Colleen specializes in retirement, wealth management and estate planning and works with women during “high emotional” times such as a death of a spouse or a divorce. She understands the importance of balance in our lives.
Posted on April 07, 2010
The more your folks share with you about their financial—and physical—heath, the better off you’ll all be. Advisor Colleen Schon reveals why.
Colleen Schon started her career in finance at Merrill Lynch in 1986 as an assistant to four brokers, becoming a specialist in estate planning and insurance. While working full time and raising two children, she studied late into the night and on weekends to earn numerous licenses.
Colleen partnered in 1993 with a female financial advisor who had been in business for four decades and was one of the first women partners in an investment firm. They moved to Paine Webber the next year.
“She was my mentor. I brought youth, enthusiasm and a willingness to learn the business through her eyes. Then I used my common sense and a little different approach and we doubled the business in five years,” Colleen recalls.
“We sat side by side. People don't do that in our business. Each of us knew what the other was doing. Now my two associates sit in the same room with me, which astounds visitors.”
Colleen, now 48, joined the Raymond James & Associates in 2005. “It's a small enough company that you have interaction with the management, which I didn’t have elsewhere. I can e-mail Tom James and get a response. I also like being an independent arm that isn’t owned by a bank. The banking mentality and the brokerage mentality are two totally different things. You’re a customer of one and a client of the other. The concepts aren’t easy to merge.”
FOF: Tell us about your business.
CS: “Our team name is called The Barrett Group of Raymond James & Associates. That was the name of my senior partner, who retired. Business comes through referrals. We're hands on and extremely service oriented and we want to take care of our clients. We have about 500 relationships between the three of us, with 40 years of accumulated experience and $180 million of assets under management (and growing.)
“We have multi-generation clients, grandparents, parents and their kids, who are starting their careers. It's really fun to see the progress in families.
“My oldest client right now is 97.”
FOF: What trends are you seeing in families?
CS: “Many of the older parents—those around 85 who retired at 60 because that was the thing to do—are living longer and thinking, ‘Wait a minute, do I have enough money to survive? I’m fine if I can continue to live on my own, but if I have to go into a nursing home, what do I do? Will my money last?’
“Some in the older generation tend to keep their finances to themselves and don’t want to discuss it with their children; others are very open. I'm trying to teach them all that they need to share exactly where they’re at financially, discuss their health issues, including keeping a record of their doctors and their medication. If they were brought to the ER, it’s critical that their children have this information.
“Our parents also should tell us where they keep their wills and trusts. I can't tell you how many times a client’s child calls me and says, ‘Mom passed away. Do you have any idea where the paperwork is?’ I call it the search and rescue mission.”
FOF: What if we discover our parents are running out of funds?
CS: “If a parent is no longer able to live on her own and can’t afford assisted living, the next generation has to make a decision. Do I put my parent in a nursing home? If I do, how do I visit everyday? And, more important, how do we pay for it?
“Medicaid and Medicare can step in, but then your choices are limited and you may have to put them into a home that you don’t like.”
FOF: Unless you have them live with you.
CS: “Exactly. Then you need to understand what that would entail. I've had people go so far as to build another smaller home on their property so a parent can have her own space. It's almost like an assisted living, but you can keep an eye on your parent and still have your own space, your own privacy.”
FOF: But you need to have the money for that.
CS: “Yes. I have a client who couldn’t live alone anymore when she was 84. She was losing weight because she wasn't feeding herself. She had a perfectly great portfolio that could have definitely afforded to pay for assisted living. But the daughter said, ‘I can't live with myself if I do that.’ She thought it would be better to build an addition to her house, instead of paying for a nursing home for a few years. “Mom, now 87, stays in the addition and is doing great. They believe that she’s lived longer than if she had gone to live in a nursing home.
“These are areas I discuss with clients and their families to come to an informed decision that makes everyone comfortable. I also encourage the second generation to look at long-term care insurance for themselves, while it is more affordable, so their children can make an easier decision later.”
FOF: Can you share another situation?
CS: “A successful doctor has been taking care of his deceased wife's mother, now 90. He's the trustee of her trust and she's running out of money because he's had 24-7 care for her. She had a stroke ten years ago and she's still surviving because of the quality of care that he's provided her with her money. Never in a million years would he imagine that she’d survive for ten years.
“The only thing she has left is the family cottage that sits on a lake in northern Michigan. It’s worth around $700,000, but it was supposed to go to his children and he doesn’t want to sell it since it’s been in the family for many generations. He may have to buy that property from her personally to keep her going.
“I will work with the doctor’s attorney and CPA to evaluate the situation and help the doctor make an informed decision that will help his mother-in-law financially but not drain his own estate.
“We specialize in working with clients through situations such as these so they can properly plan for the future.”
FOF: On a personal note, tell me about yourself.
CS: “I married my high school sweetheart out of school and he is still my best friend and the love of my life after almost 30 years. I'm very, very happy and we have two great children. Our daughter is 28 and newly married and our son is 22 and a senior in college.”
FOF: What does your husband do?
CS: “He’s the Managing Director and CEO of Rard Enterprises. They control a number of websites that sell cars, including fossilcars.com.”
