The Retiring Business Owner

A small business owner in his 50s had been saving and investing his retirement account using stock tips from wealthy clients. In the aftermath of the dot.com crash, he came to us distraught over the outlook for his future. What remained of his retirement account was a series of demolished tech stocks that pained him to see. He was frozen and did not know what to do. Though he lived a simple lifestyle with his partner, he feared he would never be able to retire, foresaking his pre-dot.com hopes of doing so at 60.

After ridding his account of beaten tech stocks, we worked with his accountant to set him up with the best retirement plan for his situation, so he could save the most and pay the least in taxes from his business earnings. We put him on a schedule of consistent monthly contributions to the account, utilizing dollar cost averaging in a diversified portfolio of low-cost, value-oriented, index-based funds geared to achieve growth. Seven years later, he walked out of a meeting where we had adjusted his investments from a growth orientation to generate more income and capital preservation. He has retired and now enjoys more time in a dream home in Mexico as we continue to work with him with success.