Mr. Tillery will be one of six financial planning practitioners available for the live question and answer sessions. The exam review course is for CPAs preparing to take the PFS Exam. The course will provide 15 hours of CPE credit and covers the personal financial planning process, professional responsibilities, income tax, estate, retirement, investments and insurance planning.

Mr. Tillery will be available during the following dates and times:

May 29 at 10:30 AM – Estate & Charitable Planning
May 29 at 2:30 PM – Retirement Planning and Employee Benefits
June 5 at 10:00 AM – Insurance Planning
June 5 at 2:30 PM – Investment Planning
June 12 at 10:00 AM – Income Tax Planning
June 12 at 2:30 PM – PFP Process & Professional Responsibilities

Paraklete® Financial, Inc. (PFI) is a “true fee-only” financial planning firm. PFI provides comprehensive financial planning services to individuals and families, businesses, estates, trusts, charities and foundations. The firm also affiliates with CPAs throughout the United States integrating comprehensive financial planning into their practices.

Mr. Tillery has earned a master’s degree in Financial Services from The American College, and also holds a master’s degree in Christian Education from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He holds several professional designations including, Chartered Life Underwriter, Chartered Financial Consultant, Life Underwriter Training Council Fellow and Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor®.

Tom has more than 25 years of experience in financial planning, insurance, investments, philanthropy and tax planning. He is a member of AICPA, the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, the Society of Financial Service Professionals, and the Atlanta Estate Planning Council. Tom has been a provider of continuing education to attorneys, CPAs and investment and insurance professionals since 1996.

For more information or to register for the live review, visit the AICPA website.

“If the industry could seize this opportunity we’ve been given to realign and make financial planning a profession versus a sales tool, people in our country would be financially better off,” she said. “When financial planning becomes a true ‘profession,’ the greed factor will be removed. It’s the greed factor that has given our financial industry such a black eye.”

Tillery, a CPA/PFS and CFP®, started Paraklete 6 years ago with her husband Tom on a challenge from the best man at their wedding. Tom, a CFP®, CLU, ChFC, and LUTCF, is a financial planner with 25 years’ experience. He is vice president of Paraklete. and the firm’s chief compliance officer.

“The company was my husband’s idea. He had always been uncomfortable with the lack of independence and objectivity in the industry. He sold products, managed assets, and was offering financial planning for a fee. I came from the CPA side where independence and objectivity is part of our code of professional conduct.”

With four offices in Georgia, one each in South Carolina and North Carolina, and one planned for the San Francisco area, Paraklete, whose tagline is “your advocate in financial servicesSM,” operates with no assets under management and no sales of products.  The firm handles many aspects of financial planning, from estate and retirement planning, asset allocation and risk management, to cash flow and spending plans, business plans, exit strategies, charitable planning, and educational planning.

Prospects are given a complimentary 2-hour meeting to determine if a financial plan provides the solution for their particular set of circumstances. In a typical engagement, Tillery sometimes will have as many as 15 client meetings over the year, including those with other advisers, such as attorneys, CPAs, and investment advisers. It takes approximately 1 year to implement a given plan for a client.

Tillery discussed how this process decreases the other advisers’ fees by trimming the time they need to devote to a given client. In fact, she said clients quickly realize a savings back in fees saved from other professionals.

Her typical client is, “Someone who desires to be a good steward of their finances, who wants to be educated about their finances, and have their financial life in order. In our initial meeting, we determine the client’s ‘triage’ event—they usually have something pretty urgent going on in their life, their investments are a mess, they don’t have an estate plan, or they need help with their business. We address their critical area first.”

Paraklete doesn’t market to the public, but instead receives referrals from investment advisers, CPAs, attorneys, and private banks. “We do not compete with them so they are happy to refer their clients to us. We collaborate with them and make the relationship a win-win for everyone,” said
Tillery.

Paraklete’s process has proved successful and now attracts CPAs who share her vision of financial planning and are looking to start similar practices of their own. Earlier this year, after she spoke at the AICPA’s Advanced PFP Conference, a CPA attendee expressed an interest, which led to the planned addition to the firm in Walnut Creek, California. Becoming a “Paraklete” requires 7 years’ financial planning experience; an advanced degree in business, tax, or law; and a CPA with a PFS or a CFP.

