An inside look at how we help & serve our families:
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Joe and Susan are a married couple with two children in high school
They're both business owners with income sufficient to meet their needs, but they are very unsure of their retirement saving strategy and if they are preparing sufficiently. Both businesses are small and do not currently have retirement plans in place.
Joe and Susan rely on total family income to cover all household expenses. If one income stream were to stop due to a premature death, it would create financial stress on the surviving spouse and their children.
Over 30% of their investable portfolio is invested in ABC Inc. stock with an extremely low cost basis. Tax consequences of reducing exposure is a major concern.
Joe and Susan are charitably inclined, but unsure of the most tax beneficial way to handle their charitable giving goals.
After learning a bit more about each spouse’s business, we were able to identify retirement saving strategies appropriate for each business. Joe developed a 401k plan for his small company while Susan established a SEP IRA as a self-employed consultant.
With the proper savings strategies in place, we then completed a thorough Retirement Income Projection outlining Joe and Susan's probability of successfully funding retirement. Using this information, we were able to identify strengths and weaknesses in their plan and modify goals and objectives.
After a thorough review of existing life insurance policies in place, we identified a need for additional coverage for Susan. Working with our insurance brokers, we researched and selected the policy most appropriate for Susan with premiums that fit within the family budget.
To reduce the overexposure to ABC Inc., we developed an investment plan that included a multi-year transition that would reduce ABC Inc. exposure from 30% of the total portfolio to 10%, all while remaining mindful of capital gains tax. Because Joe and Susan are charitably inclined, we paired this strategy with gifting shares of the highly appreciated ABC Inc. to a newly established Donor Advised Fund. Regular tax projections were completed throughout this process to identify the value that would be most beneficial from a tax perspective.
A full financial plan with a focus on investment planning, retirement saving, tax efficient planning, and charitable giving – all unique to Joe and Susan’s goals.
With new retirement savings plans in place, Joe and Susan are on track to retire earlier than they had originally anticipated. Additionally, we were able to build into their plan a goal to fund their children’s higher education and to leave a legacy for future generations.
Mindful of their charitable giving goals and tax concerns, we were able to move them to a more diversified managed portfolio.
Jane’s husband John passed away, leaving her feeling overwhelmed. John handled most of the financial matters for the family, including investment decisions and cash flow management.
Jane needs to file her taxes as the deadline approaches, and discovers John has accounts in at least 5 different banks and financial institutions.
Jane currently has almost $500,000 sitting in her own checking account and will soon be receiving funds from John’s insurance policy.
Jane is unsure what to do with the funds, but knows she needs to do something. More than 50% of the family’s portfolio is invested in ABC Inc, the company John worked for more than 30 years, and the stock has been on the decline of late.
Jane chose Curran to assist with her wealth management needs, and we immediately began working to ensure she has the right plan in place.
We began by consolidating like-registered accounts where possible.
A consolidated view of all Jane’s accounts (even accounts outside Curran’s management) was established through Curran’s client portal, Panorama. Jane can now view all her accounts in one place.
Jane’s expenses were reviewed, and a retirement cash flow analysis was completed. The results were used to determine a sustainable withdrawal plan, and now a regular monthly withdrawal is sent directly to Jane’s checking account from her investment account to cover her living expenses.
Upon initial portfolio review, Curran’s Investment Committee prioritized portfolio diversification due to high exposure to ABC, Inc. Our team developed a plan that included a 3-year transition to lower the concentration in ABC, Inc. to approximately 10% of the portfolio.
Jane and her Curran team discussed setting aside a cash reserve for emergencies. After determining a number Jane was comfortable with, Jane’s excess cash was deployed to her longer-term investment portfolio.
Curran’s affiliated tax company, HIPPO Tax Services, was employed to complete Jane’s yearly tax return. HIPPO can also monitor Jane’s tax situation, complete periodic income tax projections, and aid in determining withholding changes or estimated tax payments if warranted.
The financial plan that Jane received was exactly what she was looking for during this trying time. In a nutshell, her plan included:
A system for managing her month-to-month income, instilling confidence that she will not run out of money during her lifetime.
A more diversified, professionally managed investment portfolio that is reevaluated against her goals and objectives each year.
A solution for completing and managing her income taxes.
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During our review with Rose, we discussed the time horizons for each of these goals as they varied greatly and impacted our planning.
Rose would like to purchase a home in the near future. She is currently renting and is comfortable continuing to rent to help reach her housing goals.
She would like to save for her long-term goals and retirement. She has been saving through her company’s retirement plan but wants to potentially use this inheritance to grow her nest egg further.
We reviewed with Rose time horizons for each of these goals as they varied greatly and impacted on planning. Rose was unsure about where she would ultimately be settling and purchasing her property. With this in mind, she was more comfortable taking an aggressive approach to her investment strategy. We established an Individual brokerage account and reviewed stock strategies based on her risk tolerance to help maximize the return on her inheritance.
With the account in place, we then walked through a mortgage calculator to determine the needed down payment based on the home value and monthly payment Rose is interested in maintaining. We then prepared a Cash Flow Analysis together to determine if there were other places in her budget where she could save money and help accelerate her goals. As Rose moves close to purchasing a home, we plan to look to more conservative, short-term investment strategies for the targeted down payment amount.
After confirming Rose was contributing enough to her 401K account to receive her company’s matching contribution, we discussed the utilization of outside retirement savings vehicles to complement this account. Based on Rose's current salary, we determined that a ROTH IRA would ultimately be the best fit for her long-term goals. Rose would make contributions to her ROTH IRA with any additional savings that she may have and using funds from the Brokerage account to make sure she is maximizing her contributions each year.
Clear parameters for both long- and short-term goals were set, giving a path to achieve success in Rose’s future.
By focusing on both investment strategies and cash flow strategies, Rose should not only have the funds to purchase her desired home in the coming years, but also be able to budget more effectively after this transaction takes place.
While a home purchase is the more immediate goal, the outlined plan does not sacrifice long-term savings for whatever goals may arise - whether during retirement or something sooner.
At Curran we value service over sales and believe quality service yields happy clients. Below is our 4-step process (the first three steps at no cost to you).
A short introductory call for us to get to know one other. During this call we will discuss your financial goals, concerns and hopes for the future.
In this meeting we will go over your current financial situation, take a deeper look at your goals, discuss your risk tolerances, and collect the data necessary to build a formal proposal.
Based on our data gathering session, our Private Wealth Managers will present you with a custom proposal tailored to your needs. We encourage individuals to take the time to evaluate this proposal.
If you are comfortable with the proposal and choose to invest with Curran, our team will be there every step of the way assisting in opening the recommended accounts and facilitating all necessary parts of your onboarding process.
