Wealth Manager announces Stonegate Wealth Management as one of its 2010 Top Wealth Managers
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Steve is Quoted on NorthJersey.com
Title: Suspension of BP Dividend Hits Investors by Rebecca Olles
Description: Article weighs in on how BP cutting it's dividend will affect individual investors both domestically and internationally. Steve is asked his opinion on the subject.
Quote:
" Stephen Craffen, a financial adviser for Stonegate Wealth Management in Fair Lawn, said the suspension sets a bad precedent.
'It bows to politicians by not paying the dividend,' he said. 'It will hurt local investors because they'll hold back their dividends three quarters and hurt their cash flow and affect the value of the stock in turn.' "
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NAPFA Board of Directors Elects its 2010-2011 Board Members
Annoucement: Stonegate Wealth Management's very own Steve Craffen has been elected to serve on NAPFA's Northeast Regional Board of Directors. We are very honored that he has received the opportunity to serve in such a position, and very proud of his achievement.
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Cary is Quoted in the Orlando Sentinel's "Ask an Expert" Column
Title: Consider Taxes Now, Before Inheritance Becomes an Issue
Description: Readers submit their questions to the Orlando Sentinel and have them answered by Central Florida's financial planning experts.
Quote:
"Q: Are bonds safer than stocks? --P.M., Clermont
A: It depends, they could be. They have a fixed coupon payment, so you will get income, and if you hold to maturity, you get your principal back. They are also tied to interest rates, so you could possibly lose principal if you sell prior to maturity.
--Cary Carbonaro "
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Stonegate Wealth Management is ranked #243 in Financial Advisor Magazine's 2010 Top RIA Survey
Description: Stonegate ranked 243 out of 456 Registered Investment Advisers that met FA Magazine's minimum criteria. FA Magazine's rankings are based upon 2009 Year-End Assets Under Management.
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Cary is Quoted on NewJerseyNewsRoom.com
Title: A Financial Planner Who is Especially Good for Widows by Warren Boroson
Description: Warren Boroson of New Jersey News Room exclusively interviews Cary Carbonaro on what she does as a financial planner and gets her take on her view of her clients, particularly widows and individuals in difficult situations.
Quote:
"The gentleman made only $150,000 a year, yet he was paying $55,000 a year for nine whole-life insurance policies — more than one-third of his income. Not only that, but he owned over 100 individual stocks.
No wonder he wasn't saving much — and no wonder that his financial adviser was getting rich quick. (Whole-life insurance is expensive and gives you a paltry savings account.)
Eventually that gentleman wised up and made his way to a fee-only Certified Financial Planner, namely, Cary Carbonaro of Stonegate Wealth Management in Fair Lawn, who is now extricating him from that mess."
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Cary is Quoted in Money Magazine, April Edition
Title: Weathering a Long Job Search by Donna Rosato; Photographs by Rob Howard
Description: A young couple from New Jersey, Terase Salerno and Michael Salerno, struggle financially with the loss of Terase's job as she was the family's main breadwinner. Terri has been seeking unemployment for the past year without any success and this article seeks the opinions of human resources and financial experts to give them much needed advice.
Quote:
"With Savings dwindling 'the Salernos are in survival mode until Terri gets back to work,' says Fair Lawn, N.J. financial planner Cary Carbonaro. Like many famiies suffering from a job loss, they've trimmed around the edges, nixing vacations and meals out. But now they must take an ax to bigger expenses to avoid debt.
Carbonaro suggests that people in this situation look honestly at their biggest costs. Can you refinance your mortgage and lower your payment enough to offset the cost? If not, can you qualify for a loan modification to reduce your monthly payments? Are you willing to sell your home and rent? Can you live without two cars? Can you trade one down?"
These are the tough decisions that a family in this situation needs to make.
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Cary is Quoted in the Orlando Sentinel
Title: Gold tempts investors, divides advisers by Richard Burnett
Description: This article talks about investing in gold and how many individual investors have been attracted to the idea of investing in it within the past year as a safe-haven from inflation and the stock market. It also talks about how the opinions of many advisors differ.