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Tell us, how are you dealing with your parents' finances?
forrocksteadyredhead
"I think the best advice I ever got, although a little late, while caring for my mother until her death at 97-they really ey really are grown ups and they need to be allowed to be responsabile for themselves as long as possible. There are a lot worse things than death. Your Dad sounds like a great guy!" Reply
"My father is 86 and moved to assisted living 2 months ago after living by himself since my mother died 5 years ago. He can afford assisted living for many years and feels safer there than at home by himself after many falls. I feel better knowing he is there. I handle his bills and insurance. I write his checks but he signs them and I make sure he knows what is going on with his finances. I also keep his attorney advised on his health and finances. Three years ago my sister convinced my father to add her to his CDs and sign his house over to her, remove me from the CDs altogether, and put my children on as beneficiaries. My father realized what he'd done almost a year later and had me take him to the bank to straighten it out. I took him to the lawyer and had it put in trust so it can never happen again. If you handle your parents' finances, be sure you cover your tracks and have the paperwork to back up everything that's done so there can never be a problem from siblings or anyone else." Reply
Family Divided
"I am one of three children. My father is a windower and is very self sufficient. He is not forthcoming about his financial affairs. My older brother has been spongng off of him for years and the younger brother has manipulated monies here and there. I have been after my father to settle his affairs because I know once he goes it will be an all out war. I have no idea what his financial lifestyle is. He lives out in California and all three of us live in New York. I am sad to say that money is the root of all evil where my brothers are concerned. " Reply
"My parents never discussed anything with me, other than to tell me where to find their wills when they passed. My mother has since passed, and my 76 year old dad is still able to take care of himself. He is very old school and would refuse to come live with me should his ability to care for himself be hindered (I already offered). I wouldn't put it past him to purposely disappear in the woods if he felt he couldn't take care of himself! This attitude is not uncommon for people raised in his era. What advice do you have for people in my situation?" Reply
Marginally managing
"I finally convinced my 80 yr old parents to trust me with respect to their finances. They met with a financial planner and moved their small IRA's and CD's into several income producing annuities. They now finally feel comfortable enough to enjoy lunch every now and ten at a restaurant and still pay all their bills. They own their small Cape Cod and have no other debt. But the struggle to pay bills by relying on SS because they wanted to save their retirement money for an emergency was too much for them to bear. Gently but firmly, as their oldest child, I had them meet with a financial planner and now they are collecting a little extra cash every month. They are sorry they waited so long." Reply
I finally convinced my 80 yr old parents to trust me with respect to their finances. They met with a financial planner and moved their small IRA's and CD's into several income producing annuities. They now finally feel comfortable enough to enjoy lunch every now and ten at a restaurant and still pay all their bills. They own their small Cape Cod and have no other debt. But the struggle to pay bills by relying on SS because they wanted to save their retirement money for an emergency was too much for them to bear. Gently but firmly, as their oldest child, I had them meet with a financial planner and now they are collecting a little extra cash every month. They are sorry they waited so long.
Geri on Fri, 04/09/2010 - 16:32.
Hi Cocopazzo,
Thank you for leaving this wonderful comment to reinforce what Colleen has said.
Geri Brin
rocksteadyredhead on Tue, 04/13/2010 - 10:15.
My parents never discussed anything with me, other than to tell me where to find their wills when they passed. My mother has since passed, and my 76 year old dad is still able to take care of himself. He is very old school and would refuse to come live with me should his ability to care for himself be hindered (I already offered). I wouldn't put it past him to purposely disappear in the woods if he felt he couldn't take care of himself! This attitude is not uncommon for people raised in his era. What advice do you have for people in my situation?
swoogietwo on Tue, 04/13/2010 - 11:21.
I am one of three children. My father is a windower and is very self sufficient. He is not forthcoming about his financial affairs. My older brother has been spongng off of him for years and the younger brother has manipulated monies here and there. I have been after my father to settle his affairs because I know once he goes it will be an all out war. I have no idea what his financial lifestyle is. He lives out in California and all three of us live in New York. I am sad to say that money is the root of all evil where my brothers are concerned.
ramah2 on Tue, 04/13/2010 - 21:10.
My father is 86 and moved to assisted living 2 months ago after living by himself since my mother died 5 years ago. He can afford assisted living for many years and feels safer there than at home by himself after many falls. I feel better knowing he is there. I handle his bills and insurance. I write his checks but he signs them and I make sure he knows what is going on with his finances. I also keep his attorney advised on his health and finances. Three years ago my sister convinced my father to add her to his CDs and sign his house over to her, remove me from the CDs altogether, and put my children on as beneficiaries. My father realized what he'd done almost a year later and had me take him to the bank to straighten it out. I took him to the lawyer and had it put in trust so it can never happen again. If you handle your parents' finances, be sure you cover your tracks and have the paperwork to back up everything that's done so there can never be a problem from siblings or anyone else.
maciberkeley on Tue, 04/20/2010 - 21:57.
I think the best advice I ever got, although a little late, while caring for my mother until her death at 97-they really ey really are grown ups and they need to be allowed to be responsabile for themselves as long as possible. There are a lot worse things than death. Your Dad sounds like a great guy!
Geri on Wed, 04/21/2010 - 05:57.
Hi Ramah,
You dad does sound like a wonderful man; your sister, not quite so wonderful.
Best to him and you.
FOF: What trends are you seeing in families?
CS: “Yes. I have a client who couldn’t live alone anymore when she was 84. She was losing weight because she wasn't feeding herself. She had a perfectly great portfolio that could have definitely afforded to pay for assisted living. But the daughter said, ‘I can't live with myself if I do that.’ She thought it would be better to build an addition to her house, instead of paying for a nursing home for a few years. “Mom, now 87, stays in the addition and is doing great. They believe that she’s lived longer than if she had gone to live in a nursing home.
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