Our mission is to help individuals, recently retired or about to retire, achieve their ideal retirement vision. How can we help you achieve this goal? We use a systematic process that consists of the following steps and/or meetings:
- The Initial Meeting – are we a good fit?
- The Diagnosis – a Check-Up you can look forward to – Dr. Ulivi style
- Developing the Financial Planning Recommendation(s) – what does it take to become financially independent?
- Presenting the Financial Planning Recommendation(s) – explaining your options and recommendations
- Implementing the Recommendations – who will get things done?
- On-Going Monitoring and Quarterly Updates – keeping your plan on track
Each of these steps and/or meetings in our process is explained below.
1. The Initial Meeting – are we a good fit?
During our first appointment, we will start by asking you to tell us your story: what are your top financial concerns, priorities, goals and what is your ideal vision for retirement? That is, what is it that you really want? We will listen carefully in an effort to identify your perceived problems and goals. We will also ask you about the results you would like to achieve. At all times, you are encouraged to ask any questions you may have.
We then review our services; we’ll explain how we can help you solve your concerns and reach your goals. We’ll show you samples of our work, explain our fees, review our background and philosophies—including any questions you might have about our qualifications and experience. Finally, we’ll have a mutual discussion of your needs and our services. In other words, are we a good fit? If “Yes!” we’ll schedule our next meeting, which will be used to diagnose your finances. This exercise will help us understand your financial strengths and weaknesses. However, if you deem we are not a good fit, we will try to provide a referral for a professional who will better suit your needs.
At the end of this meeting, we will have accomplished the following results:
- Defined your financial concerns
- Set your goals for the short and long term
- Determined if we are a good fit
2. The Diagnosis – a Check-Up you can look forward to – Dr. Ulivi style
As is true with any problem… before you can “fix it” you have to analyze it. That’s why at Ulivi Wealth Management we have developed a set of 32 ratios we use to review ALL the key areas of your personal finances. This analysis helps us to quickly determine the strengths and weaknesses of your entire financial situation. The result? You’ll receive an objective evaluation of your current financial condition relative to what’s needed to achieve your dreams.
At the end of this meeting, we will have accomplished the following results:
- Understood the client’s current financial condition and how their corporate benefits package (if applicable) contributes to their overall financial health.
- Identified the strengths and weaknesses of the client’s finances.
- Collected the data needed to formulate the client’s financial plan
3. Developing the Recommendations – what does it take to become financially independent?
It is at this point that we, using both science and art, formulate the recommendations expected to reasonably meet the client’s goals, needs and priorities. A recommendation may be an independent action or a combination of actions which may need to be implemented collectively.
Depending on your unique circumstances, your final plan may include some or all of the followings areas:
- Goal setting
- Financial statements
- Budgeting and cash flow
- Retirement planning
- Social Security maximization strategies
- Risk management
- Medicare analysis
- Long term care needs analysis
- Income and estate tax planning
- Economic & valuation indicators
- Investment strategy
- Real estate analysis
- Investment management
- Stock option analysis
- Monitoring
- Implementation
When we have completed your plan, we will schedule one or two meetings to explain its content and recommendations.
4. Presenting the Recommendations – explaining your options and recommendations
When presenting a recommendation, we shall make a reasonable effort to assist the client in understanding their current situation, the recommendation itself, and its impact on the client’s goals, needs and priorities. In doing so, we shall avoid presenting the advisor’s opinion as fact.
We shall communicate the factors critical to the client’s understanding of the recommendations. These factors may include but are not limited to:
- Personal and economic assumptions
- Interdependence of recommendations
- Advantages and disadvantages
- Risks
- Time sensitivity
We shall indicate that even though the recommendations may meet the client’s goals, needs and priorities, changes in personal and economic conditions could alter the intended outcome. Changes may include, but are not limited to: legislative, family status, career, investment performance and/or health.
If there are conflicts of interest that have not been previously disclosed, such conflicts and how they may impact the recommendations should be addressed at this time.
At the end of this meeting (s), we will have accomplished the following results:
- Reviewed a detailed plan for the client’s financial independence
- Explored alternatives to reach client’s goals
- Made sure the client is completely satisfied with our services
5. Implementation – who will get things done?
The client is responsible for accepting or rejecting recommendations; with us, the client always makes the final decision.
However, if some or all of the recommendations are accepted, the next step is to implement these, and we give the client choices for implementing their financial plan. You can:
- Implement yourself, or
- Delegate all or some of the implementation to Ulivi Wealth Management. In this case, the advisor’s responsibilities may include, but are not limited to the following:
– Identifying activities necessary for implementation
– Determining division of activities between the advisor and the client
– Making referrals to other professionals
– Coordinating with other professionals
– Sharing of information as authorized
– Selecting and securing products and/or services
If there are conflicts of interest, sources of compensation or material relationships with other professionals or advisors that have not been previously disclosed, such conflicts, sources or relationships shall be disclosed at this time.
In recommending specific products and services, we shall select appropriate products and services that are consistent with the client’s goals, needs and priorities. We will use our professional judgment in selecting the products and services that are in the client’s interest. Professional judgment incorporates both qualitative and quantitative information.
Products and services selected by us may differ from those of other advisors. Furthermore, more than one product or service may exist that can reasonably meet the client’s goals, needs and priorities. We shall make all disclosures required by applicable regulations.
6. Monitoring – keeping your plan on track
We normally conduct a client meeting each quarter. The purpose of these meetings is to monitor your overall financial condition and to make sure you are on track to reach your goals. The agenda for the meetings is as follows:
First Quarter Meeting: During the meeting, we:
- Give your finances a 32 Point Check-Up to see if we can identify any new weaknesses.
- We also review past goals and set new ones.
- Performance Review binder: For clients for whom we manage portfolios, we will review a binder containing the following sections (we do the same each quarter):
– Net worth statement updated on a quarterly basis
– Review and update of projections in Golden Years
– Review of economic and valuation indicators
– Quarterly investment performance review
– Attribution analysis
– Recommendations
– Answer any questions that may have arisen during the prior quarter
Second Quarter Meeting. During the meeting, we:
- Review your risk management needs:
– Life insurance
– Disability insurance
– Long term care and Medicare
- Performance Review binder: Same as in first quarter.
Third Quarter Meeting. During the meeting, we:
- Review your estate planning needs
- Review your career plans
- Performance Review binder: Same as in first quarter.
Fourth Quarter Meeting. During the meeting, we:
- Review your income tax planning
- Review your real estate needs
- Performance Review binder: Same as in first quarter.
To-Do Lists: At the end of each meeting, we prepare a To-Do sheet listing the recommendations and/or actions that the client and the advisor are responsible for. At the beginning of the next meeting, the first agenda item is to review the prior meeting’s To-Do list. This monitoring assures that actions are implemented and not forgotten.
We have just completed a review of the regular meetings we hold with clients as part of our planning, implementation and monitoring services.
In Summary
We believe that by listening to your needs and goals, giving your finances a comprehensive Check-Up, designing the plans necessary to help you achieve your goals, and offering our implementation and monitoring services, we can help you make the right decisions so you can achieve your ideal retirement vision.
To understand the benefits of our process, please see the Benefits of Hiring Us.
