1. Goals-Based Wealth Management – What are your family goals?
• Retirement Goals:
- How do you envision your retirement years?
- How and where will you spend your time?
- What will it cost to enjoy your retirement years to the fullest?
- At what age do you want to know that you have an estate that can provide you the retirement lifestyle you desire?
• Education Goals:
To what extent do you want to finance your education of your children or grandchildren?
• Legacy Goals:
How important is it that you leave a financial legacy to your children or grandchildren? Are they prepared to receive and manage a transfer of wealth?
• Philanthropic Goals:
Are you passionate about a particular organization that you would like to benefit?
• Significant Acquisition Goals:
Is one of your goals to own a business, second home, or vacation home?
• Unique Family Goals:
Should we consider special planning for a child or parent who would not be capable of managing their wealth or financial future? This may include elder care planning, special needs planning, and/or spendthrift planning.
2. Risk Tolerance and Investor Behavior – What is your comfort with investing?
- How much equity exposure will it take for us to achieve your essential goals?
- Would you take portfolio risk or reduce your goal?
- How do you react to media/headlines or social chatter?
- How do you handle stock volatility?
- Interestingly, studies show that investor behavior is just as bad when the markets are going up (excited, bandwagon theory) as it is when the market is going down (fear, sidelining).
3. Taking a Holistic View – When is the last time you reviewed these items?
- Life Insurance: When do you consider life insurance? How much should you carry? What type should you carry? When is the last time you updated your coverage and beneficiaries? Do you have contingent beneficiaries established?
- Long-Term Care Insurance: When do you consider long-term care insurance? What type of long-term care insurance is appropriate? Will your policy provide you the type of care you expect? Does your policy adjust with inflation to keep up with the rising costs? Does your policy provide you with the same benefit coverage if you want to stay in your home versus going to a facility?
- Trusts: When is the last time you reviewed your trust documents (i.e., wills, Power of Attorney, and health care Power of Attorney with your estate attorney? When is a trust more appropriate than a will? When is it beneficial to use a trust officer and a corporate trustee for your family? Trusteed IRAs – who should use them, when are they appropriate, and why?
- Tax Planning Strategies: Are you taking advantage of the years in which you have lower tax brackets? There are great years to redistribute assets to reduce the future risk of paying higher taxes.
- Generational Planning: For Adult Children: Will you be the executor, trustee, or caretaker of your family? Are you prepared for these responsibilities? Are your parents open to having conversations about their wishes? Have you embraced that conversation?
- For Parents and Grandparents: Are you confident they are going through the detailed planning discussions that we provide for you? Have you introduced us to them? We suggest each of your family members have a preliminary conversation with us. We are here to help your next generation plan for their financial futures.
- Debt Financing: When is the last time you reviewed all your debt in regard to interest rate and maturity?
- Employer Benefits: When did you last review your employer benefits? Have you calculated the future value of your contributions and your employer matching contributions? Are you taking advantage of your employer discounted stock purchase plan? Who is reviewing your options with you? What do you have pending in restricted stock units or performance stock units? Is there cyclical pricing opportunity to your company stock?
- Business Owners: When is the last time you had your benefits reviewed? Are you offering the best, more desired benefits for your family, as the owner, and the benefits that are most desired to acquire and retain talent? What is your business succession plan? Is your business viable? Can you benefit from a business analyst review? Do you have partners? Have you protected each other? What are you financing needs and costs? When is the last time you reviewed your cash management and business banking solutions?
Our commitment to our clients is to be accurate and thorough in our planning process, to be open and detailed in the discussion of what it will take to potentially achieve everything you’ve shared with us, and to help you design your portfolio to align with your goals while undertaking an acceptable level of risk.
Working together with your trusted advisors, we seek to ensure your family’s wealth, legacy, estate planning matters, and charitable giving strategies are all properly managed. We are continually developing ideas and looking for risk-adjusted strategies that are suited to your needs. Equally, we are looking for the most tax-advantaged placement of assets possible to serve your interests. As part of the Stifel’s Solutions Program, we manage assets on a discretionary basis using a pre-screened investment approach for clients in this advisory services program. This enables us to quickly react to market conditions when implementing clients’ investment strategies.
Stifel’s banking and lending services are provided by Stifel Bank and Stifel Bank & Trust (collectively Stifel Banks). Trust and fiduciary services are provided by Stifel Trust Company, N.A. and Stifel Trust Company Delaware, N.A. (collectively Stifel Trust Companies).
Stifel Bank, Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender, NMLS# 451163, is affiliated with Stifel Bank & Trust, Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender, NMLS# 375103, Stifel Trust Company, N.A., and Stifel Trust Company Delaware, N.A. All are wholly owned subsidiaries of Stifel Financial Corp. and affiliates of Stifel, Nicolau & Company, Incorporated, Member SIPC & NYSE. Unless otherwise specified, references to Stifel may mean Stifel Financial Corp. and/or any of its subsidiaries. Unless otherwise specified, products purchased from or held by Stifel are not insured by the FDIC, are not deposits or other obligations of Stifel Banks or Stifel Trust Companies, are not guaranteed by Stifel Banks and Stifel Trust Companies, and are subject to investment risk, including possible loss of the principal. Neither Stifel Banks, Stifel Trust Companies, nor affiliated companies provide legal or tax advice.
The Solutions program requires a minimum investment, which varies by strategy. Ask your Financial Advisor for a Disclosure Brochure, which further outlines the fees, services, exclusions, and disclosures associated with this program. Since all investment decisions in a Solutions account are made by the Financial Advisor without having to receive prior client approval, it is important that Solutions clients have detailed knowledge of the Financial Advisor’s individual investment philosophy and decision-making process before entrusting him or her with their portfolio. You should consider all terms and conditions before deciding whether the Solutions Program and any particular strategy are appropriate for your needs.