Our Process

You & Your Family, Where Are You Today? Where Are You Trying To Go? Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc. helps you and your family to see where you are today, where you would like to be financially, and what it will take to get there.




 

We use a structured financial planning process to help bring you clarity, confidence and financial peace of mind. This process focuses on:

An Emotional Check-In A series of questions that will help you identify where you are emotionally in relation to your finances and investments.

A Financial Check-In We’ll help you take a financial inventory, looking at your assets, debts, insurance coverage, and estate documents. The inventory brings you further clarity, and it helps Strategic Wealth Advisors Group’s planners make more educated and appropriate recommendations for you and your family.

Where Are You Trying To Go? This stage of the planning process is about vision and goal setting. You’ll identify what you want financially, than we put a price tag on your financial goals. You and your family have the opportunity to articulate and prioritize your financial goals.

What Will It Take To Get There? This is an action step, in which we establish a plan and implement it so you may achieve your financial goals. We take pride in keeping things simple and explaining this process in a way in which you can understand. Unlike other advisors, when you leave our office you will be able to understand and make sense of what our strategy will be to help accomplish your goals.

Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc helps individuals and families achieve financial peace of mind. To get started, give us a call today at (586) 203-2275.

Our Services



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Insurance Solutions

Insurance often protects many of the most valuable assets you have: your homes, cars, health and loved ones. However, many American’s are unaware of the impact proper insurance planning can have on retirement. There are several products and strategies that can be utilized to ensure one of your largest assets, your retirement plan.

One area we focus on with our clients is keeping their nest egg as safe as possible, while still participating in market growth. Many retirees underestimate the impact that a big market loss can have on the future of their income.

Through the use of annuities and life insurance, you can create steady, dependable monthly income now, in the future, or whenever you need it most.

We offer:

  • Annuities
  • Life Insurance
  • Tax Planning Strategies

As a comprehensive retirement planning firm, we are able to shop dozens of insurance carriers to find the best rates and product solutions to fit your specific needs. We also offer complimentary reviews on your existing annuity and life insurance contracts.


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Retirement Planning

It wasn’t so long ago that retirement meant a pension and a gold watch, but today’s world looks much different than it did for generations past. The burden of retirement falls more heavily on the shoulders of individual Americans than it ever has before, but you don’t have to carry it alone.

New Generation Retirement® is a holistic approach to retirement. It consists of a five-step retirement system that we will work through together. Through this process, you’ll be confident that you have given careful consideration to asset allocation and risk, income planning, asset maximization, legacy planning and tax strategies.

The Five Steps

  1. Selecting a Financial Services Professional
    Step One helps you understand the role of a financial services professional and introduces New Generation Retirement System.
  2. Fact and Feeling Finding
    Step Two encompasses thought-provoking questions about your financial well-being and how you feel about it. It begins with the Color of Money Risk Analysis and incorporates the elements of discovery and client feedback.
  3. Strategy
    Step Three arms you with a deep understanding of your goals and objectives, as we craft and present a holistic strategy based on your goals and objectives. Your takeaway from this step will be a series of insightful reports always accessible to you through your Generational Vault account.
  4. Solutions and Executing
    If there are parts of your plan that include creating new accounts or purchasing new financial products, Step Four lays out a clear, documented process to do so. This step is characterized by efficiency using forward-thinking technology such as electronically-generated and pre-populated forms with e-signature capabilities.
  5. Ongoing Relationship
    Our work together isn’t over when we have completed the retirement process and product selection. Step Five addresses how we continuously work toward your long-term goals and objectives and help you monitor your financial progress.
    When you work with our company, each step is recorded in Generational Vault so you can be confident knowing that you have given careful consideration to every detail of your retirement strategy.

Why choose Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc.
With a focus on a new generation of retirees, our company uses the New Generation Retirement system, which is based on three hallmarks of creating a successful retirement strategy: stewardship, transparency and technology.

Stewardship

Providing you with a stewardship level of service means we have the responsibility to present solutions that are the right fit for you. Our commitment to you is that we will always keep our focus on your goals and objectives and will act with transparency throughout our relationship.

Transparency

Our commitment to transparency ensures that each step of our work together is recorded and that every document and report is easily accessible to you. This is visible through a strong foundation of technology.

Technology

The right technology can make managing and organizing your retirement an easier process. When you partner with our company, you receive access to Generational Vault – a secure online portal that allows you to easily organize, manage and access your financial life.

Generational Vault serves as the vehicle to document and record our commitment to act as a steward and be transparent throughout our relationship.


