A Story We Hear Often

Greg and Mary Appleton have been dreaming of retirement for the last ten years. With Greg at 64 and Mary 62, their earning years are ending. Living within their means, saving for retirement while struggling to pay for their kids’ college has been the road they have traveled. Even so, they have their health, family, and the investments inside their company’s retirement programs have grown.

They are excited to retire and let their nest egg allow them a little more time in the day. However, Greg and Mary have encountered one problem, they have not been on the same page about making investment decisions before, and there appears to be so many choices. They have a great relationship, and yet they know they make decisions differently. The stakes are higher now, this nest egg is all they have, and not every investment they tried along the way on their own worked.

Memories of that timeshare they bought in Mexico, or the $5,000 they invested with a neighbor on a local restaurant that “couldn’t miss” are still fresh. Around every corner lurk dubious ‘what if’ scenarios, and every publication and institution they speak with keeps asking them about risk tolerances. Is zero an answer? They need this to work!

The DLK Quality Investment Process

Into this drama steps a group of professionals who have taken a fiduciary pledge to put your interests before their own. DLK Investment Management is a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) that creates the financial plan for your retirement years, walks you through all the options, and sits with you until all your questions are answered. Our professionals understand that this time of change isn’t just about you getting used to working less, it is about you trusting an investment process MORE. Trust is hard, which is why our team uses a Trust but Verify solution for our clients, where we over-communicate in the beginning of your retirement years, so you can ease into this new phase of your life.

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Worries and concerns about the retirement
process for long time employees.

Some couples have been good at working and saving automatically
but haven’t had to make investment decisions.
Some couples had one spouse pay the bills and pick the investments
in the 401k.
Some couples have noticed they make decisions differently.
Some couples come into retirement in different states of health.
Some couples have a different view of how comfortable they are with
investments going down in value. (Risk Tolerance)
Some couples are not sure what they will need to pay for their
retirement.

The DLK Four Phase Process

PHASE 1
Education and Information

Education

How the investment world talks about money and what it means to the
retail investor.
What is a stock?
What is a bond?
What is risk tolerance?

Information

Our advice is only as accurate as the information we receive from you.
With the information we can project a series of potential outcomes.

PHASE 2
Communication and Trust

Communication

Our business relationship will have a cadence of consistent communication. You will always have access and full transparency through the customer portal on our website.
Quarterly client reviews are also a best practice that many of our clients enjoy.
Email and phone connect us to each other to make sure you are comfortable with the plan we are implementing.

Trust

The byproduct of the financial planning process and the communication are a series of shared experiences that lead to the trust that is at the center of our fiduciary duty to you.
We have a dual focus that moves between running our investment management process and making sure you are comfortable with a complete understanding of how and why we do what we do.

PHASE 3
Implementation and Action

Implementation

Managing the transition from a 401k to your own investment portfolio can include receiving a large lump sum distribution.
These large sums can be daunting to look at and even harder to reinvest.
Even though the amount was fully invested just weeks prior, it can be hard to put the money back into the market.
Our investment management process factors this in and is why we start with education and information, which leads to trust so we can help you achieve your goals.

Action

The DLK investment committee meets weekly to revisit the past decision and plan for the future.
The stocks and bonds in your account are all earning their keep and DLK has a process for selling as well as for buying to keep your investments current.

PHASE 4
Consistency and Persistency

Consistency

The business processes that we implement on your behalf have been honed by the best in our profession over decades. The cumulative benefits of being consistent can be as powerful as the rule of 72.

Persistency

The rule of 72 does not account for a 24/7 news cycle of fear and doubt. The challenges of sticking with an investment plan are real. Investor psychology and helping our clients not fall prey to buying high and selling low come form our commitment to being persistent.

Glossary