John G. Ullman & Associates

John G. Ullman & Associates is a registered investment advisor* that provides clients with comprehensive financial services from financial planning to investments, tax preparation to tax planning, estate planning to retirement, and beyond. At whatever stage you find your current wealth position, John G. Ullman & Associates can offer you a full range of services and the attention to detail that we provide to every single client.

What Distinguishes Us

The John G. Ullman & Associates process starts and ends with you! Our expert Advisors begin by working with you to understand your current financial picture, unique goals, time horizon, and risk tolerance. This information helps us develop a customized plan, based on your unique circumstances, that serves as a roadmap to making the right decisions about your financial future. Then we help you implement that plan, guide you in making smart choices, and determine the actions needed to achieve your financial objectives. Whatever your stage, we have the resources to help every step of the way.

What We Can Do Together

If you’re a busy professional, your career or family’s in transition, are an entrepreneur, a retiree or find yourself anywhere along life’s spectrum, we’re broad enough to serve your financial needs in whatever way you desire. The My Life pages will help you find specific areas that you might be concerned about now or in the near future and how we can help you manage them. We’re happy to help you with the starter topics linked below, and much more:

Legacy

These topics will get you thinking about some things that will matter while considering the many various aspects of planning and investing in your estate. Our role is to help you evaluate the characteristics of your asset ownership and the desired disposition of those assets. Learn more by exploring the following links:

Wills
Obligations of Executor
Power of Attorney
Healthcare Proxy
Trusts
Estate planning for your children & grandchildren
Charitable giving
Settling an estate or trust

Wills
Having a Last Will & Testament helps give you peace of mind that your assets will be distributed according to your wishes after you die. In your will you’ll need to stipulate who will inherit your probate assets as well as choose an executor who will oversee the process. In addition, your will can state other instructions such as guardianships for minor children and trusts for multiple purposes. Your John G. Ullman & Associates Advisor can help by looking at how your assets – your bank accounts and trusts – are titled to see if those beneficiaries should be updated. Wills should be reviewed periodically to be sure they reflect your current wishes. While we can’t draft a will for you, we can help you outline your priorities and help you prepare to meet with your attorney.
If you have recently married you’ll likely want to update your wills and review your goals. If you have a blended family, it’s important that you and your spouse each come to an agreement about the distribution of assets. You need to decide what will be left to the children and the surviving spouse/partner. We’ll help you work through these intricate decisions so the outlining of your wills can progress smoothly.

Obligations of Executor
An executor is a fiduciary named in your will who carries out the instructions of the will. The executor’s duties include payment of final bills and estate expenses and disbursement of assets to beneficiaries named in the will. This is typically accomplished with the assistance of an attorney, accountant, and your John G. Ullman & Associates Advisor who can help guide you through the process.

Power of Attorney
A Power of Attorney is a legal document that authorizes a trusted family member or other person to act as an “agent” on your behalf. The agent can manage your interests in your business, private affairs, or other legal matters. There are different types of Powers of Attorney and your John G. Ullman & Associates Advisor can help you determine which type is best suited to your needs. We will help you understand the implications of the critical role of your agent during your life.

Healthcare Proxy
The Healthcare Proxy is a document that allows an appointed “agent” (a trusted family member or other person) to make healthcare decisions on your behalf if you become incapacitated. We recommend that you consider creating this document along with your estate plan, Will, and Power of Attorney

Trusts
There are many types of trusts. We will discuss the benefits, uses, and planning implications of trusts based on your circumstances.

Estate planning for your children & grandchildren
Preserving generational wealth is often a priority in wealth management, legacy planning, and estate planning for your children, grandchildren, and even great-grandchildren. Estate planning isn’t something to postpone until late in life; in fact, we encourage our clients to consider beginning estate planning as early as age 18 or at the age of majority in your resident state. We will walk you through the appropriate estate planning documents and help you determine the right strategy for your personal situation.

Charitable giving
Charitable giving can both satisfy philanthropic inclinations and provide financial benefits. We will walk you through creative opportunities to align your philanthropic motivations and optimize tax-efficient strategies.

