Insights
The latest announcements and insights from Vaquero Private Wealth
42 articles
10 Questions to Ask an Estate Planning Attorney
The work is graded long after you can do anything about it — sometimes twenty years later. Ten questions for an estate with entities in it, and why execution matters more than the technique chosen.
10 Questions to Ask a CPA
Technical mastery of the tax code and a fluent presence in a conference room are independent traits, which is what makes the interview hard. Ten questions for a balance sheet with entities in it.
August 2026 Market Update: The Return of Capital
The broadest earnings growth since 2021, and payrolls revised down another 103,000. In private markets the binding constraint is no longer the rate of return but the return of capital.
What “RIA” Actually Means — and What Registration Does Not Tell You
Registration with the SEC is a filing, not a license: no exam at the firm level, no experience minimum, and Form ADV Part 1A has no educational field at all. What the letters do and do not guarantee.
Are All Fee Structures Created Equal? What the Advertised Rate Leaves Out
Two firms quote you 1% and 0.75%, and you cannot tell which one costs more. Where the rest of the bill comes from — sweep spreads, revenue sharing, platform fees, markups — including at our own firm.
Tariff Refunds, the $40 Trillion Mark, and the Deadline Most Owners Haven’t Calendared
About $100 billion in tariff refunds has been certified for payment. They are not automatic, they go to the importer of record rather than whoever bore the cost, and the earliest clock expires February 4, 2027.
Moving to Texas Is the Easy Part: What Leaving California or New York Actually Requires
Texas has no income tax and no estate tax, and none of that is the hard part. Texas does not audit whether you are really a Texan. California and New York do, and they put the burden on you.
Suddenly Responsible: What Comes First After Losing a Spouse, and How to Choose Who Helps
Almost nothing in the first ninety days is urgent. But a handful of items carry real deadlines, and one of them can permanently cost a family up to $15 million of estate tax exclusion.
When Private Markets Stop Being an Allocation: What Managing a Private Portfolio Actually Requires
A $400,000 capital call with a ten-day window, landing while you are somewhere over the Pacific. What owning fifteen or twenty funds actually requires after the decision to invest is made.
July 2026 Market Update: Rising Yields, AI Under Scrutiny, and the Liquidity Question in Private Markets
A flat S&P 500, a 3.2% decline in the Nasdaq, and long-term Treasury yields at a 19-year high — all driven by one question: will the capital committed to AI earn a return?
How to Choose a Wealth Management Firm in Dallas: A Framework for Families With $5 Million or More
Four structurally different types of firm compete for wealthy families in Dallas: independent fee-only RIAs, dual-registered advisors, national brokerages, and bank trust departments.
The Debasement Trade, Reconsidered: What the Dollar, Gold, and Bitcoin Are Telling Us
The dollar has stabilized, gold has fallen sharply from its highs, and Bitcoin has lagged a rising market. Why the debasement trade reversed — and what it means for families with substantial portfolios.
Taxes on an Inheritance: 9 Questions to Ask Before You Touch the Money
Inheriting wealth rarely triggers the 'death tax' people fear — but it raises real tax decisions, from the step-up in basis to the inherited-IRA 10-year rule. Nine questions to ask your advisor and CPA before you act.
10 Questions to Ask a Wealth Manager When You Hold Concentrated Tech Equity
Founders and executives with RSUs, options, or founder stock face decisions a generalist advisor is not built for. Ten questions to ask before and after your exit, including QSBS.
When Your Advisor Is Suddenly Gone: How to Choose What Comes Next
If your advisor passes away you are usually reassigned by default — to a random colleague at a large firm, to a junior advisor at a small one. Why that is the moment to reevaluate.
Financial Priorities in the First Year After a Liquidity Event
The first 90 days stabilize a liquidity event. The first year is where the real work happens — tax reserves, earnouts, residency, giving, and disciplined monitoring.
Mid-Year 2026 Market Outlook: Strong Earnings, Sticky Inflation, and a Hawkish Fed
Why the S&P 500 has climbed on earnings rather than valuation, what a hawkish Fed under Kevin Warsh means for portfolios, and the key risks for the second half.
Selling a Major Real Estate Asset: The Tax Decisions, the 1031 Exchange, and How to Replace the Income
Depreciation recapture, the 1031 exchange decision, a warning about syndicated DST products, and how to replace the income the property was generating.
Becoming Your Own Trustee: What Comes Next When You Take Control of Your Trust
When you reach the age to serve as your own trustee, control of significant wealth changes hands. Evaluating advisors, considering a co-trustee, and budgeting before you change anything.
Divorce and Significant Wealth: Why an Advisor Can't Serve Both Sides — and What to Do First
Why one advisor cannot serve both spouses, how the Texas community property framework works, and what to do first — starting with getting a rational advisor involved early.
