If you’ve followed Dave Ramsey for years, you’ve probably put real discipline into how you handle money. You’ve watched your spending, saved consistently, and worked steadily to build wealth.
Then retirement gets close enough to feel real, and the questions change.
Can I afford to stop working? How do I turn my savings into a paycheck without second-guessing every withdrawal? And how do I keep from overpaying in taxes once my regular paycheck stops?
Building a nest egg and living on it require different decisions. I’m a SmartVestor Pro serving families in Roanoke, Christiansburg, and the surrounding Southwest Virginia communities. If you’re wondering what working with our team at Martin Wealth Solutions looks like, here’s what you can expect.
Dave Ramsey’s SmartVestor program replaced his former investing ELP program, short for Endorsed Local Provider. If you remember looking for an investing ELP in the Roanoke Valley or New River Valley, SmartVestor is the name you’ll see today.
Participating professionals work through firms independent of Ramsey Solutions. Their planning approaches, specialties, and fee structures can differ. Who you hire is your decision, so take time to understand how an advisor works before moving forward.
You can learn more about my participation in SmartVestor and our approach at Martin Wealth Solutions.
We start with a complimentary, low-pressure 20-minute phone call with a member of our advisory team.
First, we want to understand what prompted you to reach out.
We’ll talk about what you’re trying to accomplish, answer your questions, and explain how our team might help.
You don’t need a color-coded binder or retirement completely figured out before calling. Helping you sort through those questions is the point.
If we decide to move forward together, we’ll gather the practical details: accounts, income sources, spending, taxes, healthcare coverage, and the people who depend on you.
Just as importantly, we’ll talk about what you want life after work to look like. Traveling often and helping grown children may require different planning than staying close to home with fairly steady expenses.
Our SmartWealth System™ brings those details together to help answer questions such as:
Suppose you’d like to retire a few years before starting Social Security. We’d look at how to cover your living expenses during those years, which accounts might make sense to draw from, and how those withdrawals could affect your taxes.
I want you to understand how one decision affects the next before you make it.
Our advisory fee is based on the assets we manage for your household. Before becoming a client, you’ll understand the fee that applies, the services included, and any additional account or investment costs.
Our ongoing advisory relationship includes retirement income planning, investment management, tax planning strategies, Medicare and healthcare guidance, and regular reviews.
I believe you should understand what you’re paying just as clearly as what we’re recommending. Ask us to explain the cost in plain dollars. Ask what’s included. If anything feels fuzzy, keep asking until it makes sense.
The same standard applies to our advice. You should understand why a recommendation fits your situation and what tradeoffs come with it.
Our fiduciary planning team, including CFP® professionals, helps you put your plan into practice and keep it current through an ongoing process we call Momentum.
We review your progress, revisit upcoming decisions, and adjust the plan as circumstances change.
Sometimes the change is financial. You receive an inheritance, spend more than expected, or face an expensive home repair. Other times, your priorities shift. You decide to move closer to family or realize you’d rather take that big trip now than wait another five years.
Those are reasons to revisit the plan together. When a question comes up between meetings, you also have a team to turn to.
Yes. We meet with individuals and families at our offices in Roanoke and Christiansburg, Virginia, and offer virtual meetings when connecting from home is easier.
We serve the Roanoke Valley and New River Valley, including Salem and Blacksburg, as well as Smith Mountain Lake.
Whether you found us through SmartVestor or remember Dave Ramsey’s investing ELP program, we’ll start with a straightforward conversation about what matters to you.
If you’d like help thinking through retirement, schedule a complimentary 20-minute call with our team. We’ll talk about where you are, what you’re trying to accomplish, and whether we’re the right team to help.
About the author:
Jim S. Martin is the founder and a fiduciary financial advisor at Martin Wealth Solutions. He helps people age 50 and older make informed decisions about retirement income, taxes, investments, Social Security, and Medicare. Through the firm’s SmartWealth System™, Jim helps bring those decisions together into a coordinated retirement plan. With offices in Roanoke, Christiansburg, and Lynchburg, Virginia, the firm serves local families and clients nationwide. Jim also hosts the Smart Wealth and Retirement podcast.
This article is for educational and informational purposes only. It does not provide personalized investment, tax, or legal advice or recommend any particular investment or strategy. Decisions should reflect your individual circumstances and be discussed with your financial advisor, tax professional, or attorney, as appropriate.Investing involves risk, including the potential loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. No investment or planning strategy can guarantee a particular outcome. Information reflects the laws and circumstances at the time of publication and may change. Although sources are believed to be reliable, accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed.
SmartVestor is an advertising and referral service. Martin Wealth Solutions pays Ramsey Solutions monthly membership and advertising fees regardless of whether a referral becomes a client. This creates a financial incentive to refer consumers to participating professionals. Ramsey Solutions is not affiliated with Martin Wealth Solutions and does not provide or supervise our investment advice. Participation does not guarantee investment results.
Our fiduciary advisors help you make smart retirement decisions about taxes, retirement income, investments, and healthcare
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New River Financial Group, LLC is a Registered Investment Advisor offering advisory services in the State of Virginia and other jurisdictions where exempted. New River Financial Group, LLC dba Martin Wealth Solutions.
Investing involves risk, including the potential loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss in periods of declining values.
The information and opinions contained in any of the material requested from this website are provided by third parties and have been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed. They are given for informational purposes only and are not a solicitation to buy or sell any of the products mentioned. The information is not intended to be used as the sole basis for financial decisions.
MWS pays a monthly membership fee plus a monthly advertising fee for being a SmartVestor Pro. The fees paid are payable regardless of whether any client chooses to communicate with or enter into an agreement with the firm.
