Should You Invest in Real Estate? Fundamentals of Investing (Part 1)
Release Date: 05/15/2024
Is AI a Bubble? Plus the Hidden Concentration Risk Inside Your Index Fund
Left Brain Thinking
In this episode, Left Brain Wealth Management Founder & CIO Noland Langford and Director of Research Brian Dress sit down for their Q2 2026 Investment Committee debrief. On the surface it was a strong quarter, the S&P 500 was up 14.9%, but the conversation goes well beyond the scoreboard. Noland and Brian unpack where capital actually flowed, why the AI buildout is spreading past the chipmakers, and a form of hidden concentration that may be sitting inside a portfolio that looks perfectly diversified. Topics covered: • The Q2 scoreboard and the story it doesn't tell • Where money...
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What Executives Actually Need to Know About Their Equity Comp
Left Brain Thinking
Brian Dress and Noland Langford walk through everything executives need to know about their equity comp packages, from the basics of RSUs, stock options, and ESPP, to vest day tax implications, the job change trap, and what building a real equity compensation plan actually looks like. In this episode: • The three types of equity comp and what makes each different • What vest day actually means (and why it matters more than a calendar reminder) • The tax withholding gap and other hidden costs • Expensive mistakes executives make around vesting • The job change trap: options...
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What Happens If You're Wrong? Managing Concentrated Company Stock | Fundamentals of Investing
Left Brain Thinking
In this episode of Fundamentals of Investing, Brian Dress and Noland Langford tackle one of the most common (and most overlooked) financial challenges facing corporate executives: what to do when your company stock becomes a dominant part of your net worth. They cover the full picture of equity exposure (RSUs, stock options, ESPP, deferred comp, and 401(k)), walk through the real math of concentration risk, and offer a practical framework for when and how to start diversifying, including how to think about the tax implications without letting them drive the decision. Topics covered: - Why high...
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Your Stock Is Down. Here’s What Executives Actually Do About It.
Left Brain Thinking
I n this episode, Left Brain Wealth Management CEO Noland Langford and Director of Research Brian Dress address one of the most painful and underserved situations in executive finance: your concentrated company stock position is falling — and you don’t know whether to act or wait. Noland and Brian walk through the psychology of why executives get stuck, the real options available beyond “sell everything or do nothing,” and the practical steps you can take right now — even if you’re not ready to make a big move yet. Topics covered: • The emotional weight...
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The Diversification Trap Nobody Sees Coming
Left Brain Thinking
If you work at a publicly traded company and receive any form of equity compensation, RSUs, stock options, ESPP, or deferred comp, this episode is for you. Brian Dress and Noland Langford walk through the executive diversification trap: how concentration in employer stock builds gradually, why it is so hard to act on, and what a structured plan to address it actually looks like. Topics covered: • How a $200K salary can represent $6 million or more in future earnings power • Golden handcuffs: what they are and what they cost you • The FOMO psychology that keeps executives...
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Tax Planning for Executives Earning $300K+
Left Brain Thinking
Once income crosses $300K, taxes often become one of the largest controllable expenses. At that level, several things begin to change: • deductions phase out • equity compensation adds complexity • timing decisions matter more We recently recorded a discussion covering several of these considerations. If you'd like to discuss your situation: We’re also hosting a live Zoom session covering our views on recent market developments. To sign up, click the link below: No Client or potential client should assume that any information presented or made available on or through this video...
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Is It Time to Stop Buying the Dip?
Left Brain Thinking
For 15 years, buying the dip worked. That conditioning may now be a liability. Defensive sectors are leading. Growth multiples are compressing. For more than a decade, markets rewarded a simple discipline: buy the dip. It worked. But leadership is rotating. Growth multiples are compressing. Defensive sectors are leading. Financials aren’t responding to favorable backdrops. Gold is rising. Bitcoin isn’t acting like digital gold. This doesn’t automatically signal collapse and we don’t think there is any reason to panic. But it does raise a more important question: Is the...
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Don’t Just Take the Job, Evaluate the Equity Compensation!
