More than just an investment firm

At Rockbridge, we believe that the role of an investment advisor is changing, and investors should be expecting more from their advisors than they have in the past. With options like Vanguard, robo advisors, and all the other investment-only solutions popping up each day, it’s clear that advisors who focus solely on investment management are a thing of the past – or certainly should be!

Yes, even our name “Rockbridge Investment Management” demonstrates that investment management is at the heart of what we do, which it is, but I wanted to take a few moments to share with you some of the additional things we help clients with each and every day:

1. Asset distribution planning: In retirement, most retirees have pre-tax and post-tax investments, Social Security, and possibly even pensions. Deciding how and where to take distributions in retirement is very important and something we help clients with every day.
2. Taxes: With the tax code changing for 2018, what does that mean for you? Rockbridge employs experts who help clients make sure they are saving or spending in the most tax-efficient way. Below are some timely examples:
   1. Using Donor-Advised Fund for annual charitable gifts
   2. Using your RMD’s to maximize tax deductibility of charitable gifts
   3. Maximizing employer retirement accounts/Roth IRA’s
   4. Minimizing overall taxes paid with Roth conversions

3. Goal tracking: Retired or saving for future retirement, Rockbridge advisors help develop and track your financial goals. We make sure you are maximizing every opportunity to maintain or reach your desired standard of living.
4. Medicare: This is a decision every 65-year-old has to wrestle with and at Rockbridge, we have in-house experts to make this process easier.
5. Social Security: For most retirees, Social Security is the only retirement asset with a built-in inflation hedge. Determining the ideal time to take this for you and your spouse could be one of the most important retirement decisions you have to make. Rockbridge is here to help you navigate the pros and cons on taking this early or delaying.

Our team is also involved in many projects, such as the Northeast Agricultural Education Foundation and their Agricultural Education Grant.

We expect a lot out of ourselves here at Rockbridge, and we continually try to become better at what we do and provide more for our clients. If any of these things resonate or seem timely, please give your Rockbridge advisor a call.