A Mineral Rights Windfall: What to Do When Royalties or a Sale Change Your Financial Picture
For many Texas families, significant wealth sits beneath the ground. Verifying you are paid correctly, the tax picture, the hold-versus-sell decision, and replacing royalty income.
Greenspan's Legacy and the Warsh Fed: What Changing Monetary Policy Means for Long-Term Investors
Alan Greenspan shaped modern central banking over 19 years. Days after his passing, Kevin Warsh chaired his first Fed meeting. How communication and the balance sheet may shift.
Inheriting Significant Wealth: Five Questions to Ask Before You Choose an Advisor
The advisor who managed assets for the previous generation may be entirely unequipped for what you now hold. Five questions to ask first — trust structures, professional networks, family dynamics.
Qualified Small Business Stock After the July 2025 Law
Section 1202 can eliminate federal capital gains tax on a founder's stock — but the July 2025 law split the rules on a single date, and which side your stock falls on changes the ceiling and the holding period.
How to Evaluate a Wealth Manager After a Business Sale: Five Questions That Actually Matter
Before trusting a wealth manager with your liquidity event, ask these five questions about fee structures, custodian arrangements, professional networks, and the full scope of advisory work they can actually deliver.
U.S.-Iran Peace Deal: Market Impact, Oil Prices, and Inflation Outlook (June 2026)
A June 2026 market update analyzing the U.S.-Iran peace framework, oil prices, inflation trends, and implications for diversified portfolios.
Managing a Concentrated Stock Position: How UHNW Families Diversify Without an Outsized Tax Bill
The three questions that come before any sale, and the honest tradeoffs of staggered sales, exchange funds, direct indexing, and options structures — from a fee-only fiduciary.
Executive Equity Compensation: A Tax-Smart Guide to RSUs, Stock Options, and Deferred Pay
A tax-smart guide to executive equity compensation — RSUs, stock options, ESPP, and deferred pay — including the ISO Alternative Minimum Tax trap, concentration risk, and how to diversify without an outsized tax bill.
Preparing Heirs, Not Just Inheritances: Navigating the Great Wealth Transfer
For ultra-high-net-worth families, the wealth transfer now underway depends less on documents than on preparing heirs — through communication, family governance, and next-generation education.
Making Sense of Recent Market Volatility: Fed Rate Hikes, Tech Stocks & Staying Invested
Markets pulled back in June 2026 on rising Fed rate-hike odds and renewed geopolitical risk. Why tech stocks are rate-sensitive — and why long-term investors shouldn't overreact.
10 Questions to Ask a Wealth Manager After a Liquidity Event
What families should ask when evaluating a wealth manager after a business sale — fiduciary structure, equity compensation, tax timing, and estate coordination.
The First 90 Days After a Liquidity Event: A Financial Checklist for Newly Liquid Families
A practical checklist for the first 90 days after a liquidity event, helping newly liquid families protect capital, manage taxes, and build a long-term wealth framework.
Trump Accounts for Children: What Ultra-High-Net-Worth Families Should Know
A detailed overview of Trump Accounts for children and how ultra-high-net-worth families may integrate them into estate planning, gifting, and family governance strategies.
May 2026 Market Update: Stocks at Record Highs, Rates, Inflation, and Fed Transition
May 2026 market update covering record equity highs, interest rates, inflation trends, IPO activity, and the transition to a new Federal Reserve Chair.
Advanced Estate Planning Strategies to Transfer Family Wealth Efficiently
A comprehensive guide to advanced estate planning strategies designed to reduce taxes, preserve family wealth, and ensure intentional multi-generational transfers.
Best Credit Cards for UHNW Clients in Dallas (2026)
A Dallas wealth advisor's candid comparison of the Amex Platinum, Chase Sapphire Reserve, and Citi AAdvantage Executive cards for ultra-high-net-worth families.
Tech Stocks, IPO Activity, and Higher Interest Rates: Portfolio Perspectives
An investor-focused look at tech stocks, IPO activity, and rising interest rates—and what these trends mean for long-term portfolio construction.
April 2026 Market Update: New All-Time Highs Despite Uncertainty
April 2026 market update covering stocks, bonds, oil prices, Federal Reserve policy, and why disciplined long-term investing matters.
OPEC, Tariffs, and Market Highs: What Long-Term Investors Should Know
OPEC policy shifts, court challenges to tariffs, and new market highs show why long-term investing—not headlines—drives portfolio outcomes.
Kevin Warsh as Fed Chair: What It Could Mean for Markets
An overview of Kevin Warsh's Federal Reserve views, monetary policy priorities, and potential implications for markets and long-term investors.
A Balanced View of Inflation and Earnings as the War in Iran Evolves
As the conflict between the United States and Iran evolves, how energy prices, inflation, the labor market, and corporate earnings are shaping the outlook for long-term investors.
Housing Market Update: Impact on the Economy and Financial Plans
Affordability pressures, inventory dynamics, and mortgage rate trends — what current housing conditions mean for the broader economy and for your own financial plan.