What's Your Plan?
Financial Planning
Let us help you make a roadmap.
Your Financial Road Map
Most of us would never think of taking a trip without a map and a destination in mind. Your financial plan is the road map to an uneventful smooth journey to reach your financial destination.
Your financial plan:
- SHOULD be flexible and able to maneuver potholes and detours, while still getting you safely to your destination
- SHOULD NOT be a fat notebook that sits on a shelf never again to be opened by either you or your financial professional
- SHOULD be part of your annual reviews to ensure you are on track and meeting your goals.
Testimonials On
Planning
3 Stages of
Your Financial Plan
Design, Implementation & Monitoring
Stage 1
Design
- Develop a set of realistic goals
- Review your current income and expenses
- Determine how hard and quickly you money has to work to meet your goals
- Examine tax, estate and insurance elements with respect to your now and your future
- Communicate with attorney, CPA and other financial professionals to ensure all the pieces fit together
- Determine ways to save you money
- Identify and resolve areas of family financial conflict
- Examine several scenarios using different variables such as inflation, rates of return and income needs
- Recommend the proper mix of investments for your chosen plan scenario
Stage 2
Implementation
- Selection of the investments that work towards your chosen plan
- Address and help implement any tax, estate or insurance changes
- Ensure all the titles of your assets are properly changed to match your estate
- Transfer any assets that may be necessary to meet your new plan goals
Stage 3
Monitoring
- Meet on a regular basis to review goals and lifestyle changes
- Track investment performance to work towards the plan projections
- Rebalance the portfolio with the fluctuations in the economy, markets, tax laws and changes
- Listen. Being there for you to discuss your everyday financial challenges
“Choosing an Investment Firm is like trying on shoes. The fit should be comfortable, affordable and meet your needs. When the fit is right, you’ll know it.”
- Dawn Litchfield Brown
Perspective
Would you pack up the family, the car and start driving for a vacation without picking where you want to go?
Of course not.
Would you decide to get married without picking a date, place and a plan to pull it all together?
Of course not.
Would you build a house without determining what you want and a set of plans?
Of course not.
Do you know how many people invest their entire financial future without a workable set of financial plans?
Most!
Definitions for
Financial Professionals
Money Manager, Registered Investment Advisor, Financial Advisor & Wealth Manager
Money Manager
Someone who actually manages the investments inside a portfolio such as the XYZ Mutual Fund, the ABC Hedge Fund or the Mapato Separate Account Portfolio.
Financial Advisor
Someone who may do all of #2 but does NOT have any fiduciary responsibility for their advice to you. They used to be called Stock Brokers.
One thing we always ask investors to do when a friend or a Financial advisor gives them advice is, Ask them, “If I take your advice are you willing to take responsibility if it doesn’t work out!” It really makes you think twice about advice given over cocktails, bridge or golf.
Registered Investment Advisor
Someone who actually takes fiduciary responsibility for their advice and implementation of your financial plan and investment strategy. Generally, they will incorporate one or more Money Managers.
Wealth Manager
Someone who should be looking at all aspects of your financial life and helping guide you through them from birth to death and beyond.
While we do this for some of our clients, we don’t hold ourselves out as a Wealth Mangers because we want to be sure we can provide good solid financial planning and money management to everyone. Wealth Management is most often for the wealthiest investors. If you do it right, the number of clients they would be able to serve would be very limited. It is our fear that many hold themselves out as Wealth Managers when all they really are is assets gatherers. The implementation and maintenance of your wealth management goes by the wayside while you are still paying for it.