Whom We Serve
We provide the most value to solopreneurs. Our clients have many of these characteristics in common:
- Variable income
- They enjoy being a “Master of Their Craft” but don't enjoy the business owner responsibilities
- Too busy working IN their business to work ON their busines
- No W2 employees, but may hire independent contractors to help with projects
- Believe life should be enjoyed in ALL stages of life, not just in retirement
- Willing to take risk and “bet on themselves”
- Have a desire to build something valuable, not just profitable
- Gross revenue of $250k or more
Meet the Smiths
The Smiths are a fictional family that we've created to help you get a better feel for what it's like to work with us.
A Hypothetical case study.
Will (age 34) and his wife Amy (32) live in Charlotte, NC, with their 3 yr old daughter, Emily. For the past 6 years Will had been a web designer for a medium sized company, while Amy worked as a dental hygienist. Although Will enjoyed the work he was doing, he wanted more creative freedom, greater flexibility in his schedule, and the opportunity for uncapped income. Having been exposed to travel and different cultures at an early age, it was important to both Will and Amy that they have the time and financial freedom to give Emily the same experiences that they now cherish.
So, last year Will decided to forge his own path as a freelance web designer. While it was scary leaving behind the security and comfort of a regular paycheck, the Smiths planned on living off of Amy's salary as a dental hygienist for the first year while Will built his business. After a year of hard work Will began to land sizeable projects, and although his income was inconsistent, he was now making more money than at his corporate job.
However, as his projects and income began to increase, so did the complexity of his family's finances. And while Will and Amy were two smart, educated individuals, neither of them had the time or expertise to manage the complexity that comes with success as a solopreneur. They both agreed that their family's finances were too important to leave to chance and decided to begin working with a professional to ensure that they could live their “Bucket List Life” without jeopardizing their financial wellbeing in the future.
Below is a look at what the Smith's financial situation looked like before and could look like after 1 year (along with their Action Plan for Year 1).
Before
Will was using money from his personal checking account for business expenses (commingling)
Sole Proprietor: No asset protection and no tax benefits
No personal or business budget because Will's variable income made it too hard to stick to one (felt like budgeting was a waste of time because he never knew how much money he would have in the future)
Will was making random payments on his car loan, home mortgage, and business equipment he financed (he was paying more than necessary on the debt with lowest interest rate)
Left an old 401k behind at his past employer (the target date fund he was invested in was expensive and too risky for his risk tolerance)
Will was saving money for retirement in a savings account at local bank
Felt overwhelmed because of all the conflicting financial advice/information on the internet, but wasn't sure what he should listen to or implement
Was not working proactively with a CPA to minimize his taxes
Amy has a high-deductible health plan, but was not contributing to an HSA
Amy had Private student loans with an interest rate of 6% on $9,000
After
Will now has a personal checking account, business checking account, and a joint high-yield savings account with Amy where they keep their emergency fund. If Will were to get audited, he would not have to worry knowing he has a system for keeping his personal and business finances separate.
With the help from a CPA, formed a single member LLC and elected to file as an S Corp. Will's personal asset are now protected from creditors in the event he gets sued. This entity change also decreased the self-employment taxes Will owes, leaving more money to be used in the business.
Now that his business files taxes as an S Corp, Will must pay himself a salary through the business. This smoothed his variable income and made budgeting much easier.
After analyzing his different debts, Will now has a debt pay-down strategy built in to his budget to ensure he is paying down his loans in the most efficient way possible.
Determined after reviewing all the options to Rollover his old 401k into a Traditional IRA. Due to Will's increasing income, it made sense to convert his Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. This allows him to withdraw the money for any reason, tax-free and penalty-free in the future. He now has a wider variety of investment options to choose from as well.
Based on Will's projected income and goals, a SEP IRA was the best vehicle for his retirement contributions going forward. By automating contributions to this type of account every time he gets paid, he is prefunding his retirement in the event he can't sell his business in the future.
The Smiths have greater financial confidence knowing that a professional has taken the time to listen to their goals, assessed their particular financial situation, and crafted a unique financial specifically for them.
After hiring a CPA, Will realized he would have missed opportunities that ended up saving him hundreds of dollars in taxes this year. Will also felt at ease knowing he had another professional working on his behalf.
Amy now takes full advantage of her employer's health insurance plan by automating contributions to an HSA which will provide the Smith's with tax-free money for qualified medical expenses in the future.
After analyzing Amy's student loans, it made sense to refinance her loan which brought the interest rate down from 6% to 3.75%. The money she saved by refinancing was then directed towards increasing the Emergency Fund.
End of the Hypothetical case study
This information is not intended to be a substitute for specific individualized tax or legal advice. We suggest that you discuss your specific situation with a qualified tax or legal advisor.
A plan participant leaving an employer typically has four options (and may engage in a combination of these options), each choice offering advantages and disadvantages.
• Leave the money in his/her former employer’s plan, if permitted;
• Roll over the assets to his/her new employer’s plan, if one is available and rollovers are permitted;
• Roll over to an IRA; or
• Cash out the account value.