Settling an estate or trust
If you’ve been appointed executor or trustee to an estate, we can help you understand the duties involved with settling that estate or managing the tasks of the trustee. Settling someone’s affairs can be a very emotional and difficult time. We can help you focus on tasks such as distribution of certain assets or personal property, selling a home, and working with family members in the process. It can become even more complicated if you live at a distance. John G. Ullman & Associates can help you put all the appropriate pieces together.

Retirement

These starter topics will address things you should consider when it comes to planning for retirement. We will help you analyze your choices, develop a comprehensive plan, and work with you to implement your decisions so that you can achieve the ultimate goal of financial independence. Learn more by exploring the following links:

Dynamic retirement planning
Retirement savings
Social Security analysis
Pensions
401Ks, 403bs, TSPs, 457s, etc.
IRAs
Spend-down strategies
Initial insurance assessment
Health insurance
Medicare
Life insurance
Disability insurance
Property & casualty insurance
Insurance coverage away from home
Identity theft protection

Dynamic retirement planning

Many people have an idea of what retirement will look like for them. That vision usually involves the “fun stuff”: traveling, visits with friends and family, perhaps hobbies they couldn’t find the time for when they were working. At some point in your later years, though, spending can shift to the “less fun things” such as healthcare, which can become a significant expense.
Two important questions you need to ask yourself when it comes to potential healthcare costs later in life are: (1) how expensive will healthcare be, and (2) will companies continue to provide it? Just as life has its various stages, retirement can, too. It isn’t uncommon for people to actively plan for the “fun” stage but neglect the considerations that need to be made for the less appealing stages of life. Your John G. Ullman & Associates Advisor will work with you to address the entire picture and develop a dynamic plan that will help you prepare accordingly.
With that in mind, it’s never too early to prepare for your unique vision of retirement. We work with people early in the planning process to educate them on the importance of starting a savings and investing plan. We help identify how much they should be saving and develop savings plans. We actively monitor and adjust those plans as their life unfolds to ensure that their goals are on target, and, if not, we work together to modify the plan accordingly.
As people move into their retirement years, the work continues, but in different ways. We help manage asset allocation and spending patterns to adjust for unforeseen circumstances that happen outside of their goals. Events like market fluctuations, unexpected medical issues, or the decision to help an adult child with a financial situation in their own life could derail a plan. By proactively working together, we can make modifications when needed to protect the most important goals as outlined in the plan.

Retirement savings
Retirement can seem far away when you’re young, which means, for many people, that saving for it isn’t necessarily a high priority. However, for some, retirement can last as long as a working career. Life expectancy these days is over 80 and on the rise. This is one reason Social Security and pensions are under duress and may not provide enough income to sustain one’s lifestyle during their retirement years. There are a variety of factors that you’ll need to consider in determining how much you will need in retirement as well as the best savings plan and strategies to leverage your investments. We will work with you to understand the intricacies of all of these issues and identify a savings strategy that will help you meet your future goals.

Social Security analysis
You might be wondering when it would be best to start receiving your retirement benefits. The answer will be based on several factors, including your cash flow. To help clarify the possibilities, we will help you analyze the choices available to you and, if applicable, your spouse to determine the right decision and appropriate timing based on your circumstances.

Pensions
Many traditional employer-sponsored defined benefit plans are being replaced by cash balance and defined contribution plans. Over one’s career, this can result in many types and choices of retirement benefits. We will help you cut through the confusion and identify the most appropriate plans for your employment circumstances.

401Ks, 403bs, TSPs, 457s, etc.
So many numbers and abbreviations! What does this all mean? Regardless of the plan that your employer offers, we will educate you on the specifics and help coordinate your savings into that plan with the rest of your savings strategies. We work to incorporate your investment strategy across all of your accounts and strive to make sure you are aware of the benefits that employers are providing. If you’re under active John G. Ullman & Associates financial management, we make sure that the aggregate of your accounts is balanced. We look at how every account impacts the others. If they’re out of balance, adjustments need to be made.
What do you do if you’ve changed jobs (maybe several times) but haven’t rolled over your employer plan(s)? The balance could amount to a substantial portion of your net worth. It’s your money ̶ don’t leave it behind! We will help you decide what the next best step is for your savings. It may be leaving it where it is, rolling it to your new employer plan, or into an IRA.

