Martin Kurtz

Further information about Martin Kurtz:

Marty Kurtz has been featured in Mutual Funds Magazine, Business Week Magazine and countless newspaper and magazine articles. He spent five years on the CFP Board of Professional review and is currently a member of the Financial Planning Associations Board of Directors.

Compensation and Fee Structures:

Fee Only Financial Planning

Our proprietary process examines both the technical and emotional aspects of the client's finances. It is designed to blend their values and beliefs with reality to bring understanding to their financial lives. Each plan is driven by unique needs, goals, and concerns. This ongoing process involves a series of dialogues that build upon one another and are designed to be altered as life occurs. Beginning with an initial plan, the process evolves into a practice of continual modification as we work together towards the client's objectives.

We offer two pricing models to meet the varying needs of those looking for professional financial advice.

- The fee for our services can be calculated either as a percentage of the client's investment portfolio, or using a formula applied to a combination of the client's net worth and income.

Licenses, Certifications & Affiliations:

CFP, AIFA

Education:

Gustavus Adolphus College

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Further information about The Planning Center, Inc.:

(Size of firm: 0-9 advisors)

The Planning Center is an independent, fee-only financial planning firm. TPC will serve as your guide by integrating your personal values and beliefs into your financial plan.

Financial Planning
The Planning Center (TPC) was founded on the belief that the financial planning process is the most effective catalyst for change in a client's financial life. What is financial planning? According to the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, it is the process of meeting your life goals through proper management of your finances.

Through the years, we have developed our own process for walking a client through the various components of the financial planning process. This client-focused TPC MAP approach takes us through all the necessary steps to make sure each client has a complete plan that covers all their life planning goals and is built on a solid foundation of financial protection, accumulation and realization of wealth and life fulfillment.

Based on the MAP process the journey varies for everyone. Just as no two people live the same lives or have the same goals, no two MAP plans are the same. If you only want the financial planning services, we will work through the TPC MAP approach for a minimum fee of $3,125. For our Wealth Management program, management fees are based on portfolio size, including the TPC MAP approach plus monitoring of investment results and plan progress. We also offer reduced fee services to children of existing clients and employees of companies that have selected TPC to provide financial planning services to their employees.

Investment Planning and Management
Investment Planning and Management is the heart of the Accumulation stage of our TPC MAP approach. TPC's tested approach helps increase the probability of our clients achieving their life goals.

Visioning helps our clients identify and define goals that are in alignment with their core values and ideals. We assess their feelings about risk and return, and examine how behavior can have a dramatic impact on goal achievement. These are then combined with an analysis of the resources and expected return needed for the client to achieve their goals. A Model Portfolio is designed to increase the probability that clients will achieve their goals while minimizing the potential for regret.

This Model Portfolio is based on decades of research from the best minds in academia. This new model of investing is not based on speculation but on the science of capital markets. We let the markets work for you; they have a history of rewarding investors. We eliminate costly speculation and invest based on identified risks and how much of those risks you want to take. Instead of trying to guess when the market will make a misstep, we focus on what they already do right - compensate their investors. This is a clear and empirical approach to wealth management; take risks worth taking based on a structured strategy that adds purpose and value to the portfolio. Our strategy is based on scientific evidence that means investors achieve more consistent portfolio structure.

This strategic and passive approach to investment management allows us to capture the returns of the equity markets while focusing on adding value using a fluid and dynamic holistic planning process.

Life Planning
Clients and their values are the center of life planning. Most people understand money cannot buy you happiness, but it is the means to building the life you desire. As discussion moves from asset management to life management we:

- Work with clients to blend both the tangible side of money with the intangible which brings meaning to the tangible work that much of the TPC MAP approach operates in.
- Tie values and ideals into the goal-setting process.
- Examine what satisfaction really means to clients.
- Reduce the likelihood of regret, so clients are more likely to make the most of the one financial life they have.
- Use visioning and exploration exercises to explore clients' underlying values and ideals.

By doing this, we bring a holistic approach to your financial plan. Every one of our clients works one on one with a team of our staff that knows every aspect of their plan and what they value most. We work with you to make sure you are prepared for change. We adapt your plan as you change your lifelong goals.