5 Topics Your Advisor Should be Reviewing With You
(More Than Once Per Year)
If you only hear from your financial advisor when the market drops or during your annual meeting, you're not getting the full picture, you’re getting the fiduciary minimum. A proactive wealth management relationship is exactly that, not reactive. It's built around a structured calendar of conversations that keep all facets of your financial life in focus throughout the year. Planning provides comfort and clarity, so you can focus on your life and business while we handle the rest.
At Hoeven Wealth, we organize our client relationships around five core topics that we revisit routinely throughout the year.
1. Annual Tax Planning: A Review of Your Income & Expenses
Tax planning shouldn’t be an annual scramble to file or extend before April 15th. Done well, it's an ongoing conversation about how your income, spending, investments (and distributions) interact throughout the year. Especially as business owners who are managing partnership distributions and additional K-1 investment income. Based on your needs, we will often work directly with your CPA to remit quarterly tax estimates on your behalf.
We begin each year with a dedicated tax planning meeting that covers your projected income and expenses, charitable giving strategies, Roth conversion opportunities, retirement plan contributions, and a distribution plan for the year ahead. The goal is to outline a strategy that creates efficiencies during the year closes, not after. Taxes should be at least a quarterly topic.
2. Spring Review Meetings & Semi-Annual Investment Deep Dive
Everything builds towards and from your financial plan. Markets shift, life circumstances change, and financial plans that were perfectly calibrated in January may need adjusting by June.
Our spring review meetings give us a chance to review and update your financial plan. While we monitor your portfolio daily to identify any tax loss harvesting opportunities and rebalance as needed, you likely don’t want to hear from us that often. A semi-annual investment deep dive ensures that your portfolio isn't just working, but that it's performing in alignment with your goals.
3. Goal Review & Financial Plan Progress
The purpose of reviewing your financial plan in the beginning of the year, and more than once per year, is to provide the flexibility to make changes as needed. This is especially important if we are in the middle business succession planning when deal economics can change regularly. But, it can also be as simple as a surprise engagement proposal and now you want to chip in for a child’s wedding planning. Numbers on a spreadsheet only matter in the context of what you're actually trying to accomplish. That's why we dedicate regular time to step back and asking the more important question: Are we on track for what matters most to you?
Life evolves. Retirement timelines shift. Kids graduate, parents age, businesses grow or change. An additional goal review keeps your financial plan connected to your real life, not just the moment in time when you first joined us or your current advisor.
4. Estate Plan Review
Estate planning is one of the most important, and most commonly neglected, components to a comprehensive financial plan. When was the last time you refreshed your estate planning documents? Depending on what state you are in the core three, Will, Power of Attorney, and Health Care Proxy, might be critical where spouses are not recognized by default. In any case, do you want the state to make that election for you? At Hoeven, we also have extensive bi-coastal experience helping clients through the impacts of Massachusetts and Washington rolling out the nation’s most aggressive estate tax policies. In these states, a revocable trust likely becomes a core fourth item.
Our estate plan reviews cover beneficiary designations, gifting strategies, charitable giving vehicles, and any relevant changes in estate tax law through close coordination with your Estate Attorney. If you don’t have an attorney yet, we are happy to recommend a proven, trusted partner.
5. Year-End Review: Revisiting All Key Investment, Planning, & Tax Items
The final quarter of the year is where proactive planning pays off. A thorough year-end review examines Investment performance, tax planning, Roth conversion opportunities, distribution strategy, and Required Minimum Distributions. By this point, you should be in tune with your financial picture each year. If you are a couple months into the new year now feeling like your advisor is playing catch up, that isn’t optimal. The good news is, we are here to help and now you have a roadmap for what to expect.
The Bottom Line
Your financial life is dynamic. Your advisor relationship should be too.
At Hoeven Wealth, these conversations aren't optional add-ons, they're the foundation of how we serve our clients throughout the year. If you're not having them regularly, it may be time to ask why.
Ready to experience a proactive approach to wealth management? We'd love to connect.
Disclosure:
The information presented in this article and flowchart is intended for general educational purposes and should not be interpreted as individualized financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. Any hypothetical examples, scenarios, or illustrative anecdotes are used strictly to demonstrate financial planning concepts and do not reflect all client results. Because each person’s financial situation is unique, the strategies or ideas discussed may not be appropriate for your circumstances. As an investment adviser representative of a registered investment adviser, we act in a fiduciary capacity and provide advice tailored to each client’s objectives only after adequate understanding of the client’s situation. Before making any financial decisions, please consult with your adviser or another qualified professional.
Neither Hoeven Wealth nor XY Investment Solutions provide tax or legal advice. The tax and estate planning information offered is general in nature. It is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal or tax advice. Always consult an attorney or tax professional regarding your specific legal or tax situation.
