In step one of our planning process we will get to know each other, learn about your aspirations, financial needs, and address any concerns or fears you may have about your financial future. In this session, our goal is to make you feel confident and comfortable.

At the end of this session, you will have a clear understanding of the planning process, a timeline, and an estimate of cost for our advice.

In the second step of our process, we will collect all the relevant financial information to help us best assess your current financial situation. Gathering all relevant data allows us to evaluate risk and define financial success and failure as it applies specifically to you and your family.

It also provides an opportunity to understand your existing financial relationships and how we may fit within your team of professionals.

At this point in the process, we are ready to roll up our sleeves. We will review and evaluate the 6 key areas of a comprehensive financial plan, including:

FINANCIAL POSITION: This is the starting point on the road to your successful future. Here we will assess the basic building blocks of your plan including your current assets, investments and other savings, and liabilities like mortgages, personal, student, and other loans or debt.

INSURANCE PLANNING: We will review and assess your need for adequate protection and develop appropriate strategies and techniques as necessary, helping to keep the road ahead safe, seeking to help ensure your ability to achieve your financial goals.

INVESTMENT PLANNING: Based on the goals we’ve established together, we review your current investment portfolio and determine the best direction to help put you on the right path. We will evaluate the appropriateness of your asset allocation and identify strategies in an effort to provide the best possible financial outcomes.

RETIREMENT PLANNING: How far along the path to retirement are you? Based on your expressed retirement goals and family needs, we will identify the short and long-term strategies to help you get to your final destination. We can evaluate various retirement scenarios using several testing methods to provide you with the confidence and security in our approach.

TAX STRATEGIES: A critical part of planning your financial future, thoughtful tax planning ensures that all parts of your financial plan work together to put you in the best possible tax position now and on the road ahead.

ESTATE PLANNING: Many people think that estate planning isn’t for them. But regardless of your income, you should be in the driver’s seat, controlling your assets and protecting your family now and long into the future.

Once we have explored the fundamental components of your financial profile and identified your strengths and weaknesses, we can now design your financial roadmap.

In step four we review with you your path to financial confidence. We provide options and give you choices to help you to work toward the goals that we have established together. We explain how we arrived at our recommendations and we have an open discussion with you about your comfort level. Your path to financial confidence is not a one-way street.

We listen closely to your thoughts and feelings and work together to finalize the plan that will help you get to where you want to go.

Finally, it is time to put your plan in motion. You can implement the plan yourself, or we can assist you in taking the action needed toward achieving your goals. As independent financial advisors, we can provide solutions free from bias or conflicts, tailored to your specific situation.

We will coordinate with any other essential professionals such as CPAs, attorneys, and mortgage brokers to keep your plan moving in the right direction.

The final step in our process is as important as any of the others. Regular visits with your advisor help keep you on track. Along the way, we review your progress against your established goals and your plan. We track milestones, address roadblocks, and change course as needed.

If your plans change along the way due to lifestyle changes like a birth, marriage, or career change, we revisit the plan and adjust as needed to get you back on track.

Our first step is to revisit the goals we identified as part of the financial analysis we completed. Your financial plan is a critical component of your investment program. It provides us with important information we need to help you achieve your goals such as your time frame and your required rate of return.

Your plan and the results provided act as the framework for finding the investment model that will work for you.

We next evaluate your risk tolerance through a quantitative assessment. Our approach to assessing risk allows us to pinpoint your tolerance against a wide scale (1 to 100). We then coordinate your risk tolerance with your previously identified goals to find an appropriate investment strategy to address your needs. By layering your risk tolerance with your goals, we provide a much needed alignment between your needs and your wants.

This approach may help increase the likelihood you will remain invested during difficult or volatile periods.

Using both your financial goals and risk tolerance as guides, we match your needs to a comprehensive investment portfolio. Our investment plans utilize a 3-step process and utilize both strategic and tactical elements. Each plan differs slightly in risk and return characteristics and is designed to help optimize these tradeoffs.

We align these elements of risk and return so as to best meet your expectations for your portfolio and your plan.

No investment strategy assures a profit or protects against loss.

We provide a written plan that outlines the key elements of your investment strategy. This statement is the basic outline of the portfolio we are recommending and provides you with the details of the plan you are investing in. We assist in all levels of support to help fund your portfolio such as transfers, rollovers, or direct funding. To further mitigate risk when implementing your plan, your investments will often occur in numerous installments. This process, known as dollar cost averaging, systematically invests a portfolio over a predetermined period rather than investing all your funds at once.

We carefully facilitate all aspects of funding your account and implementing your plan.

Your portfolio will be monitored regularly to help ensure your allocations remain consistent and on target. We review tactical allocations and the underlying investments on a quarterly basis and make adjustments as needed. We also provide a quarterly investment update to keep you informed of any changes or adjustments to our plan. You will receive periodic statements and summary reports for your accounts, allowing you to review and measure both progress toward your financial goals and the continued suitability of your investment strategies.

Regular office visits allow us to communicate frequently on your progress, and share updates on the risks and opportunities we are evaluating.

As your financial plan progresses, we adjust your investment program accordingly. Through regular communications and annual reviews, we modify your overall investment plan to ensure it remains consistent with both your goals and risk tolerance. As your goals and/or risk change, so should your investment approach. Consistent communication and frequent visits enable us to help continually align your goals and your risk to your portfolio.

We will revisit your goals and risk on regular intervals to ensure your program remains in alignment.