Good Wealth Management: Do You Really Need It – PillarWM

Managing your wealth on your own is not a simple task, particularly if you have $5 million or more worth of liquid assets. Hence, in these situations, a good wealth management firm can provide you holistic services such as retirement income planning, estate planning, insurance planning and investment management. If you’re concerned about how to pick the best wealth management company to manage your wealth, then check out our guide for investors with $10 million or more.

At Pillar Wealth Management, we have a team of expert wealth managers who assist individuals who have liquid assets that are valued from $5 million to $500 million. We have been providing wealth management services to affluent clients for more than thirty years. Book a free consultation session with one of our wealth managers to learn more about how we can manage your wealth.

Table of Contents
What Is Wealth Management? What Good Wealth Management Provides Their Client? Should I Hire Wealth Management? How to Choose High and Ultra-High Net Worth Wealth Management Firm The Bottom Line

What Is Wealth Management?

The phrase “wealth management” is often used in mainstream and trade articles, in the meeting rooms of private client firms, and by financial advisors in front of their clients. Still, several professionals are at a loss when it comes to actually defining the phrase with any level of precision. So really, what is wealth management?

In simple words, wealth management is an investment advisory service that encompasses several financial services to fulfill the requirements of high net worth and ultra-high net worth clients. An additional defining aspect of wealth management is that it’s a consultative process of offering relevant financial products and services.

A wealth manager or wealth advisor is essentially a financial advisor who uses a range of financial tools available, including investment and financial advice, estate or legal planning, accounting, retirement planning, and tax management to efficiently manage a wealthy client’s assets.

Wealth management firms typically require a higher account minimum for their clients’ assets under management than other financial planning firms. In fact, most of these wealth management companies have a minimum asset requirement in the millions. For example, at Pillar Wealth Management, we provide wealth management services to affluent clients who have at least $5 million worth of liquid assets. Our expert team of wealth managers has more than six decades of experience in managing the wealth of high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals. Click here and speak to one of our wealth managers to get more information about how we can manage your assets.

What Good Wealth Management Provides Their Client?

Another popular question regarding wealth management is, “what wealth management provides their clients?”

So, in this section, we’ll explore the list of services provided by wealth management companies to their clients. A good wealth management firm typically provides some or all of the services mentioned below:

1. Investment Management

Investment management involves creating and managing an investment portfolio. It includes acquiring and disposing assets and investments, proposing a holistic investment plan, handling the portfolio’s asset allocation, monitoring the portfolio’s performance, and making adjustments as needed.

At Pillar Wealth Management, we manage complete investment portfolios on behalf of our high net worth and ultra-high net worth clients. Our expert wealth managers specialize in creating a comprehensive investment plan to meet a client’s financial goals. We then use this plan to apportion the client’s wealth among the numerous available investment categories, including bonds and stocks. Don’t forget to read our comprehensive guide, Improving Portfolio Performance, and get more information on how we can assist you in maximizing your investment gains.

2. Estate Planning

Estate planning is the procedure for determining who will inherit your wealth and take over your assets after your incapacitation or death. One key objective of estate planning is to ensure that your beneficiaries receive the wealth and assets in a manner that reduces income tax, gift tax, estate tax, etc. Unfortunately, many individuals fail to take up proper estate planning, which costs their families large amounts of money and stress when they are at their most vulnerable stage in life. Read our recently published book, The Art of Protecting Ultra-High Net Worth Portfolios and Estates – Strategies for Families Worth $25 Million to $500 Million, to get more details on estate planning and the challenges associated with it.

All in all, estate planning is a crucial component of your overall wealth plan. Planning for the future will give you greater privacy, control and a chance to leave a better legacy to your loved ones. Our expert wealth planners will create a detailed estate plan that includes many financial planning instruments such as creating a trust, buying the appropriate life insurance plan, and formulating a succession plan so that your beneficiaries don’t need to pay any additional money in taxes.

3. Tax Management

You might know that you have to pay a certain amount of tax if you make a profit on your investment. But did you know that there are numerous techniques to effectively decrease the taxes you’re obligated to pay? And this is precisely what tax management is all about!

Tax management involves analyzing your financial circumstances or your investment portfolio from a tax perspective. This means that a wealth manager will look at each of the components of your portfolio or situation to identify where the possibilities for taxes are high and then develop strategies that aim to minimize your tax liability.

At Pillar Wealth Management, we know the value of a comprehensive financial plan because your entire portfolio can get eaten up in taxes without it. Thus, we strive to provide you with the best tax plan that will minimize your tax burden. We will also monitor your investment portfolio and will let you know if you any taxes on them. This way, you won’t have to worry about missing out on tax payments that can lead to hefty penalties and can even land you in prison.

4. Retirement Income Planning

Retirement income planning is an essential service offered by wealth management firms. Keep in mind that once you retire, you will no longer have an active income source, and you’ll have to fulfill your financial needs by the passive income generated by the investments in your portfolio.

Apart from that, several high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals have particular goals for their retirement. For example, some affluent individuals aim to travel the globe, purchase a luxury vehicle, or spend a peaceful retirement in their country house.

