one of two major legs of the bull market remains intact.

The second leg, AI capital spending, we will get more information about as the hyperscalers report in the next few weeks.

However, consumer spending is still 65-70% of the economy, so to me it remains the most important piece.

AI capital spending is projected around $1 trillion next year, but consumer spending is roughly $17 trillion and still dwarfs spending on AI.

And if we're trying to determine whether the bull market still has legs, I think the health of the American consumer remains the most important piece of the puzzle.

Right now, what consumers are doing continues to tell a much better story then how they are feeling or what they are saying.

Earnings this morning are reinforcing that story.

10/08/2026

Is $100K, $250K, $500K, or $1 million enough income?

Tell me what you spend.

Is a $1M, $2M, $5M, or $10M portfolio enough to retire?

Tell me what you spend.

Trying to figure out how much income you need or how large your portfolio should be is nearly impossible until you understand what your lifestyle actually costs.

Without that understanding, you're taking a shot in the dark.

You could be overspending and undersaving, sacrificing your future to maintain your lifestyle today.

Or you could be oversaving and underspending, sacrificing opportunities to enjoy your life today for a future that's already well funded.

Both are different risks, but either way, there's a big cost to not knowing.

Before you ask how much is enough, you have to figure out how much you actually need.

And that starts with understanding what you spend.

I find the HSA (health savings account) strategy usually evolves in three parts through conversations with people.1) Com...
09/21/2026

I find the HSA (health savings account) strategy usually evolves in three parts through conversations with people.

1) Comparing the tradeoffs of HDHP versus lower deductible plan to understand a high-deductible health plan doesn't automatically mean the plan is more costly.

2) Once adopting a HDHP with an HSA, helping them to understand the balance can carry over year to year and does not need to be spent immediately.

3) Grasping the long term benefits of investing the funds in an HSA, especially if considering retiring or leaving W2 employment before age 65. There is no other account that is tax-deductible on the way in and has the potential to be tax-free on the way out.

It sometimes takes a few meetings to address all these topics, but I was just meeting with a client recently that started using their HSA to invest a few years back. They are already seeing substantial benefits in their early retirement projection.

We've personally been using an HSA since 2019.

It's cool to now see the investment growth alone has now more than doubled the out of pocket medical expenses we've accrued along the way.

**This post is for informational purposes only. Investing involves risk, past performance is no guarantee of future results.

The Fed hiked rates yesterday for the first time since 2023.Since many bearish people have drawn comparisons of the curr...
09/17/2026

The Fed hiked rates yesterday for the first time since 2023.

Since many bearish people have drawn comparisons of the current AI driven cycle to the late 90s tech bubble let's look back at what happened then after the Fed raised rates for the first time.

1999 Rate Hike Dates:

June 30, 1999: Raised by 25 basis points to 5.00%.

August 24, 1999: Raised by 25 basis points to 5.25%.

November 16, 1999: Raised by 25 basis points to 5.50%.

From the first Fed rate hike of the cycle on June 1999 the Nasdaq went on to rally another ~88% before it reached it's peak on March 10, 2000!

Meanwhile the Fed continued to raise rates though the end of 1999 and into 2000, including another 0.50% at their May 2000 meeting, bringing the Fed funds rate to a cycle high of 6.5% in May of 2000.

Only in hindsight did they realize had over-tightened and cut the fed funds rate by -4.75% alone in 2001.

We have no idea if this cycle plays out the same, but if someone is trying to compare today's AI driven spending to the 1990s tech bubble, it's at least important for them to be honest and point to the fact that the Nasdaq went up almost another 90% from the first rate hike to the market peak.

I drove by a local bank this weekend on the way to my son's soccer game.The billboard was showing an 18/mo CD at 2.85%.M...
09/15/2026

I drove by a local bank this weekend on the way to my son's soccer game.

The billboard was showing an 18/mo CD at 2.85%.

Meanwhile, you can now get 4% or more on treasury bills as short as 3/mo duration.

Bonds actually look they are supposed to again.

A normal "yield curve."

Understanding and planning for opportunities in cash and short term bonds is one of the simplest way to improve returns.

The conversations I've had many time the last few years was helping people understand they weren't stuck with the close to 0% rates their banks were offering on their checking and savings accounts.

Now the conversation is shifting to ways to further maximize returns in the short term (0-3 years) planning bucket.

Address

Mechanicsburg, PA
17050

Opening Hours

Monday 8:30am - 4:30pm
Tuesday 8:30am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 4:30pm
Thursday 8:30am - 4:30pm
Friday 8:30am - 12pm

Telephone

+17179619456

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Zizzi Investments, LLC posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share