Client Success Stories

Click below to see how I help...

Engaged and Newlywed Couples

Couples Who Fight About Money

Couples Preparing for a Major Life Change

Engaged and Newlywed Couples

Couples Who Fight About Money

Couples Preparing for a Major Life Change

How We help Engaged and Newlywed Couples

These are some of the real questions and problems that clients of Pacesetter Planning asked us to help them with:

Here’s an example of how our process helped.

Starting Point

Jen and James* came to us two months before their wedding. They had no idea how they were going to manage their finances together after their wedding in the context of their financial differences.

James had $172,000 in student loan debt at the time of their wedding, and Jen was debt free.

What We Did

Pacesetter Planning helped them set joint financial goals and help them understand how the individual components of their financial picture affected these goals. We recommended the optimal bank account structure based on their unique money habits and values as a couple, and recommended which aspects of their finances should be combined after their wedding.

We taught them how to implement an efficient monthly money review meeting to review their progress without getting bogged down in the details, and we helped them implement a student loan paydown strategy that was optimized in the context of their other financial goals.

How It Helped

In the three years since we started working together, Jen and James* have significantly outpaced their savings goals and were able to pay off all $172,000 in student loan debt while saving for a house.

But more importantly, they told us a year after their wedding that “communicating about money has been one of the stronger parts of our marriage”.

Ready To Learn More?

How We Help Couples Who Fight About Money

These are some of the real questions and problems that clients of Pacesetter Planning asked us to help them with:

Here’s an example of how our process helped.

Starting Point

Bob and Barbara* had very different money attitudes; Barbara was a “saver” who prioritized financial security, and Bob was a “spender” who prioritized financial freedom.

They didn’t have a consistent process in place to manage money together, and had fights about money almost on a weekly basis.

What We Did

With some guidance from Pacesetter Planning, Barbara and Bob* learned how to clearly define their financial priorities and goals around saving, spending, security, and freedom.

We helped them figure out how much they needed to save to achieve their goals to make Barbara happy, implemented strategies to facilitate this saving, and agreed on spending targets in line with these numbers to make Bob happy.

We also showed them how to implement an efficient process to manage money together that respected their financial differences, accelerated their financial progress, and significantly decreased their money fights.

How It Helped

We created a unified financial plan for their family that appropriately balanced both of their priorities, and clearly showed them how and when they will achieve each of their financial goals.

They automated their money management, which has decreased their financial arguments, increased their savings rate, and strengthened their relationship by reducing this source of conflict.

Ready To Learn More?

How We help couples preparing for Major Life Changes

These are some of the real questions and problems that clients of Pacesetter Planning asked us to help them with:

Here’s an example of how our process helped.

Starting Point

Allison and Andrew* felt trapped in their current living situation – they were unhappy in their neighborhood but felt paralyzed trying to figure out their next move.

They also had been putting off having their first child due to financial stress.

What We Did

Going through Pacesetter Planning’s financial planning process, we completed their family mission statement and set very clear financial goals related to decreasing their financial stress and improving their living situation.

As a result of their plan, Allison and Andrew* identified their dream neighborhood and improved their financial standing so that they could buy a house in this neighborhood during our time working together. Andrew also made a career change that increased his work/life balance and they had their first child in December 2019.

How It Helped

Allison and Andrew* exponentially improved their quality of life, had their first child, and bought their dream home as a result of working with Pacesetter Planning.

Even better, they learned how to make decisive financial decisions and stopped feeling anxious about money.

Ready To Learn More?

*Note: to maintain strict confidentiality for the couples I work with, names have been changed.