Baker Wealth Strategies developed our 3-Part Philosophy for Providing you Elite Financial Services not to be part of the ongoing search engine optimization but rather, as an internal reminder of what we value and the value we bring to people.
In a world filled with tagline and slogan advertising, marketing and propaganda cutting through the noise can seem impossible. Well, here’s us trying to do just that.
Meeting You Where You’re At
When it comes to your financial future YOU are not in the same place as anyone else on the planet! That’s the long and the short of it. There are no quick fixes, no short answers and no one-size-fits all solutions.
What there is; is you, your current situation and your dreams to one day…(fill in the blank).
If you’re in a place in life where you are doing exactly what you want to be doing until you leave this planet chances are, our services are not needed. However, if you’re looking for the financial independence to free up time, try something new, or have a vision of retirement different from your current daily grind, we’d be happy to visit and see how we can help you attain your goals.
Our relationship with clients’ centers around the personal value realized by integrating financial strategies into their lives today; for the purpose of experiencing their vision for the future.
Detailed Oriented
Have you heard the saying, “The devils is in the details”? Well, its truest sense is seen when it comes to financial planning and the implementation of financial strategies.
It’s important to understand when we say, “we’d welcome a visit” or that we “meet you where you’re at” it doesn’t necessarily mean it will be a comfortable conversation. For some clients it can be an uncomfortable eye-opening reality check.
Our conversations center around the details and facts; You are here. These are your priorities. But you want to go over there and realize your dream.
Well first, what’s that dream look like? Do priorities need to shift? What are you doing today to make those dreams a reality? How can we make the transition more efficient, quicker and more financially secure?
The answer to the last question is the overarching culmination of mathematical details central to implementing wealth strategies. The question becomes, “What are the best strategies for you to grow, protect and use your wealth?” Let’s consider a couple of hypotheticals.
Hypothetical Client 1: Jana — Business Owner
Jana is an entrepreneur in her late 40’s. She’s started a small business 10 years ago and now has 22 employees. She enjoys being a business owner but knows in 15-20 years she wants to sell the business and pursue other interests.
Let’s look at what details need consideration. A good place to start is revenue -vs- taxes. Is Jana’s entity and filing structure set up to maximize revenues and minimize her corporate tax burden? With many options available it could be as simple as filing taxes under a different structure, or it may be time to establish a cooperating entity designed for business administration and capable of maximizing tax efficiencies.
To keep this blog reasonably short, but at the same time provide a sense of the amount of detail going into the development of strategies here is a non-exhaustive list for business owners: Employee retentions, Employee benefits, Business succession/ continuation planning, Personal lifetime income, Personal taxes, Investing (business & personal), Legacy planning, Corporate responsibility, Charitable contributions, Family needs (i.e., college, car), Long term care.
These details are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to strategy development. Each item effects the whole and advising and guiding Jana through the details of these interplaying relationships is foundational to executing a success financial strategy plan.
Okay, now let’s look at Joe a very different client situation.
Hypothetical Client 2: Joseph — Oil & Gas Industry Professional
Joe is a 30+ year veteran of the oil fields. He started at the bottom and has worked himself up into management. Joe is in his early 50’s and has diligently contributed to his tax-deferred 401k for years, increasing his monthly contributions once the kids moved out of the house.
In Joe’s case the 401k is a great strategy. However, when we start diving into the details of contributing to a tax-deferred 401k plan there are a couple of things to consider. For starters 401k plans are investments vehicles providing limited market options. The good news for Joe is his 401k plan allows for additional flexibility through what is called a Self-Directed Brokerage Account (SDBA). Utilizing this strategy Joe can gain additional options and flexibility.
Other Considerations for Joe
After maximizing what Joe’s been doing, there is more to consider. Joe has only one retirement strategy and there are real world threats to 401k plans. Let’s look at two: Market fluctuations and taxes. Market fluctuations are fairly self-explanatory. If the market experiences a decline as Joe nears or enters retirement, he could lose significant money. As a result of the timing, he’s likely to never regain his losses or have the retirement he was planning on.
The second threat of taxes is detail heavy. Tax-deferred investing means as Joe uses his money in retirement, he will be paying taxes on the withdrawals. We don’t know what the tax rates will be in 15 years. What we do know is the national debt is pushing $30 Trillion and at some point, someone is going to have to start paying. The other known detail is withdrawals are factored into and effect tax rates on Social Security benefits. Wow… I know, it gets crazy!
Once again to keep this relatively short here is a non-exhaustive list of details for Joe’s consideration. Lifetime income, Social Security, Long term care, Legacy Planning, Charitable contributions, Special-Needs grandchild, Taxes, Unexpected large expenses, and more.
Active Life-Long Learning
As the third piece of our focused philosophy, active life-long learning is what allows us to accomplish the first two. Strategies must be flexible and move with changes in the time and within the economy. A working knowledge of traditional coupled with emerging strategies is a must have when it comes to planning and managing finances.
There are some timeless strategies such as compound interest. Einstein called it, “the 8th wonder of the world” and it’s still a powerful strategy 100 years later. At the same time, many strategies used 20 or 30 years ago have become outdated or, in some cases, improved upon. What was true and did or did not work 20 years ago is not necessarily the case today!
Challenging ourselves to learn and know the details of the changes makes the difference in our service.
Come Meet Us
We value you, your privacy and your uniqueness. If you’re considering a financial strategist for the first time, contemplating a move, or looking for second opinion we would love to meet with you. There are a couple of ways to get the ball rolling but the easiest is to connect with us using one of the links below.
For Business Owners Click Here.
For Individuals & Families Click Here.
Filling out either of these form does NOT opt you into receiving marketing materials from Baker Wealth Strategies. Nor will your information be given or sold to third parties.
The resulting action of filling out either of these forms is: You will be contacted directly by a Client Services Representative of Baker Wealth Strategies.
We look forward to meeting you and please don’t hesitate to connect with us on Facebook and/or LinkedIn for continual updates on important issues facing retirees, pre-retirees and early planners.
