Just as the government shutdown ended, the IRS kicked-off its’ 2019 tax filing season this week on Monday, January 28th. With the window now open to file returns, we would like to draw your attention to the new postcard-sized 1040…and why it may not be as simple as it seems.
What a difference a year makes! The largest drop in 2017 was less than 3%, while 2018 experienced the largest drop since 2009 at nearly 20%. In 2017, December saw near record highs while December of 2018 was the worst on record (except 1931, The Great Depression); Christmas Eve was the worst in history. Stocks were not the only problem investment: nearly every major asset class was negative for the year with the exception of the aggregate bond index which was up 0.01%. The chart below shows that among the eight largest asset classes, none gained more than 5% for the first time since 1972 (see chart below). 2018 was a major anomaly and will go down in history as a tough year for investors.