John is a partner at a law firm and Jasmine is the founding partner of a tech company that will IPO within the next year. They have saved $1.5MM in assets and currently work with a broker who has invested their assets in model portfolios.  

They have been married for 15 years and have two children. Life is very busy, and they appreciate being able to take time away with family. Jasmine would like to be able to retire within the next year.  

Their Concerns

The long hours John and Jasmine has put into their careers are resulting in growing wealth.  They expect a large windfall when Jasmine’s company goes public and are concerned about taxes.  They are aware that they need to have adequate protection for themselves and their family to ensure that their assets are not at risk.

John anticipates he will need to help his parents in the future, and both him and Jasmine would like to upgrade to a larger home.  John is unsure how to plan ahead for these goals.

They feel their investments have performed okay, but both would like a more customized strategy that incorporates more sophisticated solutions. They want to take a more proactive role in growing their wealth and not just let things trudge along as they have in the past. 

Their priorities are:

• To set themselves up financially so Jasmine can retire early;

• To help their sons by paying for undergraduate school;

• To help John’s parents financially, especially in terms of long-term care.

The Solution

Refresh Investments worked with John and Jasmine to create a Dynamic Wealth Plan.  They mapped out their financial objectives and discussed how each one has direct correlation to fulfilling their core values.  Through this process, John realized how important it was to create a safety net for both himself and Jasmine in case something happened to them.

Next, Refresh reviewed their current portfolio and pointed out a mismatch between the current allocation and their risk profile.  To grow at the appropriate rate they would need to incorporate more high growth assets and reposition their other holdings.  An SMA strategy was also designed for them to better align with their goals.

Finally, Refresh modeled various scenarios where John and Jasmine could see the potential effects of moving to a larger home and supporting John’s parents in the future.  As they move forward together, tax planning will be an essential part of their conversations as exercising equity options will create new tax liabilities. 

Note: The above case study is hypothetical and does not involve an actual Refresh Investments client. No portion of the content should be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that he/she will experience the same or certain level of results or satisfaction if Refresh Investments is engaged to provide investment advisory services.