Benzina Wealth offers comprehensive financial planning services at a flat fee that is based on complexity and paid monthly. As a result, all of the services below are automatically included and do not cost extra. By taking a holistic approach, we become your partner for all financial decision making.

Going deeper, Benzina is your fiduciary as we are not compensated by anyone other than you through the flat planning fee you pay us. This way, you know our advice is truly in your best interest as there are no conflicts. No more second guessing the recommendations you receive from your Planner.

Financial Goals

    • Uncover what’s most important to you - core values and beliefs

    • Use these to define specific financial goals so your values come to life

    • Know how much you need to save and how to invest (or not) for each goal

    • Our first session together is entirely dedicated to discussing you and what’s important to you - identify what you want to achieve in life

    • Client dashboard where you can list goals and define target values - we track progress over time with illustrations

    • Saving $500 per month to a High Yield Savings Account is a good start. Though, splitting your savings to various accounts, each set up for a specific goal is more strategic. By doing this, you are inherently more disciplined to continue saving since you know exactly how and when you will reach the finish line. 

College Savings

    • Uncover your personal philosophy around education - who should cover the cost (you or child or both)

    • Identify how much to save and to what type of account(s)

    • Balance with your other long term goals like retirement

    • Project the future cost of college using national estimates and historical inflation rates

    • Illustrate how our savings will do over time and compare to above

    • Use of tax efficient vehicles like 529 plans, Brokerage and Roth IRAs to accelerate progress

    • Although the college landscape is changing, it still makes sense to save for education ahead of time due to the tax benefits. By using different types of accounts, you can maintain flexibility if your child doesn’t go to school, obtains a scholarship or drops out to start the next big social media app.

Cashflow & Debt

    • Review income and expenses to determine cash flow - agree on an amount to save/put towards your goals each month (or year)

    • Compare good and bad debt - decide to pay the normal rate or accelerate

    • Analyze new purchases - know whether you should finance and what portion

    • Built in budgeting tool that assesses cash flow based on automatically linked accounts - ability to categorize expenses

    • Detailed savings plan that looks at allocation of your cash flow over the next 12 months - updated annually

    • Long term projections and illustrations that depict progress over time

    • Cash flow is complex. You may have 3 goals or more you are saving towards - early retirement, purchasing an investment property and paying down student loans. By putting together a savings plan, you can see all cash flow in one place and confirm how much goes to each item. Now you know how it all comes together and balances with one another.

Tax Strategy

    • Understand your current tax situation - including tax location (how each of your investment accounts are taxed) and effective income tax rate

    • Present strategies to reduce current and future taxes paid

    • Review tax implications of various financial decisions - like selling employer stock positions

    • Referral to a vetted, qualified accountant (CPA) for tax filing needs

    • Tax analyzer tool integrated into our planning software and your client dashboard

    • Tax allocation pie chart that illustrates your exposure to different types of accounts - taxable, tax deferred (pre tax) and tax free

    • Savings plan that illustrates how much of your cashflow is going to each bucket based on your tax situation (pre tax vs after tax 401k)

    • Saving and investing are important. Using a tax efficient account like a Roth IRA or 529 College Savings Plan puts us way ahead, if used correctly. In the case of a Roth IRA, you do not have to pay taxes on your gains in the account if you wait until retirement age. This is a HUGE benefit.

Business Planning

    • Discover “passive income” opportunities and compare the ROI (return on investment) to more traditional investments

    • Outline steps to start a business - general education on entity types (LLC, S Corp) and retirement accounts available

    • Assess business resources (cash flow) and determine how much to reinvest to grow versus take out to live off / build your personal balance sheet

    • Detailed ROI (return on investment) analysis

    • Incorporation of business assets into your personal Financial Plan and long term goals (retirement)

    • Diversification is key. This does not only apply to investing - your income should also be diverse. Opening/running a business is one way to do this if you are passionate about the industry and willing to take the risk.

Estate Planning

    • Education around what type of estate planning strategies and documents are available

    • Guidance on how to establish your estate plan through self directed outlets or legal benefit through employer

    • Net worth projections to determine whether or not you are exposed to estate taxes

    • Trust funding support with retitling of managed accounts - ability to adjust beneficiaries

    • Referral to local, vetted estate planning attorneys for more complex needs

    • Life is frugal and uncertain. Although you hope to be here as long as possible for your kids/grandkids, we are still prepared for the worst with an estate plan that carries out your wishes - ensuring the needs of the next generation are taken care of. In the process, we look to save on taxes while transferring assets to the next generation.

Investments

    • Ongoing investment management is included at no extra cost

    • Craft a custom investment strategy for each of your accounts - including external accounts like 401ks, 403bs, and HSAs

    • Review of concentrated positions including equity compensation (RSUs, Stock Options, ESPP, etc.)

    • Use of a digitally based custodian, Altruist, which allows us to easily open and transfer accounts electronically - mobile app available

    • Passive index funds are used to keep investing fees (expense ratios) low

    • Access to Direct Indexing strategies, which offer more opportunities for tax savings (tax loss harvesting)

    • Earning 4% on a High Yield Savings account is great for short term goals. Though, if your time horizon is longer than a year or two, investing in a diversified mix of stocks/bonds will allow you to earn more and accelerate progress towards your goals.

Risk Management

    • Review existing insurance policies - life, annuity, disability, LTC

    • Elect employer benefits during open enrollment - health insurance

    • Recommend coverage to protect your Financial Plan - life, umbrella, home and auto

    • Secure vault to upload all of your existing policies for review

    • Identify life insurance needs using a present value of future earnings calculation - add other balance sheet items and gaols, as needed

    • Dedicated check in and ad hoc follow up meeting to discuss coverage needs in more detail

    • After creating a Financial Plan that encapsulates everything that is important to you, we protect it through the use of low cost insurance solutions. Rest assured, Benzina does not sell or is compensated for any products we recommend. Instead, we point you in the right direction of where to purchase. This way, you know it is truly in your best interest.