Wrestling with Harder Questions | The 5% Pullback

THE NON-FINANCIAL SIDE OF PLANNING: The planning process has the intentional effect of helping families slow down and ask harder questions:

• Where are we going?
• Why are we doing this?
• Do we still prioritize what we prioritized a few years ago?

Why is this worth mentioning? Because “financial planning” can feel like homework. It’s something you finally get to when life slows down. In some cases, families put it off until they feel better about their financial situation. From our perspective, this is an incorrect view of financial planning.

• When life is busy, being served with a financial planning process and accountability is all the more valuable.
• When finances are challenging, we believe having a professional strategy and team around your family may be especially valuable.

Lean into the planning process. It’s more likely to be part of the solution instead of something you wait to feel “ready” for.

THE HISTORY OF –5%: You’ve been an investor for ___ years/decades. Just curious, how many 5% corrections have you already lived through?

YOUR ESPP: Your Employer Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) can be an underappreciated benefit your company offers. Most ESPPs let you buy company stock at a 15% discount. A few things worth knowing about taxes:

Sell immediately—the 15% discount is taxed as ordinary income. This can still represent a meaningful benefit, though individual tax outcomes may vary.

Hold longer (366 days)—the discount still hits as ordinary income, but any gains above it qualify for lower long-term capital gains rates.

Once you’ve captured the benefit, consider selling and diversifying. Concentrating wealth in your employer’s stock adds risk. If your company offers an ESPP, we can help you consider the role this investment plays in your financial success.

BE AWARE OF “ME MONSTERS”: An oldie, but a good one.

*The views expressed represent the opinions of Compass Ion Advisors, LLC, as of the date noted and are subject to change. These views are not intended as a forecast, a guarantee of future results, an investment recommendation, or an offer to buy or sell any securities. The information provided is of a general nature and should not be construed as investment advice or to provide any investment, tax, financial, or legal advice or service to any person. The information contained has been compiled from sources deemed reliable, yet accuracy is not guaranteed.

Additional information, including management fees and expenses, is provided on our Form ADV Part 2 available upon request or at the SEC’s Investment Adviser Public Disclosure website here. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results.