Left Brain Thinking
Executives often focus on salary when evaluating offers. But real wealth (and potentially real risk) usually lives in the equity package. In this episode, Brian Dress and Noland Langford unpack how to evaluate job offers through a strategic lens, helping leaders avoid costly missteps and uncover long-term value. Key Topics: • Why equity comp is often misunderstood, even by seasoned execs • How to compare offers with RSUs, options, and performance shares • The biggest blind spots when changing jobs • Timing and tax insights few people catch 📘 Download our 📅 The...
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Why Strong Earnings Aren’t Lifting Stocks | Q3 2025 Earnings Breakdown
Left Brain Thinking
Strong results, soft reactions. In this month's Jarvis Update, CIO Noland Langford and Director of Research Brian Dress review Q3 earnings trends, consumer weakness, AI infrastructure growth, and what executives should evaluate as year-end approaches. Links: • Download the • Download the •
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Q3 Market Update 2025: Why the Bull Market Is Stronger Than You Think
Left Brain Thinking
Are we really in a bull market? Noland Langford and Brian Dress discuss sector winners, AI-driven growth, and the return of income opportunities in a falling-rate environment. To learn more: Phone: (630) 547-3316
info_outline0:00 Intro
2:24 What Are Your Goals?
5:10 Hidden Costs of Rental Ownership
6:55 Pros of Real Estate Investing
8:00 Cons of Real Estate Investing
Should you invest in real estate? As advisors, this is one of the most frequently asked questions we hear from clients and other investors.
Most important when answering this question is really understanding your goals: are you looking for cash flow? price appreciation? are you in it to own a business? Without answering this fundamental question, it's hard to develop an investment strategy that makes sense.
In the latest Fundamentals of Investing series, we give our analysis of real estate as an investment. In Part 1 of the series, CEO Noland Langford covers some of the hidden costs of real estate investing and goes through his list of pros and cons of purchasing rental properties. Director of Research, Brian Dress, shares our cash flow analysis of the true cash returns of owning rental units.
Please tune in next week to Part 2 of the series. Noland will speak more about the challenges of executing a rental portfolio strategy, while offering some alternative asset classes that may provide similar or better returns without the headaches around the rental business.
Get on Brian's calendar directly to discuss a plan for Build, Grow, and Preserve Your Wealth at https://m.levitate.ai/67de35-5y0b8m/60-minute-meeting
To check out our website, head over to https://leftbrainwm.com/
Email Brian at briand@leftbrainwm.com to discuss whether real estate investing or a more markets-based strategy would be a better fit for your goals. DISCLAIMER: This report contains views and opinions which, by their very nature, are subject to uncertainty and involve inherent risks. Predictions or forecasts, described or implied, may prove to be wrong and are subject to change without notice. All expressions of opinion included herein are subject to change without notice. Predictions or forecasts described or implied are forward-looking statements based on certain assumptions which may prove to be wrong and/or other events which were not taken into account may occur. Any predictions, forecasts, outlooks, opinions, or assumptions should not be construed to be indicative of the actual events which will occur. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. The opinions and data in this report have been obtained from sources believed to be reliable; neither Left Brain nor its affiliates warrant the accuracy or completeness of such and accept no liability for any direct or consequential losses arising from its use. In addition, please note that Left Brain, including its principals, employees, agents, affiliates, and advisory clients, may have positions in one or more of the securities discussed in this communication. Please note that Left Brain, including its principals, employees, agents, affiliates, and advisory clients may take positions or effect transactions contrary to the views expressed in this communication based upon individual or firm circumstances. Any decision to effect transactions in the securities discussed within this communication should be balanced against the potential conflict of interest that Left Brain, its principals, employees, agents, affiliates, and advisory clients has by virtue of its investment in one or more of these securities. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. The price of securities can and will fluctuate, and any individual security may become worthless. A high or favorable rating, rating outlook, gauge, or similar opinion is not indicative of future performance, and no user should rely on any such rating, rating outlook, gauge, or similar opinion to predict performance or potential for return. Future performance may not equal projected or forecasted performance or potential for return. All ratings and related analysis, as well as data, statistics, analysis, and opinions contained herein are solely statements of opinion and are not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any security or make any other investment decisions. This report may contain “forward-looking” information that is not purely historical in nature. Such information may include, among other things, projections, and forecasts. There is no guarantee that any forecasts made will materialize. Reliance upon information herein is at the sole discretion of the reader. THE REPORT IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY OF ANY KIND.