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Retire With Certainty

Are you sick of your retirement full of "if's"? Your income will be secure if the market performs well. You'll be able to take that vacation you have always wanted if... A successful retirement isn't built on if's. It's built on certainty.
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Reimagining Wealth Management
Designing the most human-first wealth managment company

Education

The process for how most of us make a financial decision is broken. Too often, we make emotion-based decisions because we don't have all of the facts to make a sound decision. Education is the first step to making a sound retirement decision.

Transparency

Transparency is word often quoted, but rarely practiced. How many investors actually understand what they're paying their advisor? How many understand what they actually own? We put our pricing and process front and center. We don't just preach transparency, we practice it.

Technology

Technology improves every step of the retirement planning process. From monitoring performance, to advanced income modeling, to better client communication. See for yourself the benefit technology can have on your retirement. 

Learn How Safeguard Is Different

We built a different kind of wealth management company. See how it puts you, the client,  first...
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Our Most Recent Blog Posts

File at 62 vs. Delay: At What Age Do I Break Even on Social Security?

By Eric Sajdak, ChFC® • July 7, 2020
"If I delay my Social Security benefit, at what age would I breakeven versus simply filing at 62?" We field this type of question frequently from retirees. The Social Security system allows you to file anytime between 62 and age 70. At first glance, filing at 62 seems to make the most sense. After all, there are 12 months in a year and eight years between ages 62 and 70—That's 96 months of monthly paychecks that you wouldn't be getting if you delayed. However, you get penalized for taking your benefit early. Below is a diagram showing the penalties and delayed credits for someone whose Full Retirement Age is 66:

Fair Value, Now What?

By Tony Hellenbrand • June 30, 2020
Lately I’ve been getting asked how I was able to “Call the Bottom” in late March. I want to make something clear: I didn’t. If you go back and look at the article from March 16th or read the email I sent out to subscribers on the 26th, (pure dumb luck), I ran a bad case, a best case, and a base case valuation on the S&P 500. I arrived at a base case valuation of 2,950, and at the time the S&P was hovering around 2,300, so we started recommending clients initiate buying plans. These plans did not mean “This is the bottom” or “Go all in.” Far from it. Many of our clients were buying several days before the precise bottom, and several days and weeks after. Regardless of how clearly I try to make this point (that we simply were buying something the math said was likely cheap) this morning my inbox is chock full of people asking what I think about valuations now. Are we in a bubble? Is the market ahead of the fundamentals? Are we going to double dip? Will the market crash? Will we need a second stimulus? Maybe. I have no idea. Here’s what I know, when you accumulate all of the available earnings estimates and make a conservative estimate of fair value, you end up with a fair value of about 3,060 on the S&P 500. As I type this we sit at 3,080. Regardless of whether the number is 2,950 or 3,060 or 3,080 or 3,150, any way you slice it, we’re at fair value, now. Analyst Earnings Estimates:
stealth taxes

3 "Stealth Taxes" that Increase Your Tax Bill Without You Knowing

By Eric Sajdak • May 28, 2020
It is your right as an American to (legally) pay the least amount in taxes that you owe—nothing more, nothing less. But in recent years, Congress has made a concerted effort to shift the IRS code and levy you with taxes you didn't even know you were paying. We call these "Stealth Taxes." These changes are never talked about by your congressman (or woman). They lie deep within the tax code and can potentially cost you significantly unless you learn about how to avoid them. In this article, we cover three of those "Stealth Taxes" and what you can do to minimize or avoid them altogether.
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Frequently Asked Questsions (FAQs)

  • Is Safeguard A Fiduciary?

    Yes. In fact, we hold ourselves to a higher standard then a fiduciary standard. You can read more about it by clicking here.

  • How does Safeguard compare to other advisors or investment firms?

    Deciding who to trust with your money and your financial future can be one of the most difficult decisions you make. The stakes can be high.


    Here are a few ways we believe we set ourselves apart from other planners:

    • Fiduciary - If you read through our website, you might find it exhausting how many times we mention the word Fiduciary. There are a lot of things you will consider when working with an advisor. We believe this standard HAS to be part of that consideration. The unfortunate part is, statistically, the majority of advisors are not fiduciaries. 
    • Retirement Focused - Nobel Prize winning economist Robert Shiller has been quoted saying planning for retirement is more complex than rocket science. Variables in rocket science are static, variables in retirement planning are every changing, presenting new challenges and opportunities. We've been innovative in the retirement planning space because retirement planning is all we do. Learn more here.
    • Cost - We believe in complete transparency when it comes to our costs. Our fees are reasonable and low. But rather than droning on about our costs vs. other advisors, we'll let you make that distinction.
    • Inches Add Up To Miles - Think of retirement this way. You and I begin on boats leaving the New York City harbor. I point my boat straight while you point your boat 2-degrees to the right. One mile from shore, that 2-degree difference doesn't mean much. A thousand miles from shore, and that 2-degree difference changed everything. Retirement works the same way. Often the most overlooked topics like taxes, Social Security, law changes, etc. end up putting you in an entirely different situation later in life. Sometimes for better, other times for worse. We help make sure that inch change moves you closer to your goals, not further away.
  • Fees With Safeguard Wealth Management

    Could you imagine going to the grocery store and rather than a price tag by each item of food, there was a sign that said, "See Grocery Clerk for Pricing". Imagine shopping on Amazon.com and every item you searched for said, "Call 1 (800) 555-5555 for Pricing Information".  


    Something tells us neither of those businesses would last very long...


    And yet, if you were searching for a local advisor to help you plan for retirement, how much luck do you think you'd have finding their pricing? For some reason, we've all accepted not knowing what we are really paying for financial advice. We've accepted the fees and costs we are actually paying are nearly impossible calculate. 


    Our fee is simple and all encompassing. Our clients pay 0.48% per year on assets under our management. That's it.


    Learn more on our Pricing Page.

  • What is the best strategy for retirement?

    There is no one “best place” to put your retirement money because each individual and couple has unique requirements, different tolerances for risk, and need for their money at different times. 


    Your unique circumstances must be taken into consideration if you seek to find the “most favorable place” for your retirement money.

  • Do you have account minimums?

    No. There is no client that is "too small" if we mutually find we are good fit. Alternatively, it doesn't matter how "big" a client is if we find our process, goals, and expectations don't align. 

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