Tru Financial Strategies

12/29/2024

I wanted to recognize and say a special thank you to those who have supported us for all of these years. I am so blessed to announce that I have received a 2024 Five Star Wealth Manager Award. There were 6,273 Chicago-area wealth managers considered for the award; 400 (6% of candidates) were named 2024 Five Star Wealth Managers and I am proud to be one of them for the second year in a row!

If you read Chicago magazine, you can see the announcement there too. You can also view my online profile with this link:
https://spotlight.fivestarprofessional.com/Spotlights/136077

For those who have been with us since I began in 2009 THANK YOU! Your continued support does not go unnoticed, and we are looking forward to the many things God is going to do in our lives in the coming years.

Disclosure: This award was issued on 10/1/24 by Five Star Professional (FSP) for the time period 1/9/24 through 8/9/24. Fee paid for use of marketing materials. Self-completed questionnaire was used for rating. This rating is not related to the quality of the investment advice and based solely on the disclosed criteria. 6273 Chicago-area wealth managers were considered for the award; 400 (6% of candidates) were named 2024 Five Star Wealth Managers. The following prior year statistics use this format: YEAR: # Considered, # Winners, % of candidates, Issued Date, Research Period. 2023: 5,549, 405, 7%, 10/1/23, 1/9/23 - 7/31/23; 2022: 4912, 384, 8%, 10/1/22, 1/24/22 - 7/29/22; 2021: 5635, 386, 7%, 10/1/21, 12/28/20 - 8/6/21; 2020: 4636, 356, 8%, 10/1/20, 1/6/20 - 8/7/20; 2019: 5430, 429, 8%, 10/1/19, 1/7/19 - 8/9/19; 2018: 5449, 435, 8%, 10/1/18, 1/12/18 - 8/17/18; 2017: 3781, 438, 12%, 10/1/17, 12/16/16 - 8/3/17; 2016: 3411, 726, 22%, 9/1/16, 2/26/16 - 8/19/16; 2015: 5833, 716, 12%, 10/1/15, 2/4/15 - 8/3/15; 2014: 8161, 744, 9%, 10/1/14, 2/4/13 - 8/3/13; 2013: 3998, 772, 19%, 10/1/13, 2/4/12 - 8/3/12; 2012: 2970, 780, 26%, 10/1/12, 2/4/11 - 8/3/11. Wealth managers do not pay a fee to be considered or placed on the final list of Five Star Wealth Managers. The award is based on 10 objective criteria. Eligibility criteria - required: 1. Credentialed as a registered investment adviser (RIA) or a registered investment adviser representative; 2. Actively licensed as a RIA or as a principal of a registered investment adviser firm for a minimum of 5 years; 3. Favorable regulatory and complaint history review (As defined by FSP, the wealth manager has not; A. Been subject to a regulatory action that resulted in a license being suspended or revoked, or payment of a fine; B. Had more than a total of three settled or pending complaints filed against them and/or a total of five settled, pending, dismissed or denied complaints with any regulatory authority or FSP's consumer complaint process. Unfavorable feedback may have been discovered through a check of complaints registered with a regulatory authority or complaints registered through FSP's consumer complaint process; feedback may not be representative of any one client's experience; C. Individually contributed to a financial settlement of a customer complaint; D. Filed for personal bankruptcy within the past 11 years; E. Been terminated from a financial services firm within the past 11 years; F. Been convicted of a felony); 4. Fulfilled their firm review based on internal standards; 5. Accepting new clients. Evaluation criteria - considered: 6. One-year client retention rate; 7. Five-year client retention rate; 8. Non-institutional discretionary and/or non-discretionary client assets administered; 9. Number of client households served; 10. Education and professional designations. FSP does not evaluate quality of services provided to clients. The award is not indicative of the wealth manager's future performance. Wealth managers may or may not use discretion in their practice and therefore may not manage their clients' assets. The inclusion of a wealth manager on the Five Star Wealth Manager list should not be construed as an endorsement of the wealth manager by FSP or this publication. Working with a Five Star Wealth Manager or any wealth manager is no guarantee as to future investment success, nor is there any guarantee that the selected wealth managers will be awarded this accomplishment by FSP in the future. Visit www.fivestarprofessional.com.

