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Black Walnut Wealth Management

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How We Helped Tom and Mary
Build Their Legacy

The Story

Tom and Mary have done a great job building wealth and living within their means. With multiple homes and properties, strong retirement savings, and no debt, they’re in a solid position.

Now that they’ve secured their future, they want to help their children and grandchildren while also incorporating their passion for giving back. They are considering ways to include charitable funding in their estate plan.

Additionally, Tom and Mary would like to spend more quality time with their family and travel to new destinations together. To achieve these goals, they wanted an advisor they could sit down with—someone who would coordinate their portfolio and create a coordinated plan that takes their family’s needs and their philanthropic interests into account.

Their most pressing questions were:

  • What’s the best way to protect our assets and pass on our wealth without incurring heavy taxes?
  • How can we fund our grandchildren’s college education?
  • Can we include charitable funding?

The Challenge

  • Tom and Mary’s finances felt disorganized despite working with multiple advisors
  • Their estate plan hadn’t been updated in over 15 years
  • They were worried about missed opportunities to grow and protect their wealth
  • Tom and Mary wanted to work with someone local who they could sit down with and could bring everything together

Our Approach

After meeting them in person, we helped Tom and Mary get organized and establish a plan by:
  • Consolidating and simplifying their investment portfolio
  • Creating a tax efficient funding plan for their grandchildren’s college education
  • Establishing an estate planning solution that included their charitable funding and transferring wealth to their next generation

Tom and Mary’s Results

Tom and Mary now feel confident that their finances are in good order and that their family will be taken care of in the future.

After working with Tom and Mary, they now have:
  • A streamlined investment portfolio consolidating their investments into a well-organized portfolio
  • A tax-efficient plan that will maximize their contributions toward their grandchildren’s college education while minimizing their tax burden, allowing for more funds reserved for their intended purpose
  • An updated estate plan that integrates their philanthropic goals with efficient wealth transfer strategies, helping to ensure their charitable contributions reflect their values and support meaningful causes
  • A new focus on creating lasting memories with their family through planned travel and quality time, reinforcing their commitment to family

The above hypothetical example story is for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as a recommendation.
It does not involve an actual client and may not be representative of your experience.

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Get in touch with us:
13919 S W Bay Shore Drive,
Suite 104
Traverse City, MI 49684

Call us: 231.421.7711
Fax: 231.421.7760
Info@BlackWalnutWM.com

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Important Disclosures

Black Walnut Wealth Management is a fee-only firm that provides fiduciary investment services.  We are a financial planning, financial services, and financial advisory firm that proudly serves Traverse City and the Northern Michigan area near you including Beulah, Cadillac, Charlevoix, Elk Rapids, Frankfort, Gaylord, Glen Arbor, Grand Traverse, Leland, Ludington, Manistee, Petoskey, Suttons Bay, Marquette and Iron Mountain.

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