Tillery is a member of the AICPA and the Georgia Society of CPAs, and serves on the AICPA PFP Executive Committee. She also serves on the board of directors for the Partnership Against Domestic Violence and is a board member for Royal Treasure, an organization that energizes, motivates, and educates women to be biblical stewards.

Prior to Paraklete, she was a principal of Harris myCFO, Inc., and was responsible for developing and delivering comprehensive family office solutions for the firm’s individual and family clients, who each typically had a net worth exceeding $100 million. That experience inspired one of her frequent speaking topics— and one that might make her unusual among financial planners—“the responsibilities that come with wealth.”

“The dream of most people in this country is to be wealthy. However, most have not considered how much responsibility accompanies wealth; if they had, they might not desire it as much. To manage wealth, an individual requires a clear vision and an understanding and strong commitment to personal values. Without these two cornerstones, an individual of wealth may be easily swayed, scammed, or taken advantage of.”

Tillery says clients who come into new wealth are amazed at the amount of work, time, and effort involved in managing their wealth. They are usually not aware they need an entire team of advisers to help them make wise decisions, manage their assets, and prepare many more tax returns than they have ever thought about before, as well as help them protect the assets from a litigious society.

“Wealth requires a huge time and resource commitment in order to grow and/or maintain it, as well as protect it,” she said. “We give our clients back their time and peace of mind by coordinating all their other advisers and ensuring everyone is on the same page.

“Women who have no prior experience managing their wealth are especially susceptible to undo influence and scams as a result of this lack of knowledge,” she continued. “I especially enjoy working with women because of their response to our education process. They gain the knowledge needed to make good decisions and feel empowered. I had a grandmother who lost everything when she became a widow at very young age with two little boys. I have a special place in my heart for women in similar situations.”

Susan Tillery’s Five Key Strategies for Building a Financial Planning Practice

1. Clear vision. What do you want your practice to provide? Asset gathering, comprehensive planning, or both.
2. High levels of activity. Try to schedule 25 appointments or other meetings per week.
3. Educate yourself. Financial planning covers many disciplines, which requires continuous education.
4. Centers of influence. Establish as many as possible and nurture them.
5. Collaborate. Seek out other advisers who are in alignment with your philosophy and vision for financial planning.

The answer is “Yes.”

The first step in determining whether or not your child has to file a tax return is to find out how much income they received in the tax year (earnings in a UTMA for example). If your child received investment income of at least $300 and gross income of $950 or more, then he or she must generally file a return.

Additionally, if your child was under 18 in 2009 and had investment income of $1,800 or less, then you will file a regular 1040 or 1040EZ for the child. All of your child’s income will be taxed at his or her own tax rate. You must sign your child’s return if he or she is too young (under 14 age) to do so.

There is an option to file on the parents return; however, the rules are far too restrictive to benefit all but a few taxpayers.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Susan M. Tillery, President and CEO, Paraklete Financial, Inc. (TM)

PRLog (Press Release) – Jan 21, 2011 – An article by Susan M. Tillery, CPA/PFS, entitled “Financial Planning – an Orphan Looking for a Home” was published in December in the AICPA’s Wealth Management Insider.  Ms. Tillery, President and CEO of Paraklete Financial, Inc.™, says that Financial Planning “has found itself in the midst of a storm of regulatory inquiry.”  The way out of the storm, suggests Ms. Tillery, is for financial planning to become a “true stand alone discipline, devoid of conflicts of interest and the moral dilemmas which accompany them.”

She proposes that the new platform for this “true fee-only” independent, objective financial planning is one that only CPAs can build – CPAs who will “seize this moment in time” and who will “adopt financial planning and take it to the professional level.”

CPAs who atttain their PFS (Personal Financial Specialist) credential are already their clients’ trusted advisors and are well positioned to offer true fee-only, independent and comprehensive planning.  Says Ms. Tillery, “The CPA/PFS will be more than a trusted advisor.  Rather he or she will be the professional advisor who helps their clients in all areas of their finances.  The CPA/PFS will manage their client’s other advisors (attorney, investment advisor, insurance person, banker, trust officer, etc.) as well as be their advocate.  They will educate their clients and bring the knowledge, skills and tools necessary to assist them in making excellent financial decisions.  CPAs are recognized as professionals who have the highest ethics and who hold the greatest respect in the financial community.”

