Client Success Story

Abby evaluates a pension offer, and more

Abby had been working for 20 years for a mid-size company.  When the company was bought out, Abby was given a choice to receive her pension as a lump-sum or as an annuity. She came to us to help her with this decision and to provide investment management that she and her spouse needed for their growing retirement accounts.

Seeing the big picture
We reviewed her pension choices and ran the numbers that she needed. We also conducted our standard financial planning, using their goal to retire at age 66. When we presented the results at our client meeting, Abby was able to make her pension decision with confidence, and see how it meshed with her retirement goal.

Realizing the benefits of planning
Abby and her spouse were glad to meet with us and receive objective advice. During the meeting, they also expressed an interest in owning an investment condo that they could use in their retirement. They had always felt that this was an unreachable dream. Using the financial plan, they could see that their savings and our investment planning could allow them to pursue this dream, while maintaining their current lifestyle. We cannot guarantee the future, but now we are helping to manage the details so that Abby and her spouse can become closer to their dream goal.

Michael's company buyout brings a big payday

Mike worked as a manager for a small high-tech company. As hoped for, the private equity firm that owned the company agreed to sell to a large public company, triggering windfall payments to the executives. Mike came to us to receive professional advice regarding tax planning and decisions on how to use the new money.

Building an advisory team
We did some initial financial planning for Mike, his wife Amy, and their two children. Then we reviewed the sale documents his company provided to executives. We identified some legal issues and the need for advanced tax strategies and provided the names of an attorney and a CPA that had expertise in these areas.

Helping to implement the plan
Mike and Amy approved our recommendations for organizing their money and setting up new accounts to consolidate several existing accounts. New 529 college savings plans were set up. We are now providing investment management to help them preserve their gains, while minimizing taxes.

A 401k and 403b surprise for Ron and Erica

Ron and Erica had 401k and 403b retirement plans at their workplaces. They also had several accounts with a well-known fee-based advisor who provided only investment advice. Ron and Erica were concerned that they were not on track to pay for future college costs for their 3 year old son. They came to us for objective advice.

Uncovering an investing opportunity
We began with a financial plan, and helped them understand their budgeting and cash flow. They learned that they could continue to afford their boat which they loved, while saving for college. In looking at the big picture of the investments we discovered that they had very little diversification because their retirement plan investments overlapped the IRA investments at the other advisor.

Keeping track of the investment mix
Ron and Erica transferred their accounts to Resolute, where we were able to recommend a fully diversified plan across all their workplace accounts and their IRAs. We are continuing to work with Erica and Ron to rebalance investments, and minimize their tax payments.

A nice surprise for public employees eligible for Social Security

Bill and Cheryl had become clients of Resolute when their previous advisor retired and they were shuffled to a stranger as a new advisor. They came to us for fee-only financial planning along with investment management.

Benefiting from the annual review
During a review meeting we looked at their most recent Social Security statements. Bill and Cheryl were in their late 50’s but wanted to retire early from their jobs in education and health care. Bill’s career was in education which meant he was subject to the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) of Social Security. However, he also had Social Security income in previous years and from consulting work.

Plans made now can influence the future
We provided a calculation which showed he was able to collect a small amount of Social Security after reducing his payment by the WEP. As we discussed the potential for future outside income, we were able to project the possibility of a significant increase in his Social Security. This was an unexpected benefit if Bill chose to take on outside work.

Bill and Cheryl can now use this planning to fine-tune their final years of employment, and reach for their goal of an early retirement.