Quote:
"Cary Carbonaro said she began directing clients several years ago to invest about 2 percent to 5 percent of their portfolio in a gold-exchange-traded fund that has since doubled in value.
'It was great to get in about three or four years ago, but now you have to be much more cautious,' said Carbonaro, a financial planner in Stonegate Wealth Management's Clermont office. "It has had a huge runup, but it is a cyclical thing.
'And there are better options,' she added. 'Now we use a well-rounded, natural-resources fund that includes a lot of commodities — much better than investing in just gold.' "
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Cary is Quoted in the Orlando Sentinel - Ask an Expert
Title: Amend return to claim investment loss
Description: CFP® practitioners from the Central Florida Chapter of the Financial Planning Association answer personal finance questions for individuals.
Quote:
Q: My current 457 plan offers limited opportunities to invest in quality five star mutual funds. As a retired City of Orlando employee, who has not yet reached 59 1/2, can I convert my 457 plan to a traditional IRA without penalty?
Cary: You used the word retired, so I'll assume you no longer work for the City of Orlando. If that is the case, yes, you may rollover your 457 plan assets into an IRA Rollover directly without any penalty. Otherwise, you must wait until separation of service or age 59 1/2, whichever comes first.
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Cary is Quoted on Kiplinger.com, Answering Retirement Questions for Individuals.
Title: Live Discussion: NAPFA Planners Answer Your Questions
Description: Cary participates in a live question and answer session with individuals seeking answers as a part of Kiplinger's: Jump-Start Your Retirement Plan Days.
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Stonegate Wealth Management and Family Financial Research Announce Merger
Stonegate Wealth Management, LLC, and Family Financial Research, LLC, both Registered Investment Advisers, announced today that they have merged their businesses.
Stonegate Wealth Management, LLC, a nationally recognized firm located in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, has been consistently ranked as a Top Wealth Manager by Bloomberg Magazine.
Family Financial Research, LLC, in Clermont, Florida, has experienced steady growth even in the past two years of economic downturn. As a result of the merger, the combined assets under management will be approximately $210 Million.
“Investors have been facing challenges since the downturn began,” said Cary Carbonaro, President and founder of Family Financial Research. “Such challenges highlighted a growing need for Family Financial Research to seek enhanced technical support, research, and access to new investment strategies and opportunities. Those were the drivers to merging Family Financial Research with Stonegate Wealth Management,” said Carbonaro.
Stephen Craffen, co-founder and partner at Stonegate Wealth Management said: “We are pleased to be merging with Family Financial Research. Both our firms operate on a fee-only basis and share a common vision regarding the importance of the fiduciary responsibility that we have to our clients. This was a significant positive factor as we discussed merging our businesses.”
The combined firm will use the name Stonegate Wealth Management, LLC, and will have offices in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, Huntington, NY, and Clermont, Florida.
For more information on Stonegate Wealth Management, contact Steven Craffen at stevec@stonegatewealth.com or Cary Carbonaro at caryc@stonegatewealth.com. Both can be reached at 201-791-0085.
Cary is Quoted in the Wall Street Journal
Title: Can These Retirements Be Saved?, by Kelly Greene
Description: Do you need a financial makeover to save your retirement? These individuals did. Cary gives an individual her opinion regarding her financial situation.
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Cary is Quoted in More Magazine
Title: How to Roll Over your 401(k), by Karina Martinez-Carter
Description: The article goes into detail of how to roll over your 401(k) once you part ways with your employer.
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Tom Completes AIFA Designation
Thomas Geraghty completed the Accredited Investment Fiduciary Analyst™ (AIFA). AIFA designees' primary function is to perform, or assist in, assessments of an Investment Steward's, Advisor's, or Manager's conformance to a Global Fiduciary Standard of Excellence using fi360's ISO-like procedure of assessment. AIFA designees possess the ability and knowledge to advise clients of deficiencies in investment processes. It is also the required mark to perform a CEFEX Fiduciary Certification, the independent recognition of a fiduciary's conformity to all fiduciary Practices and Criteria.
Cary is Quoted in the Orlando Sentinel
Title: Where's a Safe Place to Stash Your Cash?, by Richard Burnett
Description: The article reviews the financial meltdown of 2008 and asks the question: Where is a safe place to invest my money?