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Social Security

If you’re like many retirees, your Social Security benefit represents years and years of savings and hard work, and may be part of the foundation of your retirement income. Though many Americans have some basic familiarity and knowledge on the topic, far less are able to determine — on their own — the best way to file so they are able to maximize their benefit and carefully integrate it into the rest of their retirement plan.

At Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc., we help our valued clients develop a clear understanding of their Social Security benefit, and both educate and inform them on the optimal time to start accepting their benefit. According to the Social Security Administration, delaying your benefit may potentially increase your benefit amount by as much as eight percent per year.

There is a lot to know about Social Security, and it is important for you to be educated so that you head into retirement with a plan on exactly how you will rely on your benefits. Our firm is committed to helping you get the most you can out of your benefit, so you can take one step closer toward the comfortable and enjoyable retirement you’ve been working so hard for! In order to ensure you are maximizing your Social Security benefit, you should have a firm understanding of this complex matter.

We have put together an informative brochure that helps answer the following questions:

  • What is your Social Security benefit amount?
  • When is the best time to start accepting your benefit?
  • Are there different options if you are married?
  • Does earning additional income while you are on Social Security impact the value of your benefit?
  • Do you pay tax on your benefit?

Please contact us to receive your brochure today!

Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc. and Tim Sullivan are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Social Security Administration or any government agency.


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Investment Management

At Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc., we believe no two investors are alike. Therefore in order to help each client meet their financial goals, we base our process on a client focused personalized approach using multiple investment strategies. Our advice and recommendations are tailored to our clients’ investment goals, desired return objectives, risk tolerance, time horizon, cash requirements and tax situation. Our investment strategy is designed based on your long-term investment goals of preserving principal, maximizing income or accumulating capital.

Experience

Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc. has expanded our services by offering professional money management through our strategic investment alliance, Gradient Investments, LLC (GI). GI is an SEC registered investment advisor offering clients twenty proprietary portfolios through its strategic investment alliance across the country. The portfolios are managed by their Chief Investment Officer, Wayne Schmidt CFA, MBA.

Wayne Schmidt is a regular contributor to Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and has been a featured guest on Fox Business News. He has been quoted on the global economy in numerous nationally and internationally recognized investment publications such as Bloomberg, Reuters, and the Los Angeles Times. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst® and a member of The Chartered Financial Analyst Institute and the Twin Cities Society of Security Analysts.

Schmidt boasts 26 years investment experience. During his tenure at AXA Investment Managers, he served as senior portfolio manager for the U.S. Investment Grade Fixed Income Team. As the lead portfolio manager, he managed $9.5 billion of fixed income assets with a variety of mandates ranging from aggregate, corporate and government bond portfolios.

Michael Binger, CFA®, serves as the senior portfolio manager for Gradient Investments, LLC. Binger brings over 24 years of institutional equity investment experience to Gradient Investments and its affiliated advisors and clients. He has extensive experience working directly with financial advisors designing and actively managing portfolios. Binger has successfully invested in numerous market and economic cycles giving him a level and depth of experience that is rare in this industry.

Binger’s media highlights include numerous appearances, providing market insight on CNBC, Bloomberg TV and Bloomberg Radio. He has also been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, Smart Money, Reuters, Business Week and numerous other local, national, and global investment publications.


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Funeral Planning

Funeral Trusts are a type of irrevocable trust created expressly for the purpose of paying your final expenses. The trust contains, as its asset, a single premium life insurance policy. (These policies are only offered by a select group of insurance companies.) The policy is placed into your funeral trust, where it remains until you pass away. Because your funeral trust technically “owns” the insurance policy, and because the law treats assets owned by trusts in a unique way, funeral trusts may offer potential benefits in terms of tax savings, protection from inflation, and favorable treatment by Medicaid qualification rules. Additionally, the money you place in your funeral trust can be used to pay a variety of final expenses. Here’s just a partial list of the things that your funeral trust funds can pay for:

  • Embalming
  • Dressing / Cosmetology Casketing
  • Funeral Service
  • Memorial Service
  • Graveside Service
  • Clergy Honorarium
  • Death Certificates
  • Musicians
  • Temporary marker
  • Stationery package
  • Obituary notices
  • Flowers
  • Clothing
  • Casket or other burial container
  • Transfer of deceased (including hearse and driver)
  • Cemetery / Burial Plot

If you think that you’re too old to qualify for a funeral trust, you’re almost certainly mistaken. Anyone age 99 or younger is guaranteed to qualify for these products… and that’s with no underwriting (in other words, no medical questions or exams!) Failing to create a funeral trust can have clear disadvantages. You could lose the assets you’d originally set aside to pay for your funeral and final expenses, instead spending that money to pay nursing home or medical care, or having to “spend down” those assets in order to qualify for Medicaid.

