CLIENT STORIES
How we’ve helped some existing clients
Charlie
Unexpected Early Retirement & Highly Appreciated Residence
Charlie was laid off and forced into early retirement when his company unexpectedly reorganized. He also had been renting out his long-time home after relocating to a better school district.
Challenges
Charlie was in his mid fifties and realized that his expertise was being replaced by changing technology. The chances of finding a job in the same field were going to be challenging. Additionally, he was considering remodeling his home.
OPES STRATEGY
After several brainstorming meetings with Opes, Charlie began to realize that he actually had options that could shift his life in a whole new direction. If he sold his family home instead of remodeling, and used a tax-free exchange to buy a condo in his current neighborhood and a rental apartment, he would be able to maximize his current assets and avoid up to a $500,000 capital gain tax bill. This combined property and tax strategy provided Charlie a career move into real estate and property management with more capital than he had anticipated.
MATT & CATHERINE
Unsure of whether they would be able to support their current lifestyle while remaining in the Bay Area…
In their early 60’s, Matt and Catherine were approaching retirement. Most of their net worth was tied up in retirement accounts and the home equity of their primary Bay Area home and a second vacation home on the coast. Adding to this, Matt recently lost his pension close to retirement. and was struggling with how to manage their retirement nest egg.
Challenges
When Matt’s pension became largely insolvent, he feared losing his preferred active lifestyle in retirement. The were concerned about the ability to put their youngest daughter through graduate school, while keeping both homes.
OPES STRATEGY
By fostering a conversation around what mattered most to each of them, Matt and Catherine were able to reconcile conflicting elements in their personal desires for the future, and then align themselves on a specific plan of action to move forward. During the process of a comprehensive financial session, an open dialogue around their two real estate properties demonstrated the trade-offs from both holding or selling each of these properties, and defined how each choice would impact their preferred lifestyle and the after-tax assets that could contribute to graduate school. After exploring various solutions, Opes was able to help them implement an investment solution that balanced their past history with their objectives going forward.
JIM & CYNTHIA
Facing complexities of real estate, job locations, business and the needs of raising a family.
Jim and Cynthia moved to the Bay Area several years ago to pursue their respective careers. Facing the growing complexity of their lives including owning a portfolio of rental properties, Jim’s concentrated stock compensation, Cynthia’s location specific real estate business as well as the challenges of raising and educating their 3 children, they engaged with Opes to help them chart a future course perhaps involving a family move.
Challenges
A potential move to a new town involves many changes and trade-offs. Jim wanted a less stressful job, but walking away from a large amount of unvested stock options and pursuing a new job was difficult. Likewise, Cynthia was concerned about rebuilding her real estate practice in another location.
OPES STRATEGY
By working with Opes and its iterative planning process, Jim and Cynthia were able to more fully understand the options available to them should they choose to relocate, particularly given the significant equity in their home. In addition, Opes aided in analyzing strategies to increase their diversification through potentially lowering their exposure to rental real estate, while also helping Jim choose and implement an appropriate hedging strategy for his employer stock with the additional benefit of increased cash flow. With these clear strategies in place, it gave Cynthia the peace of mind to consider rebuilding her real estate practice in a new location.
