Alec Hagen, CFP, AIF

03/19/2026

Naturally, there are a lot of questions coming up about the current state of the markets

Once again I will share my favorite long term chart on the stock markets...

Drops in the market are entirely normal, especially after multiple years of good returns

The thing to do now is to stick to your plan, not abandon it

Add money if you can

And focus on the long term

Long term investment success is achieved by not overreacting to drops or scares

"Despite average intra-year drops of 14.2%, annual returns are positive in 35 of 46 years"

Think about April of last year, and how the year ended

Feel free to reach out to me directly if you would like to discuss your situation in more detail

04/30/2025

When markets get tough, what do you do?

Do you have a process? Or do you let emotions take control?

Emotional decision making will most likely only lead to more pain when markets get tough

Instead, go keep a long term view, evaluate your risk appetite, and look for opportunities

Use this checklist as a guide for evaluating your situation in the face of market volatility

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Those with a plan to follow tend to feel a lot better in these situations than those who don't!

We specialize in financial planning for business owners, high earners, and special needs families

If the market volatility has you feeling uncertain, feel free to reach out directly with any questions

04/29/2025

Another successful Michigan Shines for Autism Gala in the books!

We had an incredible time down at Motor City Casino Soundboard this weekend raising money and enjoying great company with the Autism Alliance of Michigan.

Special shoutout Tim Alberta who delivered an incredible, heartfelt speech that highlighted the "why" behind the work that AAoM does and the impact it has on the community

Looking forward to spending time at the Rocket Mortgage Classic this year after winning two tickets to Club Ace for the Friday round in the Silent Auction

If you are interested in getting involved next year, or learning more about how you can support AAoM, feel free to reach out to me directly

04/03/2025

Stocks going down is never fun, and it can be even worse when you are unsure what to do about it

Everyone's situation is different, so what may be a good move for some may be the wrong move for others

That is why it is so important to get personal financial advice specific to your own situation

If you have questions, and would like to run them by a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional, feel free to reach out to me directly for a confidential conversation or book a time on my calendar that is convenient for you at the link below

calendly.com

03/31/2025

Whenever the markets get tough, remember this chart

This represents consumer confidence in relation to the stock market

Simply put, blue dots on the bottom are when confidence is the lowest, top is when confidence is the highest

Next to them are the following 12 months return of the S&P 500

Notice anything?

The higher returns typically come when confidence is the lowest...

Right now, consumers are less confident about the economy than they were in April of 2020

What do you think will happen next?

Reminds me of the quote - "Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful."

03/20/2025

Raymond James has topped the list for Advised Investor Satisfaction among wealth management firms!

I am proud to be a part of a company that puts such a big focus on earning the trust of our clients.

If you would like to learn more about how we build those relationships with our clients, feel free to reach out to me directly!

Read the full announcement: https://go.rjf.com/4igasiW

02/03/2025

Anyone:
"When can I retire?" "How should I invest?" "Is this the best strategy for me?"

Me:
"It depends"

If you have ever asked an advisor a generic finance question, you probably got that answer

The reality is, each person's situation is different and what is best for one person may not be best for you

Here are a few of those common questions that I get and the way I begin to think about them

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Your personal finances are entirely that - Personal!

The real way to get to an actual answer is to develop a financial plan that is personal to your goals, finances, and family situation

If you have questions on how we help our clients develop and monitor these plans, feel free to send me a DM

05/17/2024

How do you structure your portfolio once you retire?

Investing for growth can be simple, distributing out money for your living expenses is more complicated

We like to use a bucketing strategy for our clients who are retired and need monthly income from their portfolios

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This chart is a nice visual to break down the bucketing strategy

Essentially, we break down the portfolio into 3 "buckets"

1️⃣ 1 Years Worth Of Living Expenses in Cash

After we determine your needs in your financial plan, we want to have 1 years worth of cash available

This ensures we will have the cash you need to live available, and also allows us to continue sending out that cash if the market is weaker and avoids selling stocks when they are down

2️⃣ A Few Years Of Living Expenses in Conservative Investments

We use bonds, CDs, and other fixed income to produce cash flow to replenish the cash position as well as consider unexpected expenses

This helps us avoid selling any stocks or growth investments in bad markets if bigger expenses or needs come up during those years

3️⃣ The Rest in Equities

The rest of the portfolio we use for the equity portion for long term growth

The goal is to continue to grow the portfolio for the long term to mitigate risks like inflation or running out of money

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Distributing a portfolio for retirement is more complicated than investing for growth, and factors like timing of withdrawals and taxes can affect your long term success

If you have questions on your personal situation, send me a DM to start a conversation

05/15/2024

What is it like to meet and start working with a financial advisor?