Our wealth managers are highly skilled at creating comprehensive retirement plans so that you continue to receive a good post-retirement income. This way, you can enjoy a luxurious living standard even after retirement. We highly recommend you read our special guide, 5 Critical Shifts for Maximizing Portfolio Growth Strategies and know more about how you can translate your retirement goals into reality.

5. Insurance Planning

Without comprehensive planning, be it investment planning, retirement income planning, or estate planning, you won’t be able to invest in the right places, retire peacefully, or leave behind a meaningful legacy. However, if you don’t have a comprehensive insurance plan, every aspect of your wealth plan can be exposed to unanticipated risks.

Proper planning will allow you to identify and plan for all the risks involved in each aspect of your financial life. Meticulous insurance planning helps to eliminate the risks that you can’t predict. So, where financial planning aims to build your wealth, insurance planning works to preserve and protect it.

At Pillar Wealth Management, our wealth managers are highly knowledgeable of the insurance industry’s intricacies and how they apply to your current and future finances. Our comprehensive insurance analysis will ensure that you aren’t spending too much on a nonviable policy. Moreover, we can even review the plans you currently have and identify any holes that can cost your family significant money and stress. We are also aware the change is a part of life, and thus, we will periodically reassess your insurance strategy to ensure that it’s the best one for your family.

Should I Hire Wealth Management?

You might still be a little confused and would probably be thinking, “should I hire wealth management?” After all, you can just go to a private bank or a broker to manage your investments and wealth. Unless you’re okay with plain vanilla, cookie-cutter solutions that aren’t in line with your specific financial objectives, here are some reasons why you should opt for a wealth management firm.

Knowledge and Expertise

Wealth management firms have comprehensive knowledge and expertise in handling the assets and portfolios of high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals. They have in-depth information of all the various financial products available and keep a vigilant eye on the ongoing market movements to promptly leverage any available profitable trend.

Moreover, wealth management firms utilize extensive data to formulate the most appropriate strategies to help you attain your financial goals. For instance, at Pillar Wealth Management, we possess historical financial data since 1925, which allows us to conduct scientific analysis to provide the basis of your financial strategy.

Get Tailored Solutions

As mentioned above, if you’re satisfied with the same cookie-cutter solutions that investment houses, private banks and other financial firms offer, you can opt for them. But if you really want strategies and plans that are purely designed in accordance with your goals and interests, you need a wealth management firm. The managers at a wealth management firm will schedule detailed consultation sessions with you to fully grasp your requirements and develop tailored financial plans that are perfectly aligned with your unique financial circumstances.

Unlike the large Wall Street firms and other major financial institutions who are more interested in their shareholders, we at Pillar Wealth Management focus more on building your wealth and legacy. Thus, we take pride in providing tailored investment and financial solutions to help high net worth and ultra-high net worth clients move closer to the life of their dreams. Click to speak to our wealth managers and get your own personalized financial plans.

Attain Financial Serenity

Every single person on this planet aspires to become financially secure and attain financial serenity. Nevertheless, attaining financial serenity is much more difficult for affluent individuals. It is undoubtedly a very tough task, handing over all your wealth and assets to someone you hardly know. But this is precisely why you need to hire a good wealth management firm! A well-reputed, qualified and competent wealth management company will ensure that you achieve financial serenity so you can live the life of your dreams without any financial troubles.

How to Choose High and Ultra-High Net Worth Wealth Management Firm

If you’re convinced to hire a wealth management firm, you might now be thinking about how to choose the best high and ultra-high net worth wealth management firm. So, to help you out, we have listed the steps you need to follow to ensure that you get the best wealth management firm to fulfill your needs. Plus, we highly encourage you to read The Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Best Financial Advisor authored by our wealth managers to learn how to identify and pick the best wealth management firm.

Step 1 – Note Down A Few Names

If you’re looking for a wealth management firm, you can just do a quick Google search to collect the names of some wealth management firms. Nevertheless, the best thing to do is get some recommendations from your colleagues, friends, and family members. So, start off by asking high net worth or ultra-high net worth individuals in your circle about the wealth management company they use.

Step 2 – Vet their Background

When selecting a wealth management firm, make sure you carry out some research before hiring anyone to manage your wealth. When researching wealth management firms for your needs, you should pay special attention to the services they provide, the clients they work with and their qualifications. Some wealth managers might be listed on databases such as the CFP website, so you can simply go through them to know more about their background and credentials.

Otherwise, you can look up your shortlisted wealth management companies on LinkedIn and review their profile. Any blogs or articles that a wealth management company has authored for major websites is also a major plus point.

Step 3 – Schedule a Meeting

After you have thoroughly evaluated a wealth management firm, you should schedule an in-person meeting with the managers there. This will allow you to learn more about their personality and decide if this is someone you can trust with your money.

In your first meeting, you should ask various questions about wealth management and see if you’re satisfied with their answers. Some possible questions you can ask include:

-Have you previously worked with high net worth clients?

-What is your approach to wealth management?

-What is your business model?

-What wealth management services do you provide?

For more questions, read our ultimate guide for investors with $10 million or more.

The Bottom Line

Choosing the right wealth management firm plays a critical role in growing your wealth. At Pillar Wealth Management, we learn about your financial goals and help you formulate plans and strategies to accomplish those goals.

To learn more about how our wealth management company can help you grow and protect your wealth, contact us today!