The practice
Marblehead, Massachusetts.
Since 2001.
Nobody retires on a benchmark. They retire on a number, and most people have never been told theirs.
We start with the spending, not the portfolio: what the years actually cost, what the taxes take, and what happens if one of you needs care. Only then do we build something to fund it.
The plan is eight pages and you keep a copy. We revisit it every year, and we will say plainly when the answer is to spend less rather than to invest differently.
Sometimes the honest advice is to spend less, and it should be said out loud.
What we look for
A number, not a benchmark
What your retirement costs, in dollars, before anything is invested.
The tax order first
Which account you draw from changes the answer more than the fund selection.
A plan on paper
Eight pages you keep, updated yearly whether or not anything changed.
Eight pages, and you keep a copy
Written before a dollar is invested
Page 1
What the year costs you now
Page 2
What it costs at seventy-five
Page 3
The number you need, after tax
Page 4
Which account to spend first
Page 5
What happens if one of you needs care
Page 6
What the survivor lives on
Page 7
What the market has to do, at minimum
Page 8
What we do if it does not
People
Twenty-five people, grouped by what they are responsible for.
Leadership 5
Catherine Dashwood
Managing Principal
Cynthia Sinclair
Managing Principal
Elizabeth Pennington
Senior Wealth Adviser
Gary Jennings
Senior Wealth Adviser
Karen Huntington
Senior Wealth Adviser
Advice 10
Kenneth Eastwood
Wealth Adviser
Larry Somerset
Wealth Adviser
Mary Ives
Wealth Adviser
Michelle Grantham
Wealth Adviser
Patrick Kingsley
Portfolio Manager
Samuel Pemberton
Portfolio Manager
Sarah Eastwood
Portfolio Manager
Norman Underhill
Financial Planner
Harriet Fairbanks
Financial Planner
Warren Quimby
Financial Planner
Platform and operations 10
Lydia Bramwell
Head of Client Service
Edmund Kingsbury
Head of Tax
Cecilia Thorndike
Head of Estate Planning
Hugh Ellsworth
Chief Investment Officer
Preston Ashcroft
Chief Compliance Officer
Miriam Hollister
Director of Research
Walter Standish
Director of Operations
Beatrice Danforth
Client Associate
Roger Osgood
Client Associate
Eleanor Alden
Trading Operations
Open role
We are hiring a financial planner, in Marblehead.
A CFP, five years of planning work, and no interest in selling products.