Key Area of Focus

Cash Flow Analysis

A pivotal step in the financial planning process is cash flow analysis. Through reviewing your current financial situation and taking an in-depth look at your current assets and liabilities our team can help improve your current standing and better prepare you for your future.

Through cash flow projections our office will show you how your long term financial situation is impacted by your current financial behaviors. If improvements must be made in order to attain your goals Califano Financial Group will be there every step of the way recommending creative and unique ways to more efficiently improve your net worth.

Insurance

At Califano Financial Group we employ a disciplined, structured approach to determine whether and to what extent life insurance can help meet your future financial needs and goals. We will educate you as to the integral role insurance can play in helping reduce the cost of estate taxes, facilitate the transfer of a business or other assets, or provide future financial security to your family.

We are able to serve you with access to a full range of insurance products designed to meet all of your needs. Whether you’re looking for Long-term Care Insurance, Disability Insurance, Life Insurance or various other Insurance products Califano Financial Group can be the one-stop shop to fulfill all of your insurance needs.

Product strength is critical when considering insurance in your financial plan. At Califano Financial Group we are able to offer a portfolio of competitive, innovative permanent and term products. Because no single company can be everything to everyone, we strive to offer insurance products from the insurance company whose products will suit your own individual needs.

Long Term Care

Long-term care provides a range of services and supports you may need in order to meet your health or personal needs over a long period of time. According to the National Clearinghouse for Long Term Care about 70 percent of people over age 65 will require some type of long-term services during their lifetime. More than 40 percent will need care in a nursing home. With these statistics it is now more important than ever to ensure you have the resources to care for yourself and your loved ones as they journey through the later years of their lives.

Disability Insurance

Disability insurance helps replace a major portion of your income when you are sick or injured and unable to work. Having disability insurance can provide a sense of security, knowing that if the unexpected should happen, you’ll still receive a monthly income. It is a way to protect yourself and your assets in the event you are unable to do what is necessary to earn income. Many people make sure to insure their possessions, such as their home and car, even their lives but the one thing that makes all this possible is – your income. It may be your most important asset. So protecting it with disability insurance might be essential to meeting your financial goals

Life Insurance

Some typical types of life insurance that we offer include universal life, variable universal life, whole life and term life.

Universal Life offers flexibility. The amount of premiums may vary as long as the available cash value is sufficient to cover the costs of the policy. You can also opt to increase or decrease the amount of the death benefit while the policy is in force (subject to underwriting approval.)

Whole Life is traditional life insurance. Premiums are guaranteed in the contract for the entire time the policy is in force. You accumulate a cash value, but the insurance company determines the interest rate credited to the cash value.

Term Life insurance is purchased for a specific term of years: one, five, 10 or longer. If you die during the term, your beneficiaries receive the death benefit. But, if you’re still living when the policy expires, coverage ends and there is no payout.

Investment Planning

We make it our business to understand your life situation, expectations as well as short and long term goals. We believe it’s the only way to help ensure you get the information, advice and solutions you need to help make sound investment decisions.

We incorporate a disciplined, structured approach that takes into account your unique situation and needs, both today and down the road. It incorporates the benefits of the following strategies: strategic asset allocation, investing for the long term and professional management of assets. We implement these strategies only with companies which are well established and meet our strict due diligence criteria.

We offer a broadly diversified portfolio of high quality investment products from leading companies. These products cover a wide array of investment markets and are carefully selected to meet the financial objectives of individuals and their families. And we continually monitor our product selection, making appropriate revisions in response to social and economic changes in the marketplace.

Your investment strategy can be implemented using the following products:

Professionally Managed Investments
Mutual Funds
529 Plans
Variable annuities and variable life insurance
Alternative investments
Individual Investments
Common Stocks
Preferred Stocks
Corporate bonds
Municipal bonds
U.S. Government securities
Mortgage-backed securities
Zero Coupon bonds

You’ll find that here at Califano Financial Group our planning process puts the emphasis on you and your needs, not on a prepackaged set of solutions or ideas. We are committed to providing you with the information you need to make timely, informed decisions about your financial future. The benefits of this approach are quickly apparent – you enjoy a greater understanding of the impact of various options and are better positioned to make the best possible decisions for yourself and your family.

Educational Funding

Paying for a child’s college education is an expensive proposition but not an impossible one. With the right strategies you can go a long way toward meeting this challenge whether your child is still in preschool or already in high school.

If your child is young, establishing a savings plan now can put time on your side. Consider alternatives to the traditional savings account.

Setting up a custodial account in your child’s name and making regular contributions to that account can help you reach your college finance goals. Choose investments with potential for long-term returns.

Coverdell Education Savings Account: If your income isn’t too high you can contribute up to $2,000 a year to an Education Savings Account for each of your children or grandchildren under the age of 18. All withdrawals, including investment earnings, that are used to pay the child’s qualified education expenses are income-tax free. The $2,000 contribution limit is phased out with income between $95,000 and $110.000 (individuals) or between $190,000 and $220,000 (married couples filing jointly).

Qualified Tuition Programs: Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code authorizes two types of tax-favored qualified tuition programs.

Pre-paid Tuition Plans. Many states and individual colleges offer tuition prepayment plans. With these plans, you make a series of payments or pay a lump sum now for your child’s education. In return, the plan guarantees that you investment will cover a specified amount or percentage of the child’s expenses when he or she is ready to attend. Some plans lock in the cost of future education at today’s prices. Both states and private educational institutions can create tax-favored plans. Before choosing this route, though, be sure to find out what will happen to your investment if your child doesn’t attend the sponsoring college.
Education Savings Plans. This is the more commonly used type of qualified tuition plan. Unlike pre-paid tuition accounts, only states may sponsor education savings plans. State-sponsored accounts provide you with a way to invest for a child’s college education that is federally income tax-free upon withdrawal for qualified expenses. Non-qualified withdrawals may be subject to taxes and an additional 10% federal income tax penalty on any earnings. Investing in a 529 plan outside your domicile state may deny you the opportunity to take advantage of favorable state tax treatment.

Tax Considerations

As a financial services and an accounting firm, Califano Financial Group is committed to thoroughly understanding each client’s unique tax situation. Our team’s technical expertise and knowledge of tax laws and agencies allows us to identify advantageous strategic changes that relate to our client’s overall tax position.

Tax Planning and Preparation

Retirement Planning

Here at Califano Financial Group we understand that the greatest financial fears people have often involve outlasting savings, losing money or assets, loss of financial independence and being dependent on children or the state. In today’s tough economic environment, these concerns are legitimate. With retirement often lasting for 20 years or more, it is critical to spend time now to help ensure that you will have the capital to afford the retirement lifestyle you desire. We’ll help you choose techniques to accumulate wealth for retirement income and offer sound alternatives for asset allocation and income distribution following retirement. Our retirement planning services include:

Needs assessment
Retirement income modeling
Distribution options

Estate Planning

Generally, the goals of estate planning are to provide for financial security in one’s life and to maximize, given the client’s goals and objectives, the estate for family and other heirs following death. To fully leverage estate preservation opportunities and develop strategies to help achieve distribution objectives we consider:

Property ownership alternatives
Estate tax reduction techniques
Insurance analysis
Qualified plan distribution alternatives
Family-gifting strategies