Experiencing a life change, such as a divorce or losing a spouse, is an emotional and sensitive time, not to mention a potentially confusing one while navigating financial concerns. As a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst, (CDFA®), Leo Robinson brings a wealth of experience to helping infividuals who are undergoing these life changes. We partner with you to help understand your financial landscape and ensure there are no unwanted surprises by reviewing your financial documents and designations.
We specialize in helping you navigate the financial and personal challenges that accompany a marital separation, divorce, or loss of a spouse, including:
- Managing the process and financial risks
- Execution and separation/transfer of assets
- Income security and financial planning
- Investment and risk management
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Personal Wealth Management
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Planning for a New Relationship
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The process of separation, divorce, and loss of a spouse can be emotionally and personally unsettling to say the least. We strive to provide Single Heads of Household with objective, professional advice.
When you work with us, we’ll help you:
- Manage essential decisions and financial risks
- Know what types of questions to ask
- Understand your asset picture and debt obligations
- Secure current income / minimize loss of income
- Mitigate tax obligations and implications tied to transfers
While navigating the often-overwhelming level of paperwork that accompanies these processes, The Robinson Financial Group takes an active role in helping you understand what it all means. We provide specialized guidance during the transfer process to help you understand the risks to your assets as a beneficiary and recommend hedging strategies to help reduce risk.
We help you figure out the location of assets and the type of accounts and investments you hold. This includes a forensic review of account statements, cash flow, liquidity, income security, and potential risks.
We work with our Single Head of Household clients to help secure a plan to replace your spouse’s income. In cases of alimony or pension plans, we build a plan to replace that income when the alimony or pension ends.
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- Retirement income planning
- Post-separation life planning
- Updated estate planning – to meet your new objectives and goals, new account beneficiaries, and charitable planning
- Personal risk and insurance planning
- Career planning
Because of our expertise in working with business owners and executives, we can help provide guidance on business and cash management plans, retirement, ESOP, profit sharing, and navigating policies which have benefits connected to them (for both individual and company-owned key man or second to die insurance policies), then help you understand how those assets may be transferred.
Our specialized experience with these plans allows us to help our clients plan for and potentially help avoid tax implications and pitfalls. We understand complex compensation programs, including deferred compensation, stock and option grants, 10b5-1 trading plans, restricted stock, corporate insurance, and pension plans. We can discuss with you how those plans are valued, their tax implications, and how they may be transferred.
After an event like a divorce or loss of a loved one, many spouses find themselves with multiple accounts. We help you understand your investment strategies, cash flow, risk, and ways to consolidate accounts for simplicity while aligning with your individual goals.
- Retitling processes
- Transferring assets for retirement plans
- Executing qualified domestic relation orders (QDROs)
- Stock option plans
- Deferred compensation
- Annuities
- Insurance policies
- Pension valuations
These assets are complex and may have underlying benefits beyond today’s asset value. We model for those benefits and work with you to help determine what holdings may help meet your objectives.
If you are the beneficiary of a pension plan, concentrated stock, low-cost basis stock, restricted stock, incentive stock and option grants, or 10b5-1 insider trading plans, we have experience managing the execution of those programs – balancing for and hedging risk and preparing for the tax implication and liquidity needs of that transaction.
We also provide specialized lending solutions to help manage business and real estate dissolution and can advise on providing liquidity for new (home) purchases and other cash flow and liabilities funding. Wells Fargo’s depth of resources also allows us access to management insight for private businesses, personal property, and commercial real estate.
At the Robinson Financial Group, we specialize in providing you with a comprehensive overview of your investment and liquidity needs and risks. We customize and individually manage your investment portfolio to balance the risks associated with your specific situation and goals.
While working with you and your specific investment and risk management portfolio, we can advise on the following items:
- Liquidity management
- Safety of principal
- Allocation to balance risk and growth
- Investment management based on income, where needed
- Asset management for new goals of the beneficiary
- Asset management specifically to replace future income
New relationships often come with new adventures and new financial goals. Our team can assist with creating an updated investment plan that aligns with your goals in a new relationship. Whether you want to purchase a new home, plan vacations, or just have a change in spending habits, we can help customize an investment plan that accounts for the changes and helps you achieve your new goals.
Revisiting Your Estate Plan
As you consider how you want to pursue a new relationship legally and financially, we integrate our network of specialized resources to help you update your estate investment plan, retitle assets, create a trust, and set up a charitable giving plan.
Navigating Assets for Prenuptial Agreement
Our team works with you to prepare your estate and assets for your next stage of life. If you a considering another marriage, The Robinson Financial Group of Wells Fargo Advisors has access to an extensive network of Attorneys who can assist with setting up a Prenuptial Agreement.
Updating Beneficiaries & Trusted Contact
The Robinson Financial Group of Wells Fargo Advisors can assist with the updating of beneficiaries on accounts, life insurance contracts, and annuities. We can also help change trusted contacts on your accounts and help with the process of changing your healthcare proxy and emergency contacts.
Investment & Risk Management Services
You will receive a comprehensive overview of your investment and liquidity needs and risks. Drawing upon our decades of investment experience, your investment portfolio will be designed and managed in-house to balance the risks of your specific situation and goals.
