Insights for Your Journey

John and Cindy have paddled Lake Chelan together for 35 summers. They have three successful children and are raising a pup they call “a Jack Russell terrorist.” John was referred to Alterra Advisors by a son who simply said, “You can trust these guys.”

Originally, John’s son, one of 11 partners in a downtown law firm, had come to Alterra with a few complex challenges. We earned his loyalty after guiding them to strategies that reward their key executives and simultaneously enable the retirement of three founding partners. His business thrived and, as a result, he was anxious to refer his parents when they neared retirement.

John and Cindy’s goal was more focused – create a legacy for their children and charities. In John’s words: “Grow and preserve our wealth, keep me informed, and talk to me face-to-face.” That’s just what we do. Cindy now says we’re like part of the family.

Lisa and David are partners in every sense. They were married in dental school and launched their own practice after graduating. In addition to running a business, they somehow managed to be full-time parents, active charity volunteers and still get the kids to piano lessons on time. Now they have a thriving practice, but it came with a significant cost as they tried to balance debt and growth.

Lisa was referred by her mentor who built a practice and his retirement plans with Alterra’s help. By the time their third child had lost her baby teeth, Lisa was convinced Alterra Advisors could help turn the corner to wealth accumulation. She found we had their best interest at heart, offered innovative financial ideas, easy-to-follow advice, and tax strategies that were game changers, both for their practice and their future goals.

Robert and Maria have successful careers. They have done very well for themselves. She is an HR director and he is an electrical engineer. They have two college-bound children, and the eldest son is already a proud Husky, just like his dad. Maria was anxious to plan the next stage of their lives. In her words, “We simply wanted to do all the things we’ve put off for years.”

A consummate planner, Maria saw to it that they saved for education and retirement. But, she wanted a guide to help protect their nest egg, and clear confusions about how taxes affect their retirement distributions. And she needed a guide for the complicated considerations of tax-differed distributions. She interviewed several wealth managers and settled on Alterra Advisors “because they were different.” According to her, Alterra was the only firm that met her three basic requirements: Don’t try to impress me with “investment speak.” Don’t have pre-determined solutions. And, ask about my goals first. We always do.

Debbie was 63 when Bill passed away. That was five years ago, and Bill had already retired as a senior executive from an iconic Seattle-based company. Debbie’s elderly mother also needed regular care, which fell on Debbie’s shoulders. She was happy to help but wanted to be sure she had sufficient income for her own life. Fortunately for Debbie, she and Bill did a great job accumulating assets to prepare them.

Debbie came to Alterra Advisors looking for a way to give generously to the charity they both served for over 30 years without worry of outliving her money. Our plan showed her that she could meet her personal needs while having a greater impact on her favorite charity than she thought possible. We’ve since had the privilege of helping her many like-minded friends make a similar impact.