We want to introduce you to the talented professionals who make up the ACap team, who are all dedicated to providing high-quality, individualized service to our clients. This month we’re spotlighting financial advisor Matthew Crisafulli, EA, CFP® from our Los Angeles office.

The stock (and real estate) markets are hitting all time highs. Investors are optimistic and excited about the recent gains and want to buy more stocks and real estate. Financial news outlets bring on experts that extol how prices will continue to rise, but it’s during times like these that we forgot that markets can and do decline periodically. At some point, and no one can truly predict when, the markets will decline and these same news outlets will use terms like “crash” and “correction” and bring back the same experts who now have a gloomier outlook. While there is no technical definition of a stock market crash, there is one for a correction. A correction is when the market declines 10 percent from its peak. Whichever term is used, are you prepared for the next correction or crash?

A reminder for Los Angeles County property owners: Today, Monday, April 10th, 2017 is the last day to pay or postmark the 2nd installment of your LA County property tax bill. If the payment is not received by 5:00 p.m. or postmarked by April 10, a 10% penalty and $10.00 cost are assessed.

The stock (and real estate) markets are hitting all time highs. Investors are optimistic and excited about the recent gains and want to buy more stocks and real estate. Financial news outlets bring on experts that extol how prices will continue to rise, but it’s during times like these that we forgot that markets can and do decline periodically. At some point, and no one can truly predict when, the markets will decline and these same news outlets will use terms like “crash” and “correction” and bring back the same experts who now have a gloomier outlook. While there is no technical definition of a stock market crash, there is one for a correction. A correction is when the market declines 10 percent from its peak. Whichever term is used, are you prepared for the next correction or crash?

As part of our efforts to give back to the community, ACap’s Alina Parizianu, MBA, CFP® will be holding free 30-minute financial planning sessions on April 28th at the New York Public Library (sponsored by the Financial Planning Association of New York). Appointments are on a first come, first served basis. Find out more via NYPL.org/fpd

Are you a nonprofit looking for a grant? Many of you know that I am on board of the Water Buffalo Club (WBC), a charity that supports smaller nonprofits focusing on helping underserved and underprivileged children in LA. Our tagline is “Big Kids Helping Little Kids” and we have a lot of fun doing it. We don’t just give money away; the WBC provides tangible capital equipment such as cars, trucks, vans, computers, books, musical instruments, clothing, etc. To qualify for a WBC grant, your charity must meet three criteria: have an annual budget of less than $350,000, must serve underprivileged kids, and the funds cannot be used for operating expenses. If you or someone you know is on the board of a charity that meets our requirements, I encourage you to apply on our website via www.waterbuffaloclub.org

Last week, ACap's Founder & President, Ara Oghoorian joined Kent Smetters on the Your Money show, which originally aired on Sirius XM Channel 111, Business Radio powered by The Wharton School.

Published on Investopedia on February 9, 2017.

The Consumer Electronics Show, more commonly known as CES is took place in Las Vegas this month. CES has debuted many great inventions we use today such as plasma TVs, Blu-ray players, and ultra-thin laptops. However, the buzz this year in Las Vegas isn’t about the latest Apple product; the spotlight has been stolen by car manufactures such as BMW and Audi who just unveiled their new self-driving car technologies.