02/26/2024

I am so blessed to be a part of this years 40 under 40 Advisors featured in Fortune Magazine.

01/23/2024

I wanted to recognize and say a special thank you to those who have supported me for all of these years. I am so blessed to announce that I have received a 2023 Five Star Wealth Manager Award. There were 5,549 Chicago-area wealth managers considered for the award; 405 (7% of candidates) were named 2023 Five Star Wealth Managers and I am proud to be one of them.

For those who have been with me since I began in 2009 THANK YOU! Your continued support does not go unnoticed, and we are looking forward to the many things God is going to do in our lives in the coming years.

Thank you again!

02/28/2023

Big changes are coming to 401(k) benefits this year and the next few years. If you want to maximize your retirement savings and your retirement lifestyle, it’s critical you are aware of these changes.
Keep reading to find out which changes may affect you and your retirement planning.

Big changes are coming to 401(k) rules and benefits for 2023 and the next few years. Here’s what’s changing and how you benefit.

02/07/2023

https://lf400.isrefer.com/go/bl7ictk/a124
It’s tax time, and there are a few changes you need to be aware of before you file your 2022 taxes.
The IRS has warned taxpayers they should expect smaller refunds due to pandemic relief measures that have been allowed to expire.
Don’t get caught off guard. Keep reading for 7 important IRS changes you need to know before you file your 2022 taxes.

Here are 7 critical IRS changes to know before you file your 2022 taxes. Read more…

01/10/2023

The SECURE 2.0 Act, which was signed into law December 29, 2022, introduces major changes to the retirement system and how you save for retirement.
Keep reading to find out the key provisions in the bill and how it may affect your retirement future.

The SECURE Act 2.0 is changing the way we save for retirement. Check out the main provisions to see how you are affected.

09/12/2022

We all have bad money habits, and many of us don’t even realize it’s these habits that prevent us from reaching our financial goals.
Find out how you can replace these 7 bad money habits with 7 good ones. These strategies may help you achieve financial freedom and have the retirement lifestyle you dream of.

Are these 7 bad money habits keeping you poor? Find out what they are and how to replace them. Read more.

08/22/2022

It’s critical to your retirement savings and to your future retirement lifestyle to understand what you’re invested in. If you have a 401(k), this begins with asking questions – the right questions about your 401(k).
Keep reading for the 9 most common 401(k) questions and answers investors have.

It's critical to your retirement savings to understand what you’re invested in. Check out these 9 most common 401(k) questions and answers investors have.

08/16/2022

Target date funds (TDFs) do exactly as the name suggests – they are designed to target your anticipated retirement date.
Instead of having to choose a number of investments and create a portfolio, you select a fund that will help you reach retirement income goals.
Many investors like them because they simplify the 401(k) investing process, but do they actually live up to the hype? Keep reading for 3 reasons why target date funds may hurt investor portfolios.

While many investors like target date funds because they simplify the 401(k) investing process, they may cause more harm than good. Read more.

04/26/2022

Can your cash fight inflation?

When was the last time you were able to tell someone that you are making 7%+ on your Gov’t bond, CD, or cash sitting in your bank account? The answer was probably sometime in the late 1980’s. Since then, interest rates have been on a steady decline and have been near zero percent for the better part of a decade. This is kept your cash, treasuries, and CD’s from making anything more than what we like to joke about in the office, and that’s “12 Cents”.

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04/25/2022

The Senate working on its own version of the bill, the Retirement Security and Savings Act, is similar to the House bill. It’s expected that, after the Senate passes its version, both bills will be reconciled before being sent to President Biden for signature.
As of publication, the expected timeline for the Senate to mark up and pass their version of Secure 2.0 is sometime in May or June.
Keep reading to find out the main provisions in the House Secure Act 2.0 bill and how, if it passes, it may affect your retirement future.

New retirement legislation aims to strengthen retirement security for Americans. See what’s in the Secure Act 2.0 and how it may change your retirement future.