Our Financial Planning and Wealth Management Services
At Cornerstone Wealth Advisors, Inc., we believe ongoing financial planning to be fundamental to achieving your life’s goals and enhancing your quality of life. We also believe ongoing and proactive implementation – delivered through advice that is personal, comprehensive, objective, competent and ethical – to be indispensable to caring for all aspects of your wealth. We bring the artisan’s hand to help you craft its creation, accumulation, protection, management, taxation, distribution and ultimate transfer – for your well-being and for those you care about.
We have designed our financial planning and wealth management services to reflect these beliefs.
Financial Planning Services
Before learning about your assets (and even before learning about your goals!), we learn to know you: the significant influences and lessons in your life, your money role models, your personal values and philosophy, your hopes and dreams (and, yes, your fears and regrets), your story. In addition, we work to discover how you define success as well as what brings you meaning and fulfillment.
Only then can we truly understand what you mean when you describe your life’s goals. We devote an entire meeting to this conversation. Many clients have told us that this is the most revealing conversation they have ever had about financial visioning and goal-setting. They frequently go on to say that this step alone is worth our fee for our Financial Planning services.
We then conduct a thorough fact-finding of your financial situation. Your preparation for this meeting is the most extensive part of the process that we ask of you. But clients often find their effort to be well-rewarded by the increased sense of “the big picture” that they obtain.
Once these steps are completed, we ready to bring the architect’s eye to designing a financial plan that can achieve your goals in ways that also reflect your values, vision and specific financial circumstances.
A few weeks later when we present your financial plan to you, it will include our written analysis combined with recommended planning strategies and techniques that are designed to help you achieve your financial goals and objectives. Our recommendations are based on the facts and representations that you make during this process. They address, but are not limited to, the following questions:
Ø Cash Flow
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How can I get a handle on what I’m spending?
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Am I saving enough given what I make?
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What level of cash reserves should I maintain?
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Which retirement income sources should I tap first (and in what amounts)?
Ø Liability Management
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How much debt and other leverage is appropriate for me?
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What is the optimal structuring of my mortgage and other financing?
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Should I try to accelerate paying off my mortgage and other debt?
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How can I best use financing options in the exercise of my company stock options?
Ø Asset Protection
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What type of personal liability coverage should I carry?
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Do I have the appropriate levels of automobile and homeowner’s coverage?
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How much and what type of life and disability insurance should I have (if any)?
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Do I need long-term care insurance? If so, how much and what type of policy?
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Should I consider using trusts to protect some of my assets?
(Cornerstone Wealth Advisors, Inc. recommends specific types of insurance. However, we do not sell or market any policies nor do we receive any compensation for any referrals we make.)
Ø Retirement Planning
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When will I be able to retire and how much money will I need?
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How do I plan for my children’s educational expenses while saving for my retirement?
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What are my most likely retirement scenarios and how do they compare?
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Would a special package from my employer make it possible to retire early?
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How much income can I take from my portfolio and still sustain my long-term security?
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How can I be sure I won’t become a burden to my children, grandchildren and family?
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What would be the impact of working longer or working during retirement?
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What is the impact to my future of a career change that would lower household income?
Ø Asset Allocation and Portfolio Design
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How much risk am I taking now and how much do I need to take?
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How likely is my current portfolio to help me achieve my long-term financial goals?
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What asset allocation is appropriate for me given my goals, situation and risk tolerance?
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What specific investments should I use to implement my chosen asset allocation?
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How do I incorporate my 401(k) or 403(b) plan into my overall portfolio design?
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How do I incorporate my large position in my employer’s stock into my portfolio?
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How do I monitor and evaluate portfolio performance in various economic conditions?
Ø Income Tax Planning and Management
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What should I be doing now to lower my taxes both this year and in the future?
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How can I best take advantage of the new tax law that continues to phase in each year?
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Should I be sheltering more (or less) income and deferring its taxation to later years?
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How can I lower my taxes through more effective use of my small business?
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How should I structure my portfolio to maximize my after-tax (not pre-tax) return?
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Which investments are best held in my after-tax (versus deferred or sheltered) accounts?
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What strategies can help me reduce the taxes on my appreciated real estate holdings?
Ø Wealth Transfer and Estate Planning
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How do I arrange my estate plan to leave a legacy that reflects my values and priorities?
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How do I treat my children fairly even though they have different needs and situations?
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Will my estate plan minimize costs and taxes as well as hassle and delay for my heirs?
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What type of will and/or trusts will best achieve my priorities?
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Should I consider establishing a revocable living trust?
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Are my beneficiary designations current, consistent and indicative of my priorities?
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How can I best benefit the charities and other organizations I wish to support?
We charge a flat fee for our Financial Planning services based on your specific needs and situation. Our minimum fee for these services is $2,000.
Ongoing Wealth Management
Cornerstone Wealth Advisors, Inc. provides Ongoing Wealth Management services on both a discretionary and non-discretionary basis. This service consists of Asset Management and Financial Advice and includes the following components:
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A Statement of Investment Policy that establishes your specific investment objectives, risk tolerance, appropriate asset classes and any restrictions on the management of your funds (Please refer to the “Cornerstone Investment Process” diagram under “What We Do” for a schematic diagram of our portfolio management approach.)
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Analysis to determine the appropriate allocation of your assets between various investment asset classes
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Research and selection of the specific investments to implement your chosen Investment Policy
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Regular and ongoing monitoring of your portfolio, including a review and possible modification of your asset allocation and investment holdings as appropriate
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Quarterly consolidated statements that detail your investment holdings, asset allocation, portfolio performance as well as our overview and outlook for the economy and the financial markets
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Periodic (usually semi-annual) meetings to review your progress toward your overall planning objectives, the status of your plan’s implementation, any changes in your financial situation, general economic conditions and outlook, cash flow, insurance coverages, retirement plans, income tax situation and estate planning
Our Ongoing Wealth Management services typically provide the greatest benefit to clients with investment assets of at least $500,000 or a total net worth that exceeds $1 million. We charge an asset-based fee ranging from 1.00% on the first $1,000,000 to 0.25% on assets over $10,000,000. Our minimum fee for these services is $1,250 per quarter.
At our discretion, Cornerstone Wealth Advisors, Inc. will provide elements of our Financial Planning Services to our Ongoing Wealth Management clients for no additional fee.
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