Our Services
While developing a customized financial program, we will walk you through a step-by-step process that will help make you feel confident in your decisions.
Once your goals have been established, we will customize appropriate strategies to suit your vision and objectives. We can help you execute a sound financial program utilizing the following products and services:
Financial Planning
The investment strategies and tactics for achieving short-term goals are very different from those used to accomplish medium- and long-term ones, and managing for tax efficiency plays a key role every step of the way. With our "Life Stages Financial Planning" you'll rest easier knowing that your savings and investments are positioned to meet specific financial goals and based on your financial needs. We will develop a robust plan that factors in the inevitable market ups and downs and includes asset allocation(*) and tax strategies for optimizing results across market cycles.
Education Planning
One of the least expensive options for college is an in-state school. According to collegeboard.com, 2007-08 in-state tuition and fees at public four-year institutions averaged $6,185 and average total charges includihng room and board were $13,589. Choose an out-of-state public school or a private school and the numbers go up exponentially.
We can deal with the college funding issue at any state of the game.
Equity Investments
Equites offer attractive opportunities for long-term investors and are central to a diversification(*) strategy that seeks to maximize portfolio performance while managing risk. Much of equities utility is due to their historical ability to produce returns over the long haul that outpace rising prices. Accordingly to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, since 1945 the purchasing power of the dollar has declined in value every year except 1949 and 1950. Since the mid '80s, inflation ahs been in the 2%-4% range and is currently around 4%.
Stocks have historically provided higher returns than other asset classes. If your time horizon is over 10 years, stock may provide the best potential for returns that exceed inflation. According to Standard & Poor's (**), between 1926 and December 31, 2007 the annual return for a portoflio comprised exclusively of stocks in S&P 500 was 10.68% - well above the average inflation rate of 3.05% for the same period.
Fixed Income
If you are a conservative investor or close to retirement, bonds play an important role in your portfolio. The decision to buy municipal, corporate, high-yield, international, asset-backed or Treasury fixed income securities depends on your tax bracket, risk tolerance and time horizon. While typically less volatile than stocks, bonds are subject to risk related to interest rates, credit, inflation, currency and prepayment. We will explain approaches to managing risks and calculate total return on bond investments, which includes interest payments and any appreciation from the initial purchase price.
Global Wealth
We provide a broad range of investment products for foreign nationals. In partnership with SEI and National Financial Services, we also administer clearing, settlement and tax reporting services to make it easy to administer your portfolio.
Estate Planning
Life insurance, retirement planning, asset protection and other factors are intertwined and all play a role in minimizing taxes and maximizing protection (***) for you and your heirs. From basic life insurance and asset distribution planning to complicated estate plans and trusts, we work closely with TAM and Tax Attorneys to develop your personalized estate planning solution.
Retirement Planning
Many people are aware of the financial risks they face, yet have done little to address the issues in ways that will make a difference in their long-term financial confidence/future/goals/etc. Having a pension that seems fairly solid, a 401(k) or both may not be enough. You could still be at financial risk if you have not planned properly and your overall portfolio is not optimally allocated.
We can help ensure that your employer- and non-employer-based assets complement one another, not duplicate. Based on your risk profile and time horizon, we seek to maximize performance and manage risk through overall portfolio diversification.
We factor into your plan bills for health care and long-term care - two of the biggest retirement wild cards given projections for soaring medical costs and corporate cutbacks in retiree health benefits.
Insurance and Annuities
Beyond traditional insurance coverages, insurance and annuities present a variety of alternatives for supplementing your main retirement nest egg and saving for college. By doing an audit of your current policies, we can determine if you're paying too much for what you're trying to accomplish.
Variable life insurance (****) includes an investment account in addition to life coverage. Term insurance, which is usually the least expensive kind, may be available with attractive features such as a guaranteed premium for periods of 10, 15 , 20, even 30 years.
There is similar array of options for annuities. If you're about to retire, an immediate annuity gives you an income stream right away. If you have several years to take advantage of the power of tax deferral to boost your savings, a deferred annuity is a good choice.
(*) Neither Asset Allocation nor Diversification guarantee a profit or protect against a loss in a declining market. They are methords used to help manage investment risk.
(**) Indices are unmanaged and investors cannot invest directly in an index. Unless otherwise noted, performance of indices do not account for any fees, commissions or other expenses that would be incurred. Returns do not include reinvested dividends. The Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500) is an unmanaged group of securities considered to be representative of the stock market in general. It is a market value weighted indes with each stock's weight in the index proportionate to its market value.
(***) Asset protection plans should be developed and implemented well before problems arise. Due to the fraudulent transfer laws, asset transfers that occur close in proximity to the filing of a lawsuit or bankruptcy can be interpreted by the court as a fraudulent transfer. Proper structuring of these assets is imperative please seek proper legal and tax advice prior to engaging in re-titling/structuring of any assets. Please note that laws are subject to change and can have an impact on your asset protection strategy
(****) Variable life insurance is sold by prospectus. Please consider the investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses, and your need for death-benefit coverage carefully before investing. The prospectus, which contains this and other information about the variable life policy and the underlying investment options, can be obtained from your financial professional. Be sure to read the prospectus carefully before deciding whether to invest. The investment return and principal value of the variable life policy are not guaranteed. Variable life sub-accounts fluctuate with changes in market conditions. The principal may be worth more or less than the original amount invested when the policy is surrendered.