What We Do.
David and Susan
David and Susan were in their late 70s when they reached out. They had done well for themselves with a couple million in retirement savings, additional real estate they didn’t plan to touch, and a comfortable lifestyle. But they were running into some issues. Their required minimum distributions were driving their income high enough to increase their Medicare premiums every year, and they had over $500,000 sitting in cash that they weren’t sure how to put to work.
They also had concerns about their estate plan. One of their children had a history of poor money management. One of their grandchildren has special needs and will require lifelong care. They wanted to make sure their finances and estate planning were structured to support their family in the right way.
We started by reviewing their tax situation. Over the years, they had made nondeductible IRA contributions, but the basis hadn’t been tracked. We worked with their CPA to reconstruct that, which helped them avoid being taxed twice as we began a series of Roth conversions. Those conversions will reduce their future RMDs and lower their taxable income over time.
We also helped them invest their excess cash in a portfolio that aligned with their comfort level and long-term goals. To address their estate concerns, we coordinated with their attorney to set up a special needs trust for their grandchild and a spendthrift trust for their adult child. And by using qualified charitable distributions from their IRAs, they now support their church while reducing their taxable income.
For David and Susan, it wasn’t just about optimizing taxes or investment returns. It was about making sure their financial plan reflects their priorities and protects the people they love. Today, they feel much more confident in the decisions they’ve made and the legacy they’re building.
This case study is based on a real client scenario, with names and identifying details changed to protect privacy. It is for illustrative purposes only and should not be interpreted as a guarantee of results.
Lisa
Lisa came to us in her mid-50s, unsure whether early retirement was truly feasible. Her husband, a few years older, had already stepped away from work, and the combination of her own health concerns and a demanding job made her question how much longer she could keep going.
She had accumulated $900,000 in RSUs and non-qualified stock options through her employer, plus another $600,000 across her traditional 401(k) and Roth IRA. Her top concerns were the high cost of health insurance before Medicare eligibility, the complexity and tax treatment of her equity comp, and the fear of outliving her assets.
We helped Lisa put together a tax-efficient strategy to reduce her concentrated company stock exposure, secured a health insurance plan that fit her budget, and created a sustainable income plan to bridge the gap until Social Security. We also reviewed long-term care options, and after exploring insurance products, decided self-funding from her portfolio was the better fit.
She is now happily retired. She and her husband are spending their time traveling, albeit in shorter trips to make sure they can tend to their home garden!
This case study is based on a real client scenario, with names and identifying details changed to protect privacy. It is for illustrative purposes only and should not be interpreted as a guarantee of results.
Henry
A couple of years out of residency, Henry had gone from making $55,000 to nearly $390,000 as a specialist. Even with the big jump in income, he wasn’t looking to change his lifestyle. Instead, he reached out because he wanted to take full advantage of this earning window and start building serious financial flexibility.
He was already feeling the pace of his job and knew he didn’t want to keep it up forever. His goal was to save aggressively now so he could shift into a less demanding role in a few years without worrying about money.
We helped him make the most of the benefits available through his employer, including maxing out his 403(b), reallocating his 401(a) investments, and starting backdoor Roth contributions. He also began participating in a nonqualified deferred compensation plan. After talking through the options, he decided to make minimum payments on his student loans so he could prioritize saving while his income is strong.
Now, Henry is well ahead of schedule on his savings goals and has the confidence to know that when he’s ready for a change, his finances will support the move.
This case study is based on a real client scenario, with names and identifying details changed to protect privacy. It is for illustrative purposes only and should not be interpreted as a guarantee of results.
Emily
Emily was in her mid 50s when her husband passed away unexpectedly, just a few months into his long-awaited retirement. They had built their plans together for years, and suddenly everything was up in the air. She still had time left in her own career, but now she wasn’t sure what any of it looked like.
To make things harder, her husband had always handled the finances. She didn’t know what they had, where it was, or how it was supposed to last. On top of the grief, she was overwhelmed and scared. She wasn’t even sure who she could trust or what she should be doing.
The first thing we did was encourage her to do nothing. We told her to take six months to breathe and grieve. While she focused on that, we quietly got to work behind the scenes—tracking down accounts, organizing everything, and putting together a plan that gave her options.
When we sat down again, she had a clear picture. Not only could she still retire on the timeline she and her husband had talked about, but we also built in room for one big trip a year so she could start crossing a few things off their shared bucket list.
We also walked through her estate documents together and made updates to make sure her kids wouldn’t face the same mess she had. Today, Emily has a handle on everything. More importantly, she feels calm, capable, and clear about what comes next.
This case study is based on a real client scenario, with names and identifying details changed to protect privacy. It is for illustrative purposes only and should not be interpreted as a guarantee of results.
Jake
Jake was in his mid 30s, running a growing construction business with six full time employees. He was working hard to take care of his team and his family, but he wasn’t sure if he was making the most of his success.
He came to us looking for help with long term planning. We started by setting up a retirement plan through the business. It allowed him to put away more money for himself while also rewarding and retaining his employees. From there, we worked with his CPA to change his business structure to an S Corp, which ended up saving him a meaningful amount in FICA taxes each year.
Jake also wanted to make sure his family would be protected if something ever happened to him. We walked through options for life and disability insurance and put a plan in place that gave him peace of mind. Around the same time, his wife, who had been teaching, was thinking about staying home after the birth of their second child. Once we looked at the numbers together, it became clear they could make that choice confidently.
Now, Jake has a solid plan in place for both his business and his family. And more importantly, they feel like they are building the life they want without the stress of unanswered questions.
This case study is based on a real client scenario, with names and identifying details changed to protect privacy. It is for illustrative purposes only and should not be interpreted as a guarantee of results.
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Portfolio Management
Asset Allocation
Asset Location
Tax Efficient Investing
Accumulation and Distribution Planning
Drift and Event-Based Rebalancing
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Retirement Planning
Cash Flow Planning
Social Security Claiming Strategies
Medicare Planning
Roth Conversions and Tax Mitigation
Monte Carlo Analysis
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Business Planning
SIMPLE IRAs and SEP IRAs
Solo 401(k)s and Multi-Participant Plans
Succession Planning
CPA Coordination
S Corp Election Analysis
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Tax Planning
Qualified Charitable Distributions
Gifting Appreciated Stock
NQSO and ISO planning
RSU planning
Annual Tax Return Review
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Estate Planning
Coordination of wills, trust and beneficiary designations
Probate Avoidance
Legacy and Gifting
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Other
Life and Disability Insurance Review
Education Funding
Property and Casualty Review
Debt reduction and budgeting
Long-Term Care Planning