2011 December Newsletter
Dec
1
Written by:
12/1/2011 7:31 AM
We hope you enjoy all of the festivities and joy the season has to offer.
While the holidays are busy months for all of us, now is a great time of year to not only give thanks, but to think about what we want for ourselves and our families in the future. As such, we have dedicated a good portion of this newsletter to planning for what matters most to all of us: our financial security, pets, family, community and friends. Please read on for strategies and opportunities on how to protect all of our loved ones - not just the ones we know, but others who may need our assistance as well, especially during this holiday season.
As a brief reminder, our offices will be closed on both Thursday, November 24 and Friday, November 25 so that we can enjoy the holiday time with our families too. Our office will reopen on Monday, November 28 at 7:00AM.
For our clients, please be on the lookout for an email message from register@netclientcs.com towards the end of the month. This message will contain a link through which you can create your log in and password for your new portal. As with anything new, we expect there will be a few questions along the way so please contact us and we will be happy to help you with this transition.
For those of you who know us well, you know that we never stay idle for too long and usually have something in the works, regardless of the season or time of year. We're proud to support our clients, communities and professional networks wherever we can and are happy to share these opportunities with you. Take a peek at what we have our hands into and feel free to join in on any of these events.
- Resolution Fitness Events Benefiting Hopelink: December 31, 2011, January 22 and February 26, 2012
- Kirkland Shamrock Run: Saturday, March 17, 2012
- Seattle Humane Society Tuxes and Tails Dinner and Auction: May 12, 2012
Contact Mary for more information
New this year was the formation of the PNWBBI non-profit trade organization for professionals involved in all aspects of business brokerage and mergers & acquisitions. Their main focus is to provide networking, education and synergy in the Puget Sound markets. If you are involved in any aspect of the business sale process, from lending to legal, you are welcome to join the group at their next event on Tuesday, January 17th from 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM in Bellevue.
For more information and/or to register for this next event, please visit them online.
There's financial planning, and then there's wealth management. Think of wealth management as a step up from garden-variety financial planning. One office (rather than one person) provides a range of services for a client: personal financial planning and investment management, tax reduction and estate planning strategies, and occasionally in-house legal resources. Business continuation planning, tax preparation and even budgeting and bill paying are sometimes added to the menu.
The difference is really big-picture. Financial planning usually means creating a strategy for accumulating wealth for retirement and personal goals. Investment management focuses on managing financial assets with a performance level in mind. Wealth management, in comparison, considers the total net worth of a family, a couple or an individual. It weighs financial decisions in light of an investment portfolio and additional components of the financial picture such as real estate, insurance, a business, charitable gifting and more.
Yet it is also about paying attention to detail. Every successful professional or business owner reaches a point of delegation - there comes a point at which you can't do it all yourself. Indeed, it can be hazardous to try and keep track of every detail without help. The same goes for your finances - your taxes, your investments, your various accounts.
Good wealth management helps you stay on top of things. A skilled wealth management firm pays attention to many of the financial details in your life for you. You can free up your mind. You feel confident because the wealth management firm has an ongoing relationship with you, with regular reviews and communication.
Wealth management unites advisors from different disciplines as a team. The team looks at your goals, needs and priorities to determine the right, individualized strategy for guiding your invested assets and enhancing your net worth.
When is it time for wealth management? If you have too many financial concerns, issues or priorities to address by yourself, then it is certainly time for this kind of financial care. And even if your financial life is less complex, significant wealth calls for a vigilant, ongoing management approach.
As always, you can call on us to help you sort through the options and implement strategies that make sense for you. We'd be glad to set up a planning meeting or assist you in any other way that we can.
Recently, we came across an article in Financial Advisor Magazine about a former financial advisor and insurance salesman in Illinois who was called a "deviant financial predator" by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois. Edward L. Moskop, 63, was just sentenced to 20 years in prison for frauds conducted over the last 20 years. Edward had been banned from conducting financial business by the SEC in 1990 because of an unrelated fraud charge, pleading guilty to mail fraud and money laundering in connection with defrauding 18 victims out of $2.4 million. In some cases, he took the entire life savings of elderly victims, some of whom were ill or were Nazi labor camp survivors. You can read the full article here.
It's always a good idea to do your homework when selecting to work with any sort of financial professional - bankers, advisors, and accountants to name a few. A warm referral is generally a good start, followed by client testimonials and some internet research. We're fortunate at Falco Sult to have positive and ethical relationships and standards in place with those we work most closely with. If you need a suggestion or referrals in this arena (banking, mortgage lending, financial advising or other) please reach out to us and we'll get you into safe hands.
An analysis of the 2010 CPA exam results, conducted by the NASBA (National Association of State Boards of Accountancy), ranked Western Washington University as #8 in the country for first attempt pass events (passing a section on the first attempt) for candidates without an advanced degree. No other school in Washington state is on this overall top 20 list.
For those of you who know us well, you know how much we support Western and their Business programs. Hopefully, you'll now understand why this is the only school we directly hire students out of college from. They are simply great!
In the coming weeks, we'll be sharing with you more details about our upcoming seminar series for 2012 - the first one with business owners in mind. This afternoon presentation and wine reception will be held on February 1, 2012, hosted at Union Bank in Bellevue. More details will follow after the first of the year.