Dennis Carl Walters

You make good money. You have a plan somewhere. What you are not sure about is whether anyone is actually watching the whole thing. Right now, you probably have an advisor for investments, a CPA for taxes, and maybe an attorney for estate documents. None of them talk to each other. You are the one in the middle, repeating your situation to three people who each see one slice of it. I build the financial plan, and I prepare and file your tax return myself. Same person, same conversation. The tax decision and the planning decision get made together, by someone who can see how one moves the other. Most advisors hand you off to a CPA who has never seen your plan. I do not hand you off. I work with dual-income parents, director level and up, two demanding careers, kids at home, and a financial life that has gotten more complicated than you have time for. Equity comp you have not fully sorted out. College creeping up. Estate documents written before your last job change. All of it in motion at once, and no one holding it together. What I give you back is time. One relationship instead of many. One person who knows the whole story, so you stop being the project manager of your own financial life. None of these pieces is that hard on its own. The coordination is what you do not have the hours for. That is the part I take off your plate. I am raising four kids of my own, including a set of triplets, so I plan from inside this life stage, not from a brochure. I know what it costs, in money and in attention, to do this well. If you are tired of being the one who holds it all together, reach out. I will tell you honestly whether I am the right fit.

Sean R. Sparkman, AIF®, is the founder of Pathfinders Wealth and an investment adviser representative with Foundations Investment Advisors, LLC. Based in Commerce Township, Michigan, he works with families, retirees, and business owners nationwide by phone and video and throughout Southeast Michigan in person by appointment. His work focuses on retirement income planning, investment management, Social Security, Roth conversions and other tax-aware planning decisions, life insurance, annuities, survivor planning, and long-term family and legacy goals. Sean's approach is simple: every dollar should have a job. Depending on the client, that job may be growth, income, liquidity, tax efficiency, protection, or legacy. The job comes first; the product comes after. Investment advisory services are offered through Foundations Investment Advisors, LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Insurance products are offered separately through appropriately licensed insurance professionals. Estate-planning matters may be coordinated with a client's independent attorney; Sean does not provide legal services.

Peter Mc Caffrey is a financial advisor at Sound Financial Planning LLC in Bloomfield Hills, MI. He holds a Series 65 designation and has one year of industry experience. Outside of financial advising, he has been a professional cellist with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra since 2012. Sound Financial Planning LLC provides fee-only, advice-only financial planning to individuals and high-net-worth clients, focusing on diversified, passive investment strategies and comprehensive financial planning without managing client assets or exercising investment discretion.

Kevin Radell is a CFP® professional with 20 years of experience in financial advising. He is the principal at Predmore Advisors LLC and has previously worked at Morgan Stanley and The Prudential Insurance Company of America. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved in fine art sales through Predmore Fine Art LLC and provides business consulting via Predmore Holdings Inc. Predmore Advisors LLC primarily manages pooled vehicles and institutional assets while also serving individual clients. The firm offers investment advisory services including retirement strategy analysis, cash-flow budgeting, diversification and insurance recommendations, and tax and estate planning, generally on a non-discretionary basis.

Philip Michalek is the sole advisor at PDM Investment Services, LLC, an independent firm based in Lake Orion, MI. He holds a Series 65 designation and has 15 years of industry experience. Michalek has led PDM Investment Services since 2005. PDM Investment Services advises individual investors, including some high-net-worth households, providing portfolio analysis, discretionary management, and financial planning. The firm employs a combination of strategic adaptive and tactical equity allocation, using proprietary rating models and a long-term market indicator to guide investment decisions.

Lawrence Zimbler is the sole advisor at 4Square Advisory Services, Inc. in Fenton, MI, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses with 16 years of industry experience. He has worked at Ridgeway Conger Advisory Services Inc. and has maintained a long-standing role with the National Association of Tax Professionals since 2005. In addition to his advisory work, he owns a tax preparation and education business that provides tax return preparation, advice, representation, and continuing education for tax professionals. 4Square Advisory Services primarily serves individual and high-net-worth clients with portfolio management and financial planning, utilizing written Investment Policy Statements tailored to client goals. The firm employs a model-driven investment process covering mutual funds, fixed income, REITs, ETFs, annuities, TIPS, and international securities, often with discretionary trading authority, and offers fiduciary advice for retirement accounts and services to tax-exempt organizations.