incomestead

Writing

Field notes on governing serious money.

Jul 2026

The Governance Score

Most portfolio health checks grade what you own. This one grades how you run it — four components, a published formula, and a margin gate that caps the score.

Jul 2026

You Have a Strategy. You Don't Have a Process.

A strategy in your head isn't a policy. Here's the one-page investment policy statement template — and how it becomes your Investment Charter.

Jul 2026

Why I Don't Want AI Trading My Money — and What I Want Instead

AI can trade your money in milliseconds — and be wrong just as fast. I'd rather have an engine that recommends and lets me decide. Here's the difference.

Jul 2026

You Were Right to Fire the Advisor. You Just Hired an Unsupervised One.

Firing a 1% advisor saves the fee — but you also fire the six supervision jobs it quietly did. The fix isn't rehiring; it's governing your own book.

Jul 2026

DIY, Robo, RIA, or Governance: How to Run Your Own Money Without Flying Blind

DIY, robo, or an advisor isn't the whole menu. The fourth option — governance — keeps your control and fee savings while adding the supervision you lack.

Jul 2026

Living Off a Margin Loan in Retirement: The Debt That Grows While You Sleep

Funding retirement from a margin loan means the debt compounds on itself — climbing toward the danger zone even in a flat market, then a crash finishes it.

Jul 2026

Borrow Against Your Portfolio in Retirement: The Income That Can Get Called

Borrowing against your portfolio can fund retirement without selling a share. It's powerful and callable — only safe if you govern the utilization to a zone.

Jul 2026

An Alternative to the 4% Rule: When Drawing Your Portfolio to Zero Isn't the Only Plan

The 4% rule assumes you sell your portfolio to zero. There's another model — borrow against it instead. Powerful, callable, only safe if you govern it.

Jul 2026

Retire Without Selling: The Borrow-Don't-Sell Retirement Model (and Its One Catch)

Every retirement calculator assumes you sell. The wealthy borrow against a compounding base instead. Powerful but callable — here's how to govern it.

Jul 2026

When One Winner Becomes Your Whole Portfolio: The Concentration Trap

One winner doesn't announce itself — it compounds until a single name is your whole book. Here's how to measure concentration and govern it.

Jul 2026

A Pile of Good Stocks Isn't a Portfolio: The Case for Strategy Diversification

You can own eight excellent stocks and still not own a portfolio. Here's the difference between a pile of good picks and a designed structure — and how to tell which one you actually hold.

Jul 2026

Allocation Drift: The Silent, Measurable Risk You Can't See by Hand

Allocation drift raises your risk while you do nothing. It's not a vibe — it's a number you can compute from your own book every week. Here's the exact method, and the rule for when it should trigger action.