Trust the Plan Podcast with Nick Hopwood, CFP® and Jim Pilat, CFP®

Nick is joined by Ben Lavine, CFA and Chief Investment Officer at 3D Asset Management. Ben discussed his take on the markets and economy from the first half of 2018 and shares with us what he sees as opportunities and risks for the second half of the year.  Peak Wealth Management is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor located in Plymouth, MI. We believe by providing education and guidance...

Some "Financial Planners" don't do any Financial Planning at all -they are simply salespeople who sell financial products like insurance, annuities, and mutual funds. At Peak, it is a little bit different. We don't sell financial products. We sell what we know works. We are selling ourselves.  Listen in and get the full scoop.  Peak Wealth Management is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor...

Nick chats with Rick Guttersohn, the Executive Director at New Hope Center for Grief Support. Rick teaches us about "Fun" raising, Blueprinting as it relates to grief support, and the generational impact New Hope has had on the local community.  Peak Wealth Management is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor located in Plymouth, MI. We believe by providing education and guidance, we inspire...

Have your contracts reviewed! Nick chats with Rick Hoeg of @HoegLaw about Star Wars, Michigan Football, and course, Business Law! Given Rick's background and experience with small business and venture capital, he has unique insights into entrepreneurship and small business start ups. Learn about how he approaches small business law and at the very end wait for his @michiganfootball season predicti...

Don't Die Intestate! Nick chats with Estate Planning Attorney Marc Wander of the Marc Wander Law Firm. Learn about Marc's "Retirement Trust" concept as well as discussing many of the common pitfalls he sees people making with their estate plans over the past 25 years. You can learn more about Marc at mwanderlaw.com.  Peak Wealth Management  is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor located i...

Nick chats with Shawn Presnell from Academy Mortgage about America's Refinancing Addiction, the state of the mortgage industry, and how he approaches his loan design. Shawn has over 15 years of experience and is a trusted resource for our clients.  You can learn more about Shawn on his website and download his app for mortgage calculators and many other useful tools! Book a meeting with Nick Peak...

What would you do if you were retired and had a new $7,000/mo bill from the nursing home each month? Nick is joined by Michael Tepper from Capitas Financial, who has over 25 years of experience in the Long Term Care Insurance Marketplace. Join us as we discuss the need for Long Term Care, how to qualify, evolution of the insurance industry, and more.  Peak Wealth Management is a full-service Regis...

Nick chats Social Security Disability with veteran attorney Jason Steinhelper of the law firm Levine Benjamin . Jason has represented thousands of clients seeking to obtain Social Security Disability over the last 11+ years. Learn more about the program and some tips to consider before applying.  Peak Wealth Management is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor located in Plymouth, MI. We bel...

People are always asking me, “Do I have enough to retire?” They expect me to be able to look at their 401(k) statement and give them a yes or no answer in two seconds flat! The truth is it doesn’t matter how much money is in your 401(k). In my opinion, what matters most is your spending habits. Peak Wealth Management is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor located in Plymouth, MI. We belie...

In this episode, Coach Ben and Coach Kevin, from the InFlow Wellness Academy,  sit down with Nick Hopwood, CFP and chat about "How much is enough?" Learn more about InFlow .  Peak Wealth Management is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor located in Plymouth, MI. We believe by providing education and guidance, we inspire our clients to make great decisions putting them on a path toward fulf...

Social Security is More than a monthly check.  Do you realize it can be worth well over a million dollars? Its a pension with cost of living inflation adjustments, which pretty much do not exist anywhere else. It is a pension for a homemaker which you can’t get anywhere else. You can to control when to turn it on to maximize your benefits. It provides for your spouse if you die. It provides for yo...

“It is important that your children learn what they can do with money early in life so they will apply the lessons learned at home as they face the real world in future years.” According to American Century, 88% of high school students learned what they know about money from their parents. They don’t teach this kind of stuff in school, so it is up to us - the parents and grand parents to teach the...

Health savings accounts, or "HSA" for short,  have been around since 2003, when President Bush improved upon medical savings accounts and flexible savings accounts. HSAs are superior compared to their predecessors because of the triple-tax-free benefits and they are not “use it or lose it.” They are becoming more and more important as our healthcare cost crisis continues, and I predict your HSA wi...

Dr. Russ Dore of PCS Counseling  and Dore Productions  sits down with Nick  to chat about Finding a Satisfying Second Career. Dr Russ has consulted with hundreds of individuals in transition and shares some stories and takeaways from his experience. Some recurring themes from previous episodes are revisited, such as Blueprinting , Start with Why , Your Retirement Quest author Keith Lawrence , and...

What just happened? Since January 26, the stock market is down by over 10%. Is it over? Probably not. It’s very difficult to time the bottom and there is usually a longer “bottoming process.” What do you suggest we do? Don’t overreact - keep recent perspective as well as historical perspective in mind for the markets. Also, perspective on how this might change your overall retirement plan. Let’s p...

2017 was by far the best year ever for Peak. Join Nick as he reflects on some of the things going on driving growth and what we are working on for 2018. This is your chance to kick the tires and look under the hood on how a successful financial planning practice operates! Book an appointment with Nick  here .  Peak Wealth Management  is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor located in Plymo...

Ever wonder how a CFP manages their own money? Listen as Nick talks about his personal financial plan for 2018. Everything from cash flow, investments, debt, and real estate. January is the perfect time of year to evaluate and update your own financial plan. Let's get started! Book an appointment with Nick here .  Peak Wealth Management  is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor located in P...

Thinking of a cottage or a condo in Florida? Listen to Nick's personal experience as well as what he has learned from client experiences and why owning a second home is The Anti-Dividend. One other tool which is recommended before buying a second home is to make sure you've clearly spelled out your vision of the future. Check out EP 007 - Blueprinting which is a great place to start.  Peak Wealth...

Join Nick as he talks Real Estate Investing and updates you on his personal real estate portfolio and why he loves real estate. If you haven't heard EP 006 you should start there.  Investing in rental real estate is part of the Peak Income 360 Formula. Learn more by visiting our Income 360 page or by listening to EP 009 . Peak Wealth Management is a full-service Registered Investment Advisor locat...

Join Nick and learn about Health Yields Wealth 2.0 where we don't just talk about detox, we do the detox! Learn more about our services at peakwm .com

In this two-minute episode Nick will help you prepare for your initial meeting at Peak Wealth. Understand what to expect and how to have the most efficient meeting possible! Learn more at Peakwm.com

Listen to the latest edition of Finding True Wealth as Nick reminisces about the industry twenty years ago and reflects on what he would be looking for when selecting a CFP/financial planner. Learn more at peakwm.com .

Retirement is a major life transition, but its stages are predictable. Sadly, most people don’t think it through all the way. Many retire simply because they hate their job or as soon as they have enough money. But, they work 40-60 hours per week, which is a lot of time to fill. The average retiree watches 43 hours of TV per week. Don’t let yourself fall into that rut. These ten tips can help you...

Nick chats with Scott Westgate, founder and president of MBC Retirement Services, located in Rochester, MI. Peak and MBC have worked together on many plans since 2002 with tremendous success. Scott talks about the different retirement plans available to the small business owner today and pros and cons of each type of arrangement, as well as his best tip for how to build true wealth as a small busi...

Nick sits down with Dr John Mlinarcik talking personality styles. Understanding your own personality style helps you understand your own needs and why you do what you do. The same can be said about the other people in your life- understanding their personalities and how to interact with them are just as important as understanding your own! This truth can be applied to all relationships in your lif...