Final Expense Insurance

Final expense insurance, also known as “burial” insurance, is often a vital part of estate planning. This type of insurance is a life insurance policy that you buy directly from an insurance company. Additionally, if your final expenses cost less than the benefit amount of your policy, your beneficiary is entitled to keep whatever sum remains after paying all your final arrangement bills. Most are either “simplified issue” policies or “guaranteed issue” policies. For a simplified issue policy, the insurer asks you several medical questions but doesn’t require you to take a medical exam. A “guaranteed issue” policy, as the name implies, is a “no questions asked” policy that is issued to anyone who applies.


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Estate Planning

We do not offer estate planning nor do we provide any legal advice at Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc., but we can refer you to an attorney that can take care of your estate planning needs:

Here are some misconceptions about Estate Planning:

  1. I have a will so my family will avoid probate when I die.
  2. I don’t have a will, so my family will not have to go through probate.
  3. If I become incapacitated, my executor will be able to handle my financial affairs.
  4. Joint ownership is a good way to avoid probate.
  5. I don’t need to do any estate planning because I own much less than the federal estate tax exemption.

Most people do not know that a will only works if your property goes through probate after you die. Probate is the legal process through which the court makes sure that after your death your debts are paid, that your will is legally valid, and then that your assets are distributed according to the instructions in your will. So that rather than avoiding probate a will is really a set of instructions to the probate court and only works if there is a probate. Probate can be time consuming and very costly to an estate.

These are some of the questions and concerns that our clients have had over the years. This is why we have strategically aligned ourselves with an attorney that can answer all of your questions and help you out with the proper legal documents that you may need.

*Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc and Strategic Wealth Insurance Group, Inc. do not provide legal advice but maintains strategic alliances with preferred attorneys in their network.


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Mortgages

We do not offer mortgages at Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc. but we do have a company that we refer our clients to:

Cranbrook Loans is a retail residential mortgage corporation with significant experience. They have a stellar reputation with industry leading consumer protections. They offer direct lending options as well as the ability to broker loans when necessary. This enables them to make sure they’re always competitive with a one stop shop product line. They have been in business since 1996, serving the public with strict integrity.

They have been listed in Detroit Crains Top List of Largest Lenders and they have also been named a Future 50 company.  They provide unmatched service with a long list of products available.

Why should Cranbrook Loans should be your mortgage company?

Convenience – Apply by telephone at 586-649-2600 or Get Started Online at CranbrookLoans.com. Either way, you’ll have the confidence of knowing a knowledgeable Home Loan Professional will guide you through the loan process from start to finish.

Speed – Our in house processing team will work with you to get your loan closed within 30 days.

Competitive – since we maintain a debt free company position, and keep overhead low we can pass much of the savings on to you. Also we have the ability to Broker loans to whom ever has the best rates and terms.

Flexibility – As a broker/lender we can find the product and lender thats a perfect match to your loan needs. Whether have a typical or unique scenario we are a 1 stop shop. Even with credit that is less than perfect, we might be able to get you approved.

Customer Service – Your Home Loan Professional, Mortgage Loan Originator, Underwriter, and processor will be focused on your file and focused on providing you with stellar customer service. We’re happy you’re here and want to make sure your loan transaction with Cranbrook Loans is a great one.

Call us today at 586-649-2600 or Get Started Online at CranbrookLoans.com.

*Cranbrook Loan is not affiliated with Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc or Strategic Wealth Insurance Group, Inc.


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Medicare

Medicare and retirement health strategy.

While there is no shortage of things to prepare for in retirement, it’s critical to also address your health needs and concerns by crafting a comprehensive health care strategy. There are various ways to accomplish this, with Medicare being the most important for many Americans.
Medicare generally provides health insurance for most people age 65 and older, and others who have received Social Security disability benefits for at least 24 months, have end-stage renal disease or have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease). Medicare is similar to Social Security, since it is a federal program that you have paid into throughout your career. Just like Social Security, you want to maximize this benefit in retirement.
Medicare is split into four parts:

  • Part A: Hospital insurance – covers the costs of health care at medical facilities. Offers coverage for medically necessary inpatient care at hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, hospices and some home health services.
  • Part B: Medical insurance – covers the costs of health care outside medical facilities. Offers coverage for doctors’ services, hospital outpatient care, mental health and some preventative health care services.
  • Part C: Medicare Advantage (MA) plans – policies you can purchase from certain private insurance carriers that provide the same (or more) coverage as Parts A and B.
  • Part D: Prescription drug coverage offered through private Medicare-approved insurance companies.

