Your Life Simplified: A Financial & Wealth Management Podcast

On this episode of Your Life Simplified, host Daniel Sharkey , senior wealth advisor, is joined by Scott Luhnau , vice president of multi-generational wealth planning, to discuss the SECURE 2.0 Act. They'll cover what has changed in government legislation, how it impacts 401(k), Roth IRA and other retirement accounts, and why it matters more than ever.

On this episode of Your Life Simplified, hosts Whitney Reagan , wealth advisor, and Daniel Sharkey , senior wealth advisor, continue their discussion on making financial meetings with your family successful. They'll share tips for making family meetings successful, including getting everyone's buy-in, making it a singular event, being intentional in your agenda, speaking to different generations a...

Family meetings may sound daunting and challenging but they don't have to be. Hosts Whitney Reagan , wealth advisor, and Daniel Sharkey , senior wealth advisor, discuss making these financial meetings with your broader family productive. They'll cover what is a family meeting, why you should have them regularly and what topics are important to include.  

College is expensive, so you should never pay full price. Hosts Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, and Daniel Sharkey , senior wealth advisor, discuss ways to reduce college costs. They'll cover more well-known strategies, like 529 plans, and some lesser-known tactics.

Young Professionals: Now that you're past the basics of financial planning, what should you be thinking about as you continue building your wealth? Host Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, is joined by Jinger Pajestka , senior wealth advisor, to discuss goal setting, employer benefits, real estate investing, estate planning and insurance, all to help you build your wealth.

Should I rent or buy my home? On this episode, we'll dive into several studies and look at your return on investment, time, taxes, cost of home renovations and more. Host Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, shares historical data, where we're at today and what you should consider as you weigh the pros and cons of homeownership.

Tax season may be over, but that doesn't mean we're done tax planning. Jennifer Kohlbacher, director of wealth strategy, joins Michael MacKelvie, wealth advisor, to share the importance of year-round tax planning and what you should be thinking about.

Cash balance plans are often understood but can be a win-win for tax savings and retirement planning. On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Valerie Escobar, senior wealth advisor, is joined by Daniel Sharkey, senior wealth advisor. They dive into what they are, how they're run and who they may be right for.

Want to teach your child about investing? It can be difficult to know where to start and even how to answer their questions. Hosts Michael MacKelvie and Valerie Escobar share their advice for parents looking to teach their child or teen about investing including compounding interest, investment accounts, retirement plans and more

It's not just about the numbers. There is value beyond the data that a wealth advisor can offer. They work to solve complex challenges and guide people during transitions. Hosts Michael MacKelvie and Valerie Escobar share their perspectives on the field before getting into wealth management and what they've learned since.

IRAs, Roth IRAs, 401(k)s are among the very basics of building a financial plan, and they apply to just about everybody. On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Valerie Escobar , senior wealth advisor, is joined by Jodi Robinson , vice president of tax services. They discuss the differences between Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s, required minimum distributions and Roth conversions.

No one likes planning their mortality, but this is not time made but time spent. The challenges and financial strain without proper planning can, unfortunately, leave a stain on someone's legacy. On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, is joined by Michelle Cross , senior wealth advisor. They discuss ways to avoid estate planning challenges and give you a guide...

What is it that people get wrong about retirement? On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, is joined by guest, Keith Lawrence, retired P&G executive & co-author of "Your Retirement Quest". They discuss ways to be happy and healthy during one of the largest transitions in your life.

Having a new child can bring immense amounts of joy, but it can also bring stress, especially when it comes to being financially prepared. This week, Valerie Escobar , senior wealth advisor, is joined by  Whitney Reagan , wealth advisor. They'll discuss aspects like the Family Medical Leave Act, short-term disability and preparing your team for your leave, to help prepare before welcoming a new ch...

The one constant in life is change, and the markets are no exception to this, which leads to a familiar question for many investors. When should you rebalance your portfolio, if at all? On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, is joined by Brad Rollins , vice president of investments. They discuss what rebalancing means and how to get back to your original inves...

Money is a topic of conversation in many movies. The question is the legitimacy of some of these movies and how they portray the financial industry. On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Valerie Escobar , senior wealth advisor, and Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, will react to hits, like The Big Short and The Wolf of Wall Street, and share the accuracies and inaccuracies.

In our last episode, we started our discussion on Incentive Stock Options (ISOs). Now, we'll continue that discussion and dive deeper into Alternative Minimum Tax (ATM). Steve Moyer , vice president of executive compensation & corporate offerings, joins our host, Valerie Escobar , senior wealth advisor, to share more about the tax implications and strategies for ISOs and executive compensation.

In this episode, we dive deep into the world of stock-based compensation, shedding light on how Incentive Stock Options (ISOs) work and the strategies that can help you maximize their benefits. Steve Moyer , vice president of executive compensation & corporate offerings, joins our host, Valerie Escobar , senior wealth advisor, to simplify the complexities of executive compensation and ISOs. Listen...

As we near the end of the year, what is it that you should be doing to minimize taxes and make sure that you've got your financial world organized? Valerie Escobar , senior wealth advisor, and Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, share 6 tax and wealth planning strategies you should consider before the year wraps up.

As an executive, you probably have some time of restricted stock or security in your compensation. But what is right for you and your portfolio? Steve Moyer, vice president of executive compensation & corporate offerings, joins our host, Valerie Escobar, senior wealth advisor, to sort through the noise of executive compensation and explain RSUs, restricted stock and restricted securities.

In today's digital age, cybersecurity has become more important than ever. With cybercrime on the rise, it's crucial to know how to protect yourself and your data from online threats. On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, sits down with Chris Cook, senior vice president of information security, to provide you with valuable insights into the world of cybercrim...

On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, is joined by special guest, Brett Kunshek , head of options and structured notes. They break down what structured notes and options are and dive into their complexities, different types of structured notes and which investors these may be right for. They'll also cover why these are growing in popularity in the United Stat...

With flexibility and connectivity in today's world, many are excited by the idea of moving abroad and traveling; however, with that comes complications that you may not have considered. On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Valerie Escobar , senior wealth advisor, is joined by Raoul Rodriguez , senior wealth advisor. Here are 3 things you need to consider before moving to another country—taxes,...

We may not be at the end of the year yet, but now is the time to start end-of-year tax planning. Valerie Escobar , senior wealth advisor, and Michael MacKelvie , wealth advisor, share ways to minimize the amount of taxes you'll pay for 2023. They'll cover tax planning strategies like capital gains, tax loss harvesting and Roth conversions to help limit your taxes.

On this episode of Your Life Simplified, Valerie Escobar , senior wealth advisor, and Jake Kern , managing director and senior wealth advisor, discuss the powerful strategy of Intentionally Defective Grantor Trusts (IDGTs) and how they can benef it you. An IDGT is a trust that is intentionally drafted to be "defective" for income tax purposes. This allows the grantor of the trust to transfer asset...