While working with you and your specific investment and risk management portfolio, we will advise you on the following items:
- Liquidity management
- Preserving your principal
- Allocating assets to balance risk and growth
- Investment management based on income, where it is needed
- Tax-sensitive investing strategies
- Asset management for your new goals
- Asset management specifically to replace future income in retirement
Read the example scenarios below to better understand how our services can help single head of household individuals like you.
We received a referral for a new client, Sophia, who was in her late 50’s and going through a divorce. Her husband had worked in the financial industry and handled the family’s finances, leaving Sophia with limited experience making wealth-related decisions. She needed a strategy that was suited to her objectives — not those of her former spouse.
Unexpected life events such as divorce can affect everything from one’s monthly income to their tax bracket. We worked with Sophia to review her divorce decree, how assets were legally viewed and the details of her former spouse’s financial responsibility related to alimony, marital debt, healthcare coverage and other financially-related milestones. This process uncovered the need for Sophia to update beneficiary designations on her life insurance and retirement plans.
The next vital step was helping revise her estate plan. We worked with Sophia and her network – including her attorney and estate planning professional — to coordinate the valuation and execution of her estate plan and investment assets. Within her “big picture” context, we designed a comprehensive investment plan to promote a comfortable living situation for the future. We also conducted an in-depth risk assessment profile and refined her asset allocations based on our findings. This was informative in outlining a detailed income plan now — and for when her alimony income ended.
Deborah, who was recently widowed, was referred to us by her attorney who was concerned that Deborah was overwhelmed by the multiple accounts and financial documents that were previously managed by her spouse. Beyond having to cope with the emotional challenges during this time, Deborah required assistance in re-examining her assets, organizing her financial documents, and establishing a plan to move forward.
First, we met with Deborah in-person and reviewed her paperwork together to understand her financial questions, and whether she needed to take urgent action on items like life insurance policies and pension plans. We built a relationship with her and provided her with a safe and compassionate environment as she was going through this difficult time.
Next, we worked with her attorney to refine her estate plan, including retitling assets and re-establishing a plan for her beneficiaries. Based on our findings, we created a revised, personalized roadmap for her which provided income and security for her while managing risk in a tax-efficient manner. Once we established an investment plan that was geared toward her objectives and income, we met regularly with Deborah to review her plan and to check for adjustments based on changing circumstances. We also began inviting Deborah to our many social events, so she could network and get to know our other clients.
Wells Fargo Advisors is not a legal or tax advisor. You should consult with your attorney, accountant and/or estate planner before taking any action.
Any estate plan should be reviewed by an attorney who specializes in estate planning and is licensed to practice law in your state.
Your relationship with our team is built on a full understanding of your financial needs and objectives. We deliver the vast resources of Wells Fargo including Wealth Planning, Private Banking, Trust and Fiduciary Services, and Insurance as well as various customized and more traditional lending products.
Tom Robinson, CFP, CRPC, CRPS
Managing Director - Investments
CDFA® Disclosure
To support your financial needs, we can assemble a team of Wells Fargo specialists that will work with you and your attorney, accountant, and other outside advisors. We have listed some specialists from affiliated business lines of Wells Fargo & Company. Although they are an available resource, they are not members of our practice, nor can they make securities recommendations, or discuss brokerage or advisory accounts or products. If you have questions about how a specialist might be able to assist you, please contact us.
Sarah Munson, CFP®
Sarah advises high net worth individuals, corporate executives and business owners. Sarah has also lent support to our internal publications as a subject matter expert on various planning topics, and is a regular presenter on education calls to her colleagues.
Sarah earned her bachelor’s degree from Haverford College. She holds CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional designation.
Tim Rahr, CEPA®
Tim Rahr is a Lead Strategist with Business Owner Advisory within Wells Fargo’s Advice and Planning. Tim advises business owners with ownership transition alternatives and strategies by offering education, industry and market insights, and planning guidance regarding business transition, succession, and governance. Business Owner Advisory provides advice that integrates business value, financial and wealth implications, owner and family dynamics, personal objectives, and transaction considerations to aid clients in evaluating their transition options.
Janice Schoos, CTFA, CAP
Janice works with individuals and families to define and help achieve their charitable objectives as part of their overall wealth plans. This may include developing gift and tax strategies, multi-generational planning, reviewing estate plans, and the creation and management of donor advised funds, private foundations, charitable trusts, and other charitable planning strategies. She also works extensively with nonprofit organizations, where she advises in the areas of gift planning, endowment management, board governance, and other management issues. Janice collaborates with her clients and their other advisors to leverage their resources to help maximize the impact of their philanthropy.
William Donahue
Marcy Morgan
Specialists
Meredith Fiocchi - Financial Consultant, CEPA®
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2Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (“the Bank”) offers various banking, advisory, fiduciary and custody products and services, including discretionary portfolio management. Wells Fargo affiliates, including Financial Advisors of Wells Fargo Advisors, may be paid an ongoing or one-time referral fee in relation to clients referred to the Bank. In these instances, the Bank is responsible for the day-to-day management of any referred accounts.
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