At Morse Wealth Management, our holistic approach to managing your assets lets you write your own advisory journey. As your advisors, we believe our responsibility is to effectively guide you toward wise decisions where objective, meaningful strategies are the foundation of everything we recommend. In the end, however, the investment path you choose to take is ultimately yours to create not ours. By empowering you with informed guidance, we believe you are well positioned to envision and fulfill your financial journey.
Because we see ourselves as a guiding force, rather than a forceful guide, honest, genuine and open communication is the foundation of every interaction we have with you. We feel this mutual understanding of trust and regard fosters an advisory environment you can depend on at any given moment. Additionally, financial prosperity requires a complex understanding of the management skills needed for long-term success. As business owners, we believe our independent advice and seasoned experience managing a company enhance our ability to effectively guide your wealth throughout any life stage.
CASE STUDIES
Early Financial Stages
At Morse Wealth Management, some of our clients are just starting on their financial journey or restarting a new one. Because we have seen a breadth of personal successes and challenges after many years traveling the financial path with our clients, we feel we can help those uncertain about their route ahead build a meaningful, relevant roadmap.
Study 1
We received a referral from an attorney who had completed a living trust for a couple in their early thirties. When we sat down with them, we realized they had no financial strategies in place to help them plan their life ahead, nor did they have a solid picture of their financial health. To help set them on a sound path to achieve their objectives, Carlton began by performing a goals-based financial analysis. The results enabled them to reallocate some of their 401(k) assets and potentially better position them for future growth, while increasing their savings in Roth IRAs to meet their long-term goals. We also analyzed their life and disability insurance needs, and after noticing a gap in coverage, helped the couple proactively identify strategies to fulfill this need. Today, they are now confidently prepared to meet their financial goals. And to help ensure we continually address their evolving objectives at every life stage, the couple receives regular updates and discussions on their plan.
Study 2
One of our clients had recently finalized a divorce and needed help planning for her new financial and life road. Because her previous finances were always planned as a couple, she now had to prepare to support herself from a single income. To streamline the process, we looked at the various working pieces of her financial life and helped her navigate future pension and social security benefits, while rolling over and reallocating her retirement assets. By addressing how to best manage her finances, we also helped this client with the decision to rent or buy a home, and evaluated the effectiveness of her current auto, health and personal liability insurance. And because planning for tomorrow is as essential as preparing for today, we assisted her with starting a new nest egg to help supplement her future retirement income. In the end, we helped set her complete financial life on a sound path toward fulfilling her new life journey.
Pre-Retiree Planning
Have you heard the sentiments that "40 is the new 30" and "50 is the new 40"? Over the years, we've served many clients experiencing a time in life when everything seems to be moving quickly. Careers keep them busy. Children are growing up. Parents are aging. And they feel pulled in all directions with less and less time to focus on themselves or their financial lives. But because each life step is interconnected, we believe having a partner that will work with you during the busy life phases will help you remain on track with your goals while helping to relieve some of the worry and stress.
Study 3
A number of years ago, a husband and wife in their early fifties were referred to us when they needed a money market savings account, but they did not seek additional strategy planning. Years later, however, the wife's mother passed away before creating any estate plan or consolidating her stock certificates. With complex estate planning challenges now at hand, the couple asked us to help efficiently manage this part of the inheritance process. Through this experience, she and her husband realized they had no financial and retirement strategies of their own in place, despite believing their finances were under control. As a result, we used goals-based planning and helped create comprehensive savings and investment strategies through the husband's work retirement plan and a dedicated savings account.
By working with them to address their overall financial picture and not just a single financial scenario they were able to pay off their home mortgage and accumulate a comfortable nest egg. Where before they were not strategically positioned for retirement, the couple will now retire with a sound plan that produces income from multiple sources (including IRAs and annuities). They also have funds set aside for yearly travel, conducting the husband's side business, engaging in hobbies, starting a fund for their grandchildren's future education and continuing to support their favorite charity.
Retiree Planning
In today's retirement and elder life planning environment, advances in modern medicine and technology are helping our country's older population live longer than our clients from 30 years ago. Consequently, many investors' longer life spans require additional planning considerations. We often assist clients who need guidance in their older years to ensure they have income streams in place they wont outlive, while also helping them navigate the financial landscape when losing a loved one later in life.
Study 4
One of our clients was widowed and suddenly jettisoned into the role of continuing her husband's legacy, despite having never participated in managing their finances. Fortunately, her husband was a wise investor in his early years and discovered new technologies through privately held companies and restricted stocks. Unfortunately, these investments didn't come to fruition until after his death, and he never put his legacy plans on paper, leaving her with assets to manage and no reallocation plan. With our guidance, however, we helped her navigate the sale of these investments during different initial offerings and reallocate the proceeds. During this process, we worked closely with our client's estate attorney and CPA to financially and legally position her on a clear path toward the financial freedom in retirement she wanted to enjoy. We incorporated asset replacement strategies using trusts and life insurance into her plan, and also helped her facilitate charitable giving strategies.
Together, our work enabled her to have a lifetime income stream and a hefty tax deduction, while creating a lasting tribute to her husband and achieving their giving wishes to help those in need. Our relationship continues to this day as we encourage her to enjoy life and live everyday to the fullest, just as her husband hoped she would.