GA!: JoePat, you were on the Gaston Alive! cover last Christmas- what has happened in the last twelve months?
Joepat:
Let me start at home with that question. My wife Gail and I have a new son named Alexander Joseph. He arrived June 8th and is growing up fast. Henry, our 5-year-old, has been really caring, and a great big brother.
GA!: Seems like your staff has really grown, and don’t you have new locations?
Joepat: We make a real effort to associate with people from diverse backgrounds and experiences, and yes, we have added both new faces and locations.
GA!: To what do you attribute your growth?
Joepat: Our entire focus is helping retirees protect their assets and income, and we do that in three ways:
First, we take the time to sincerely listen. Second, we spend the majority of our time crafting strategies to protect our client’s money, and making sure our clients cannot outlive their income from investments. Third, because we specialize in only working with retirees, we invest time educating ourselves on issues and strategies that are unique to this age group.
GA!: Why have you chosen to focus your practice on people over 60?
Joepat:
This is a mutual choice for us and them, but we have found that people in this season of life are serious about getting advice and help. Also, our core values seem to fit because we believe that retirement should be a light-hearted time spent with family and friends, spoiling their grandchildren and not worrying about the latest headlines on CNBC.
GA!: What are folks financial concerns right now?
Joepat: : Unfortunately, there are many: running out of money, lower returns, market risk, rising taxes, sovereign and municipal default risk, unsustainable government debt, and never-ending bailouts – worldwide. The good news is that with proper planning, many of these risks can be minimized or in some cases, eliminated.
GA!: Can you tell us a little about your team?
JoePat: Sure…
*Karen Holland is our newest Advisor; she specializes in working with single and widowed women, and is in our Matthews location.
*George Terlizzi joined us early in 2010. He had retired at age 27 and had been doing consulting for business owners and mergers and acquisitions.
*Carroll Dickerson has been with us since last year and is now heading up our new Greenville office in South Carolina.
*Jim Moseley was brought on to take care of Medicare supplement plans for clients because we specialize in working with clients over age 60. In many cases, he has helped add benefits and save clients thousands in Medicare supplement premiums.
*Sharon Jones is our internal client support specialist. She handles ma
ny crucial tasks to make sure our clients receive the customer care and support they need.
*Kim Lail is new office support and is working directly with Sharon.
*Bonn Gilbert is a new advisor from Charlotte that is assisting me with our Planned Giving and Charitable deductions for clients and charities.
GA! Do all of your clients live in Belmont?
Joepat: : No, as a matter of fact, they don’t all live in North Carolina. We have clients all over the east coast.
GA! Give us a brief example of how you helped one client.
Joepat:
For many clients that we have helped and continue to help, we removed the possibility of them ever running out of money for as long as they live. Additionally, they have reported back to us that they are sleeping better at night. We helped them maintain their dignity, and the fear that they would be a burden to their children is gone.
GA! What do we need to be prepared for financially in 2011?
Joepat: A protected core of asset that is there for you no matter what happens. We learned in 2008 is that there is no such thing as “smart money” just “safe money”.
GA!: Any holiday wishes for GA! readers?
Joepat: A big thank you goes out to all of our clients; our success is because of you!
Life is about more than money. Enjoy yourself and your family and friends during the holidays, and Merry Christmas!