We follow a process of meetings when meeting new clients to ensure we form a solid relationship, fully understand their situation, and create a plan to follow to accomplish their goals

Some detail on each meeting:

1️⃣ Connection

We are trying to answer the question "Are We A Good Fit?"

We spend time getting to know you as a person, discuss your goals, and discuss our practice and how we work with clients

The goal is to determine two things: if we are the right financial advisors for you, and if you are the type of client we specialize in working with

2️⃣ Clarity

If we determine we are a good fit to work together, we hold a data gathering, or a "clarity" meeting

We take a deep dive into the details of your financial situation, review assets and financial documents, and have deep discussion on your goals and what drives you to want to pursue them

The goal here is to answer the question. "Why Do You Need A Financial Advisor?"

3️⃣ Strategy

The last is the strategy meeting, where we answer the question "What Are You Going To Do With My Money?"

Here is where we present the plan we developed for you based on our discussions and findings in the last two meetings

We go through your current situation, as well as possible scenarios that we would recommend to improve the outcomes of your plan or address any red flags

4️⃣ Communication

The cornerstone of any client advisor relationship is open communication

After implementing a financial plan, we agree on a communication timeline to continue monitoring the plan to adjust for changes to your life or our assumptions

Each client is different, and we speak with some bi-annually, quarterly, or even monthly based on their ongoing needs

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This process is ongoing with our current clients, as their lives change we may need to adjust the plan, in which we re-evaluate the strategy and adjust accordingly

Our team is made up of two experienced CFP® Professionals that specialize in financial planning for:

⭐ Corporate executives/management

⭐ Families with children affected by special needs

⭐ Business owners

If you would like to discuss any questions on your personal situation, send me a DM to start a conversation

05/09/2024

"I'm not sure if you work with clients like me..."

Often consumers want financial help but are not sure who is best for them to work with

In our practice, we primarily work with 3 types of client 👇

1️⃣ Corporate Executives and Management

Typically busy people with families, either mid career or looking to stop working in the next 5-10 years

Often they have a lot of moving parts with multiple incomes, retirement plans, stock compensation, and balancing multiple goals like saving for kids, retirement, and day to day expenses

We help them make sense of these, take the stress away of managing the plan day to day, and let them focus on their lives

2️⃣ Families with Special Needs Children

For these families, their day to day challenges are unique

The same goes for their financial plans

We help these families develop a plan that can provide for their needs today, their retirement, and ensure that their child will be cared for when they are gone while protecting their eligibility for government benefits

3️⃣ Business Owners

Typically owners or their families who have built a successful business and are looking to transition to their next phase in life

We help them develop a plan for their own retirement as well as the transition of their business to the next generation of buyer

This lets them feel at ease knowing the business they worked so hard to build will ideally continue to thrive, they will be compensated for their efforts all those years, and that they can live comfortably on their terms

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Our team is made up of two experienced CFP® Professionals that specialize in financial planning for the situations discussed in this post

If you have any questions on your personal situation, send me a DM to start a conversation

05/06/2024

Most special needs families are focused on the day to day challenges they face

But planning long term may be even more important

How do you ensure your child has the funds necessary to be cared for if/when you are gone?

How do you leave this to them without jeopardizing their government benefits?

Introducing, the Special Needs Trust

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A Special Needs Trust is designed to preserve
a beneficiary's eligibility for needs-based
government benefits while being able to
benefit from and enjoy trust asset

Put simply, your child can continue to get their government benefits, while the trust can be used to supplement their needs on top of this

A few points:

1️⃣ Managed by Third Party Trustee

2️⃣ Protects beneficiaries needs based government benefits (SSI, SSDI, Medicare)

3️⃣ Provides for loved one after your passing

⭐The most important thing here is who you choose to be trustee to manage the trust ⭐

Often people choose a family member who does not have the knowledge or expertise that is required to step into the role of trustee managing the trust

This role requires knowledge of the disability, government benefits, investments, taxes, as well as a significant ongoing time commitment

If you do not have someone you trust to handle this, consider looking at a corporate trustee

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Families with special needs face unique circumstances day to day, and their long term financial planning is no different

We help families with special needs answer the big "what if" questions while helping them continue to plan for the challenges faced today as well

If you have questions own personal situation, feel free to send me a DM to start a conversation