Many people with Part A do not pay a premium because they have already paid enough into the system. As with Social Security, a certain portion from each one of your paychecks is deducted to pay for Medicare. When you’ve had Medicare tax withheld from you or your spouse’s pay for at least 40 calendar quarters, then you may be eligible for free Part A coverage.

The monthly premium associated with Part B is set according to income level, although most people will pay a standard monthly premium amount and a small yearly deductible. Individuals who have an annual income greater than $85,000 and couples who have a joint annual income greater than $170,000 will have an extra charge added to their premium due to their high income level. Parts C and D are provided via private insurance companies so the monthly premiums of these policies depend on the extent of their coverage and can vary between companies.

We are not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the Social Security Administration or any other government agency.

Strategic Wealth Advisors Group
Gives Back

Strategic Wealth Gives Back is our community outreach program made possible through our partnership with Gradient Gives Back Foundation, a non-profit organization. We invite Americans who have fallen on hard times to connect with us for an opportunity to be awarded six months of housing payments.

Applications will be reviewed and screened as they are submitted. One family will be selected annually. Apply or nominate a family by clicking the link below!

Application Donate

Generational Vault

Keeping Your Financial Information
Safe and Secure

A virtual “safety deposit box” for our clients to upload important documents and view financial information. It comprises three dynamic components, including a secure portal to send and store confidential financial documents, daily investment and banking values, as well as snapshots of financial assets and expenses to view. All data is secured with an SSL Certificate, one of the strongest encryption key available, and adheres to compliance and regulatory requirements.

Vault Login

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About Us

Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc. prides itself on helping you achieve financial peace of mind. Our success is based on your continued satisfaction.

Retirement Planning – Prepare for Your Future

Our home office is located in Utica, MI. We serve clients in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania and provide Financial Planning and Asset Management services through third-party money managers.

We work with both pre-retirees to help grow their accumulated wealth and with retirees to help make sure you have enough income throughout your retired years. We take pride in working with an aging American population and making sure that their investments are aligned with their goals. We offer strategies to help provide safety and security for them especially during the time in which they will need to access their money the most.

Funeral Planning & Estate Planning Resources

Not only is it important to make sure that you have the proper help in accumulating your wealth, but it is equally important to preserve what you have when you retire and then having someone who is going to be there for your children/beneficiaries to help in the distribution of your wealth upon your passing. We make sure that there is a plan in place to help transfer your wealth to your loved ones in the most beneficial way possible.

You Can Meet with a Wealth Advisor in Your Home

Our customer service is impeccable at Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc.! In addition to our educational seminars that we do on an ongoing basis, we provide complimentary one-on-one meetings in our office as well as in the privacy of your own home. We know that as our client’s age, we want to make sure that we are there for you, even when you can’t make it into our office. This is why it has always been a standard practice with us to make ourselves available to meet you at your convenience in your own home.

We look forward to meeting with you very soon and providing you with the financial checkup that you deserve.

Our Team

Tim Sullivan
Founder and CEO

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Julie Sullivan
Vice President

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Shelby Green
Executive Assistant

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Melissa O'Neill
Case Design Specialist

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Terri Swinburnson
Client Service Specialist

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Nichole Pierce
Office Assistant

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Kenneth Schwartz
Medicare Agent / Insurance Agent

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DAVID HEIM
FINANCIAL ADVISOR

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Strategic Alliances

Michael Ayoub
Owner of Cranbrook Loans / Mortgage Specialist

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Jasmine Moore
Estate Planning Attorney
  

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Dustin Leonard
Vice President of Marketing
Gradient Insurance Brokerage, Inc.

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Brady Black
Vice President of Marketing
Gradient Insurance Brokerage, Inc.

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Jacob Hamilton
Vice President of Life Insurance
Marketing Gradient Insurance Brokerage, Inc.

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Michael Binger, CFA®
Senior Portfolio Manager of Gradient Investments, LLC

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Wayne Schmidt, CFA®
Chief Investment Officer of Gradient Investments, LLC

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Mariann Montagne, CFA®
Senior Investment Analyst of Gradient Investments, LLC

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Our Location

Strategic Wealth Advisors Group, Inc.
11111 Hall Road
Suite #101
Utica, MI 48317

O: (586) 203-2275
(877) 488-4188 Toll Free

E: tsullivan@strategicwealthadvisorsgroup.com

 

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