Click to read the complete article:
http://www.cpa2biz.com/Content/media/PRODUCER_CONTENT/Ne …

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Susan M. Tillery, President and CEO, Paraklete Financial, Inc. (TM)

PRLog (Press Release) – Dec 29, 2010 – Susan M. Tillery, CPA/PFS, President and CEO of Paraklete Financial, Inc.™, will be one of five featured panelists in an all-day intensive workshop at the AICPA Advanced Personal Financial Planning Conference to be held January 10-12^th at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The 2011 AICPA Advanced Personal Financial Planning Conference kicks off a special year-long celebration of the 25^th anniversary of the AICPA’s Personal Financial Planning Section.

The workshop, entitled “Implementing PFP Services in Your Firm: Developing Step-by-Step Plans for Success,” is intended to give attendees step-by-step guidance and the resources they need to successfully implement personal financial planning services within their firms.  This pre-conference workshop is being held on Sunday, January 9th, from 9:00 AM – 4:30 PM and offers 8 CPE credits to attendees.

Paraklete Financial is a “true fee-only” financial planning firm. Paraklete provides comprehensive financial planning services to individuals and families, businesses, estates, trusts, charities and foundations. The firm also assists CPAs around the country with the integration of comprehensive financial planning into their practices.

Ms. Tillery leads a comprehensive financial planning practice with offices in three states.  Her firm’s compensation model utilizes an annual retainer fee, as well as hourly fees.  A key component of Susan’s practice is utilizing the Multi Family Office model, including plan implementation, as well as the coordination of all the client’s financial and legal advisors.

Ms. Tillery has over 25 years of experience in tax, philanthropy, and financial planning, as well as in the administrative and compliance areas encountered by affluent individuals and families. Ms. Tillery’s experience in a multi-family office where she provided a broad array of financial services to affluent families, together with her work at Arthur Andersen and other financial firms, provided the framework for Paraklete.

Susan earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Accounting, with a specialty in Tax, from the University of Georgia. She holds the professional designations of Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Personal Financial Specialist (PFS) and Certified Financial Planner (CFP®). Additionally, Susan is Series 65 Securities licensed.

Susan is a member of both the Georgia Society of CPAs and the American Institute of CPAs. In addition, she is a member of the AICPA Personal Financial Planning Executive Committee and a member of the Estate and Financial Planning Leadership Team of the Georgia Society of CPAs.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Carolyn Larsen-Wieber & Patricia Steward

PRLog (Press Release) – Dec 22, 2010 – Susan Tillery, President of Paraklete Financial, Inc.™ and David Ingram, Managing Member of the Raleigh, North Carolina-based CPA firm of Steward Ingram & Cooper PLLC, are pleased to announce the affiliation of their two firms and the opening of a Paraklete office in Raleigh.  Joining the Paraklete financial planning team are Patricia Steward, CPA/PFS and Carolyn Larsen-Wieber, CPA/PFS.  Ms. Steward is a Member of Steward Ingram & Cooper and Ms. Larsen-Wieber is a Senior Manager at the firm.  In addition to providing “true fee-only” financial planning services through their affiliation with Paraklete, they will continue in their existing roles with Steward Ingram & Cooper.

Ms. Steward has more than 20 years of experience in tax planning, business planning and succession planning for businesses and their owners, as well as strategic planning for entity selection and operations analysis in conjunction with the overall tax and business planning considerations.

Ms. Larsen-Wieber has more than 18 years of experience in tax planning, financial planning and tax compliance. Her experience at several large international accounting firms has been primarily in the personal financial planning and individual family financial management groups. She has provided these services to individuals, wealthy families, key executives and business owners.

Both women have earned the prestigious Personal Financial Specialist (PFS) designation from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), and both have held this designation for more than 10 years.

“The opening of the Raleigh office is just one step in the process of expanding Paraklete’s practice nationally by providing professional financial planning services through CPA firms and CFP® practitioners.   This expansion is a natural outgrowth of our plan to establish comprehensive financial planning as a true profession and a standalone discipline.  For too long, financial planning has been used only as a tool to develop product sales and secure assets under management,” said Ms. Tillery.

She added, “We are pleased about the addition of Patricia Steward and Carolyn Larsen-Wieber to our firm, and are excited about the growth in ‘true fee-only’ financial planning services that are being made available to the public.  We expect to add several more Paraklete offices by the end of the first quarter of 2011.  And we are working on consulting agreements with a number of larger firms to develop the Paraklete model for their staffs.

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