Cary voices her opinion.
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Cary is Quoted in the Wall Street Journal
Title: Riding Out 2009 - Position Your Portfolio for a Rebound, by Randy Myers
Description: The article takes a client point of view of on why working with a financial advisor can be valuable to the individual investor.
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Cary is Quoted in Journal of Financial Planning
Title: Sharpening Your Media Skills, by Ed McCarthy, CFP®
Description: The article goes from page 5 to 18. Cary is quoted on page 8.
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Cary is Quoted in the Wall Street Journal, "Special Interests" Section
Title: Who’s in Your Corner? Asking the Hard Questions – and Following up on the Answers
Description: The article takes a client point of view of on why working with a financial advisor can be valuable to the individual investor.
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Steve Named as Top Advisor by Worth Magazine
WORTH Magazine has recognized Steve Craffen, MBA, CFA, Stonegate Wealth Management, Inc., as one of an elite group of wealth advisors. Advisors are chosen for their expertise, integrity and dedication to the field of wealth management. The list of only 250 individuals across the country will be published in the October/November 2008 issue of WORTH magazine. Hundreds of advisors vie for the honor. The executives selected for the honor are the result of months of extensive research and rigorous analysis by WORTH Magazine's staff.
The professionals who earn this distinction are chosen for their outstanding expertise, insight, trustworthiness and commitment to their clients' needs. The magazine says this exclusive group of executives represents the very finest that the wealth management profession has to offer.
Third Party Endorsement Received
Stonegate Wealth Management, Inc., received the third party endorsement as a top New Jersey advisory firm in two industry magazines for financial professionals, Investment Advisor Magazine, (www.ia-mag.com) and Wealth Manager magazine (www.wealthmanagermag.com).
Steve Elected to Regional Board of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA)
Steve Craffen was elected to serve on NAPFA's Eastern Regional Board. He will serve as study group director for the eastern region. Board members serve for a term of two years. Read his NAPFA Comprehensive Financial Manager Diagnostic.
Tom Quoted in Kiplingers Retirement Report
Tom Geraghty was quoted in the April 2008 edition of Kiplingers Retirement Report. Tom discussed how retirees can set up an automatic "paycheck" from their portfolio when they retire.
Cary is quoted on CNNMoney.com
Title: A Soldier's Story: Financial Rehab by George Mannes
Description: A Morter shell in Iraq shattered Ivan Castro's eyesight and maybe his military career. Now he's on a new mission: making sure he's got enough money to live on.
Quote: "They have to figure out from this moment on what they want their life to look like - what they want their career to be, what they want for their family," says Cary Carbonaro, a certified financial planner who has worked with injured soldiers. "That's tough for anyone, but really rough if you're also struggling with a disability."
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Cary is quoted in the Orlando Sentinel
Title: One Recipe can Yield alot of Dough by Heather Mcpherson
Description: Pillsbury Bake-Off winners get rich, but the money doesn't change who they are.
Quote: "One of the dangers in dealing with sudden wealth is 'lottery mentality' -- when instant millionaires spend beyond their means, wildly change their lifestyles, and end up worse than before the payout." says Cary Carbonaro.
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Cary is Quoted on MSNBC.com, Newsweek
Title: Just Not Married by Nicole Joseph
Description: Thinking of moving in? Find out how to avoid the financial pitfalls cohabitating couples whether you're together forever, or just until the lease runs out.
Quote: "Money is a very emotional issue," says Cary Carbonaro. "You have to find a way to blend your personal lives and your financial lives." While it's not an easy task, careful planning can help smoothe the tensions that can (and probably will) arise.
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Cary is Quoted on Financial-Planning.com
Title: The Bag Lady Bugaboo by Janet Aschkenasy
Description: Financial planners can help women address their fears of poverty in old age.
Quote: "In light of such facts, it's no surprise that 'many women have the bag lady fear," says Cary Carbonaro. "I do too. One client, a 67-year old professional woman, has yet to leave the workforce even though she's making "tons [of money] on a portfolio she hasn't touched. She's worried she's going to live to be 100." explains Carbonaro. "We all want to be able to feather our nests with money."
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