Building Opportunities*

Cara started her work career as a financial analyst in the business banking division of a regional bank. Recently promoted for the second time, she is now a Relationship Manager earning an impressive six-figure salary. Despite her love for travel, going out with friends, and date nights with her boyfriend, Cara has always been prudent and saves a large portion of her earnings. Other than knowing that saving is important, Cara knows little about what she should be doing.

• Should she consolidate her student loans?
• Should she buy or lease her car?
• Does it make sense to buy a house? Or continue renting?
• Is she getting the most out of her employee benefits?

Even though Cara works in financial services and is clearly both smart and successful, she doesn’t have the time or the outside perspective to figure out all the nuances on her own.

The Design:

Our first meeting was to get to know Cara and her situation. Taking a holistic approach, we worked with her to clarify her values and establish goals, as well as identify her needs.

We developed a method for Cara to frame her choices, creating a process that cuts through the uncertainties surrounding decisions. To address her immediate questions, we focused on the following:

• Consolidated her cash flow and structured a budget to match her lifestyle as well as her savings goals.
• Reviewed the financial aspects of buying a home; the short and long term implications to her lifestyle; the unseen obligations that come with owning real estate; and, the differences between home ownership and investment.
• Developed strategies to optimize her debt and improve her credit score.
• Summarized the employee benefits available to her and explained the effects on the rest of her financial situation.
• Created *Why This Matters to Cara* video briefs as education memos to our in-person meetings.

We helped Cara set up an investment account that we manage through a model portfolio, selected to best match her risk profile. To help her stay on track to meet her goals, Cara auto-deposits money from each paycheck. For every bonus and every raise, she committed to investing at least twelve percent.

The Results:

Cara has the peace of mind knowing she has an expert in her corner: a team to help her make strategic decisions and to guide her on the *what and why* behind her choices.

The solutions we developed helped her in many ways:

• She has a handle on her cash flow.
• She knows how to maximize her credit score.
• She understands the financial and non-financial implications when she decides to buy a house (and knows she will call us for help).
• She has a game plan to repay her student loans.
• She pays a reasonable monthly fee for expert, personalized advice.

Cara took action to jumpstart her life. She has a career she loves, travels, and goes out with friends. She is confident in her future because she has a plan, and she understands the *What and Why*.

Importantly, Cara knows we are watching out for her, monitoring her financial future, and offering advice and encouragement along the way.

Unlock the Power of Your Dreams*

Brian and Julie wanted to get a clearer picture of the ramifications to their lives.

• Does the business plan have legs? What would make it better? What risks had they overlooked?
• What is the best way to structure the new company?
• At what point would they have to walk away if things didn’t go as planned?
• How could they protect their savings and their home?
• Would they still be able to pay for their children’s education?

Their Circumstances:

Brian and Julie are highly motivated people. They are go-getters, passionate, and optimistic. They come from middle-class families with strong work ethics.

Brian served three tours in the Middle East as an officer in the Air Force. When he returned, he started working for an air transport company that contracted with the military. His can-do attitude promoted him quickly, becoming the youngest Chief Security Officer in the private company’s history.

Julie is a software coder at a major credit card company, working a flex-schedule to raise their two young children.

Brian always wanted to start his own business. He saw an opportunity to focus on mission engineering in support of US intelligence. He and Julie worked to develop the business plan and build a software prototype.

Brian values the power of delegation. He and Julie took time to research business advisors and financial advisors. When they saw Beckett has the experience to do both, and shares similar values, they knew it felt like the right match.

The Design:

We focused on Brian and Julie as people and a family first, getting clarity on their values and goals, and the dreams they hope to make goals. We believe that if you aligned your actions with your personal North Star, it is easier to make the tradeoffs that are inevitably a part of owning your own business.

The number one marker for success in a new company is the quality of the team. After analyzing the business plan and reviewing the options, we recommended that Brian speak with the president of his current company. We then helped him prepare for the discussions and ensuing negotiations.

We layered the changes that a new business introduces into their personal lives. Brian and Julie have been good at saving. Fortunately, the funds for college plans were solid and only needed minor adjustment.

Among the implications the new business would have on their cash flow, we identified:

• Loss of company provided health care cover.
• Loss of 401(k) company match.
• Need for higher life and disability insurances.
• Need for lower risk (and therefore lower return) in their investment portfolios in order to balance the high risk of starting a new business.
• Need for higher emergency savings.

We developed investment strategies to meet their goals, while providing liquidity for the unexpected. Their portfolios were individually designed around their risk profiles. They also chose to incorporate investment themes that are important to them.

The Results:

Brian and Julie recognize that building a long-term relationship with experts was the right choice for them. Being able to rely on a team who has practical knowledge in business competencies, personal financial planning, and investment management all wrapped with their best interests at heart removed a lot of worries.

Brian was well prepared for the approach to his president. It didn’t take long for his current company to offer to start the new company in stealth mode with a built-in path to launch independence once key milestones had been reached.

Brian now runs the new subsidiary under the security of a supportive and established business. He significantly reduced several business risks as well as the personal risks for his family.

Of course, we check-in frequently for updates and to discuss alternatives, identify strategies to reduce taxes and mitigate risks, offer guidance, and monitor that they are on track for that beach house dream!

Renovating Retirement*

Mark started in commercial real estate and jumped at an opportunity to get into property development. It wasn’t long before he went out on his own. Twenty-five years later, Mark employs 130 people in ten states. When Christine went back to work after Tim’s illness, she purposefully took a position at a biotech that specializes in brain sciences. Her compensation includes generous stock options.

Mark and Christine have been making good choices.

• They have a variety of well-funded investment accounts including 401(k), Roth, and brokerage accounts. Christine’s stock options have the potential to be worth a lot.
• They have significant wealth in real estate and, of course, the value of Mark’s company.
• They have plenty of the right insurance to cover their assets, and to provide for Tim.

The Design:

As their advisors, we wanted to give Mark and Christine simplicity and clarity. They have enough happening in their lives, they shouldn’t have to worry about how to put their financial future together.

We developed a comprehensive plan that brought their seemingly untamable financial picture under control.

• As a result of their success, they are in the highest federal income tax bracket. We worked with their CPA to design and implement efficient tax strategies across the stock options, the real estate investments, the sale of the business, and, one day, the transfer of wealth to Tim.
• We analyzed several avenues for Mark to sell his business, including management buyout, mergers, and outright sale. Since Mark still had a few years before he wanted to sell his business, we recommended that he undertake a thorough business optimization evaluation, which could add millions of dollars to the sale price.
• In collaboration with an estate attorney and their CPA, we designed an estate plan that provided for the support of Tim for life, and also included sizable charitable gifts.
• Because giving back to society is an important value to them, we developed giving strategies that they can enjoy during their lifetimes.

We manage Mark and Christine’s extensive investments as a net worth portfolio, taking into account their real estate holdings and their market securities. Specific strategies are in place to make 1031 exchanges easier. We are able to incorporate their charitable values by including investments from specially designed impact portfolios.

The Results:

Mark and Christine are now confident in their future plans. They have a firm understanding of how much they can spend on their lifestyle and in retirement without jeopardizing a very comfortable life for Tim.

They have planned a trip for the three of them to explore the food and culture of Peru. Tim can’t wait!

With our fully digital platform, they can access their accounts and documents at anytime from anywhere. In fact, we meet with them through our virtual platform most of the time, so they know they can reach us when they need to.