Case Studies

Practicing Physicians & Nurses

Erin & Chris

Mid-Career Health Care Workers (Physician/Nurse) mid 40’s

Chris is an orthopedic surgeon. Erin is a nurse practitioner. Between the two of them, they pull in somewhere around $650K a year. On paper, they’re doing great. In practice, their financial life feels like a junk drawer that nobody has time to organize.

They are in their most demanding years: balancing stressful careers, a growing family, and a list of financial decisions that seems never ending.

Their situation:

• Chris maxes out his 401(k), has a taxable brokerage account, and still carries ~$180K in student loans at 4.5%
• Erin has a 403(b) through the hospital and a small Roth IRA she opened in her twenties and hasn’t thought about since
• Own a house with $500k equity and a $900k mortgage at a great rate.
• Two kids, 7 and 4
• Term life, umbrella policy — the insurance basics are covered
• Beyond that? A collection of accounts opened at different times for different reasons, and nobody’s looking at any of it as one picture

What’s weighing on them:

• They are saving aggressively but it hard to know how much should go where between the 401k/403B, college savings, Roth, HSA or other tax sheltered accounts
• Do they need an investment strategy beyond the typical retirement accounts like stock investing, real estate rentals or other strategies?
• It feels like they are overpaying in taxes between Chris’s W-2, Erin’s income, the investment accounts, the mortgage interest, nobody is coordinating any of it. Their CPA does the return but there is little planning.
• Can they realistically retire by 59 (or earlier?) and maintain their lifestyle? Not a vague “you’ll be fine”, an actual number they can stress-test
• Should they be paying down the student loans & mortgage aggressively or investing that money instead? They’ve run the math a dozen times and still aren’t sure
• College is six and nine years out. They have a 529 but worry whether they’re on pace or way behind
• Can they afford a vacation home and still achieve their other goals?
• If something happened to Chris tomorrow, Erin isn’t totally sure she’d know where everything is or what the plan was supposed to be. That bothers both of them more than they like to think about

Big Four Accounting Professionals

John & Michele

Mid-career public accounting professionals, mid-30s to early 50s

Michele made partner at a Big Four firm three years ago. John left to be a controller in industry. Combined, they’re north of $900K, and the trajectory is still moving up. They know more about tax law and accounting than most of the traditional financial advisors they’ve met. This means they know enough to know that nobody has actually tried to put their whole house in order.

They are in their “peak complexity” years: balancing demanding careers, a growing family, and the realization that their career success created a financial life that has become a “third job” they never applied for.

Their situation:

• Every retirement vehicle maxed out
• Michele has significant deferred compensation tied to the partnership
• John has a 401(k) and a backdoor Roth they’ve been funding for years
• Own their primary home with a low rate mortgage but kicking around the idea of a place in the mountains/beach
• Two kids, 11 and 8. 529s funded but wondering if other strategies are appropriate
• Plenty of term life, umbrella policy plus work benefits mean the basics are more than covered

What’s weighing on them:

• They’ve blown past the point where maxing retirement accounts is the whole strategy. Wondering if it makes sense to have a financial advisor with the firm’s independence rules? How will I ensure I don’t breach any independence rules?
• Do they need an investment strategy beyond the typical retirement accounts like stock investing, real estate rentals or other strategies? They don’t want life insurance masquerading as an investment strategy, and they definitely don’t want an annuity pitch
• The deferred comp needs to be modeled out, between Michele’s partnership interest, the vesting schedule, the tax implications of the eventual equity buy back. Right now, nobody is doing that
• It feels like they are overpaying in taxes between Michele’s K-1, John’s W2 income, the investment accounts, the mortgage interest, nobody is coordinating any of it. The accounting firm does the return and that’s it.
• If an early exit becomes available what do the numbers need to look like for us to take the deal and still maintain the retirement we have planned?
• If something happened to one of them tomorrow, neither would be totally sure where everything is or what the plan was supposed to be. Getting everything coordinated and being on the same page would make them both feel better.

Finance Professionals

Sarah & Matt

Finance professionals, mid-30s to early 50s

Matt works in asset management. Sarah is a real estate broker. Between base, bonus, and restricted stock/options, their household income swings from $700K to $1.5M depending on the year. They think about money for a living but their own finances have become complex enough that they can’t keep track of it all in their heads anymore.

Their situation:

• Retirement accounts maxed
• Own their home with a mortgage below 4%, and have a rental property in addition to their beach house
• Large taxable portfolio, concentrated stock/option positions, and a vesting schedule that changes the math every year
• Two kids, 9 and 6. Travel sports, dance, summer camps that cost as much as college tuition.
• They can afford it and are enjoying life, they’re just looking to make sure the machine keeps running

What’s weighing on them:

• Money isn’t the stress. The complexity is. Variable comp makes income a moving target, which makes tax planning feel like a guessing game
• Capital gains from concentrated positions, K-1s, deferred comp, RSU/ISO vesting, their CPA is good but basically playing defense at filing time instead of being proactive throughout the year
• How much do they actually need to earn for the next five to seven years to lock in the retirement they want? Not the one where they downsize. The one where everything stays the same
• 529s are funded, but are there other things they should be doing? What’s the gap?
• The concentrated stock positions need attention, they know the risk, they just need someone to model the tax-efficient way to diversify without a massive capital gains hit
• Estate planning basics are in place with beneficiary assignments, and a basic will but nothing that reflects what they’ve actually built.