FINANCIAL PLANNING THAT FITS YOUR FAMILY

You Don’t Have to Go It Alone

I started this practice back in 2013 with the goal of helping parents like you take control of your financial situation. Because I know that while money is never the end goal, a secure financial foundation is key to building a happy, comfortable, and enjoyable life for you and your family.

By starting with who you are, what’s important to you, and what you value, I help you create and implement a financial plan that allows you to handle everything you need to handle today, save ahead for your most important future goals, and have plenty of fun along the way.

And when your plans inevitably change — whether because you’ve set new goals or because something unexpected has come up — I’m there as a trusted partner to help you navigate those changes and make the right decisions for you and your family.

The end result is clarity around the financial decisions you’re making, confidence in the financial foundation you’ve built, and the freedom to enjoy the life you want to live.

If that sounds helpful, you can read on to learn more or click here to schedule a call so that we can discuss your situation together and figure out the best path forward.

Financial Life Program

My Financial Life Program is designed to get every piece of your financial life on the right track and ensure that you’re making the most of the opportunities available to you. Here’s how it works.

Ahead of our first meeting, I get you linked to my client dashboard so that I can see your accounts and tie that information into my planning software. I also collect account statements, insurance policies, tax returns, and other financial documents that help me understand your current financial situation.

Our first meeting is then spent doing two things:

1. First and foremost, I want to get to know you. What are your values? What kind of life are you trying to build? What opportunities would you like your family to have? Financial decisions should always flow from the personal side of things, so that’s where we start.
2. The second part of our meeting is spent reviewing the documents and other financial details you sent me ahead of time. The goal is for me to walk away from this meeting with a clear understanding of both where you are now and where you want to go.

We schedule our second meeting about one month later and I spend the time in between analyzing your situation and creating your financial plan. That plan is a document that lists all of the financial goals I think you should be focusing on, in priority order, along with the detailed action steps that we will work through together in order to get each of those goals in place.

Our second meeting is spent reviewing your plan together, answering your questions, and making any tweaks we need to make to ensure that it reflects the life you want to build. Once we all feel good about the plan, I break it down into the first handful of action items so that we can start putting things in place.

From that point forward, we meet every 1-3 months to check in on the previous set of action items, address any obstacles that may have come up, and map out our next steps. We continue that process until your entire financial plan is implemented and your financial foundation is in place.

Of course, your life is going to change along the way and I’m here for that as well. Financial planning is an ongoing process and a big part of our relationship is working together to navigate those changes and make the right adjustments so that you are always on track for your biggest goals. I’m available to help with anything you need in between meetings, and we are regularly monitoring and updating your financial plan even after the initial steps are complete.

While our work together can include anything that has a financial aspect to it, here’s a list of some of the most common areas that I help my clients with:

• Investing and retirement savings – How much to contribute. Where to contribute. How to invest. How to consolidate accounts. I also offer investment management services for clients who want more hands-on guidance.
• Shorter-term savings – Setting goals and savings strategies for things like buying a house, building an emergency fund, and other short to medium-term goals.
• Cash flow and budgeting – Helping you understand where your money is going and how to take control so that you can keep making progress towards your biggest goals.
• Life and disability insurance – I don’t sell insurance (I am a fee-only financial planner) but I do help you decide exactly how much coverage you need and walk through the entire application process with you to ensure that you get the right protections in place.
• Estate planning – I interview attorneys for you, recommend a handful that I feel are a good fit for your needs, and help you make the right decisions to protect your family.
• Company equity plans – From stock options, to restricted stock units, to employee stock purchase plans, I help you understand how to maximize these opportunities and minimize your risk.
• Debt repayment – Whether you have student loans, credit cards, auto loans, or any other debt, I help you create and execute a repayment plan that fits your goals.
• College savings – I help you estimate your college expenses, determine how much and where to save, and choose the right investments.

The first step towards signing up for the Financial Life Program is simply scheduling an introductory phone call. That gives me an opportunity to learn more about who you are and what you’re looking for, and it gives you the chance to get to know me and learn more about what this relationship will look like.

You can click here to schedule that introductory call now.

Jump Start Session

If you’d like some guidance but aren’t quite sure about the Financial Life Program, my Jump Start Session is a great first step.

This is a 60-minute financial planning session designed to answer your biggest questions and create an action plan that you can follow to put yourself on the right track.

Once you’ve scheduled your session, I send you an online questionnaire so that you can tell me a little bit about who you are, what you’d like help with, and some details about your current financial situation. I review that questionnaire ahead of our session and then we spend our time together crafting a plan that addresses your biggest needs.

Afterwards, I send all my recommendations and suggested action steps in a written document so that you know exactly what you need to do next.

The main goal of this session is to give you concrete advice that you can actually use to improve your financial situation. But it can also a great way to test drive the relationship so that you can get a feel for how I work before deciding whether to move forward with the Financial Life Program.

The Jump Start Session is pay-what-you-want, which is exactly what it sounds like. I have a few suggested price points that you’ll see when you set up payment, but I genuinely want you to choose whatever price fits into your budget. The service is the same no matter what.

Click here to schedule your Jump Start Session today.

Hourly Planning

Maybe you need more than a single session but you aren’t quite ready for an ongoing relationship. Or maybe there’s a specific project that you’d like some help with.

If that’s the case, we can work together on an hourly basis. This gives us the flexibility to address all of your questions without charging you for more time than you need.

An introductory phone call is a good way to decide if this is the right fit. You can click here to schedule that call.

I hope we get the chance to work together one way or another, and no matter what I wish you and your family all the best!

Matt Becker is a fee-only Certified Financial Planner^tm, a dad, a husband, and the founder of Mom and Dad Money, where he helps parents take control of their money so they can take care of their families.

When he isn’t at work, you can usually find him coaching soccer, re-watching Schitt’s Creek, and goofing around with his two awesome boys.