IRAs
Traditional and Roth IRAs are two ways to invest for retirement. However, they have different and complex eligibility criteria. You’re required to have sufficient income for a traditional IRA, and the tax-deductibility of contributions is determined by strict eligibility requirements based on filing status, income, and retirement plans. Transactions such as dividends, interest, and capital gains are not subject to tax while still in the account, but withdrawals are. In contrast, a Roth IRA’s contributions are never tax-deductible and qualified withdrawals are tax-free. John G. Ullman & Associates has the expertise to advise you on the complexities of IRAs and help determine which type is best for you.

Spend-down strategies
Before you retire you should thoroughly review all of your assets, and while in retirement, your investments should be coordinated. We will analyze your tax plan to look for efficiencies and apply spend-down strategies using various approaches. An advantage of working with us is that we are a full-service firm, and our Comprehensive Services Team will coordinate your retirement planning, tax planning, and investment management needs. All of these areas must be considered when developing spend-down strategies.

Initial insurance assessment
Although we don’t sell insurance products, one of the first tasks we complete when you join John G. Ullman & Associates is a comprehensive review of all of your insurance policies. Our role is to help you evaluate your specific risk exposure and help you analyze your coverage. We’ll work with your insurance agent or do additional research to help you identify any gaps and source the right types of insurance for you.

Health insurance
Today’s health insurance market is very complex. You may have health insurance through your employer or you may need to find your own provider. Although we don’t sell insurance products, we have experience working with various company-provided plans as well as navigating the market place. We can help you find the best plan whatever your situation.

Medicare
For Medicare-eligible clients, we offer advice regarding Medicare and supplemental health insurance plans and help you understand all of the components. Supplemental Medicare plans are pretty standard and set up according to specific requirements. However, John G. Ullman & Associates Advisors have the expertise to discover if there’s a supplemental plan that will give your healthcare coverage more latitude. We will also review your Part D (prescription) coverage during open enrollment to be sure the cost of your medications is covered and that the formularies for your medications have not changed.

Life insurance
When we review your life insurance needs, we’ll take a look at the type(s) of insurance you have, examine whether it’s the right amount of coverage, and analyze the cost. We will continue to monitor and recommend insurance strategies to address all of your life stages.

Disability insurance
While having life insurance might be your top priority, disability insurance is too often overlooked. Without disability insurance you might have difficulty paying bills and taking care of your family, especially if you’re ineligible to collect Social Security disability. Your Advisor can review plans and options with you.

Property & casualty insurance
We conduct periodic property and casualty insurance reviews for our clients. We typically recommend having a high amount of liability insurance to protect your wealth and lifestyle. We’ll walk you through the process of determining how much liability insurance you need, including auto, homeowner’s, and umbrella coverage.

Insurance coverage away from home
An often-overlooked risk exposure by people who travel for any purpose is having additional insurance in place before you leave home to cover cancelled flights, lost baggage, auto rental, health insurance, liability, and more. We can help you determine the coverage that best suits your needs.

Identity theft protection
Identity theft is a deliberate crime, and it’s on the rise as people increasingly conduct banking and shop with credit cards online. If you become a victim of identity theft and your bank account or credit card is compromised, it can be extremely difficult to get your life and finances back in order. There are several identity theft protection plans to choose from. We can help you select the right option.

John G. Ullman & Associates John G. Ullman & Associates is a registered investment advisor* that provides clients with comprehensive financial services from financial planning to investments, tax preparation to tax planning, estate planning to retirement, and beyond. At whatever stage you find your current wealth position, John G. Ullman & Associates can offer you […]