I have always had an interest in investing; I purchased my first stock when I was 12 years old. It went up, split, went up some more, split again and I was hooked. Like many people, I struggled after graduating from college with credit card debt and knew I wasn’t saving enough for retirement. I accumulated student loans when I went back for my MBA, and before I knew it, I had fallen behind financially. I realized I needed to learn about personal finance and start putting that knowledge into practice.
About that time, I started working at Fidelity Investments in the department that took care of the owners’ personal finances. I also began taking classes for the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ designation. CFP® certification is recognized as the highest standard in personal financial planning. I passed the exam in 2014 and in April received authorization to use the designation
I emerged from that period in a much better situation financially – free from debt, retirement goal on track, and emergency funds built into my savings. I want to use my life experience, my work experience at Fidelity, and my knowledge gained as a CFP® practitioner to help others gain confidence in their financial situation. I realize this means different things to each individual – it could mean saving for your first home, determining how to pay for your child’s college, planning for your retirement years or the variety of other goals you might have.
With two young children, college costs are already looming over the financial decisions my wife and I make. We attended private colleges in the area that are both currently over $70,000 a year. The need to balance saving for retirement with saving for college, while still meeting every day needs, including weighing the cost of private universities versus state university is a daunting task. An overall financial plan, one that includes retirement, college savings, and all of your goals is best started on as early as possible.
My office is located in Charlestown, where I also live with my wife and two young boys. We love the neighborhood feel of Charlestown and the convenience of living so close to the city. We try to take advantage of all that Boston has to offer and hope to stay in Charlestown for the long-term.