Welcome to a website devoted to retirement income planning. That’s a huge area, and I’m taking a small bite to start. The immediate focus is a specialty area: reverse mortgages and how they might fit into an individual’s retirement planning.
Upfront disclaimer: this is a hobby. I’m not receiving, and won’t accept, any compensation for anything you find here.
I’m Tom Davison, a wealth manager in Columbus Ohio. The blog fits a long-term pattern I’ve enjoyed for many years – taking a deep dive into different financial tools to see how they fit into an holistic view of the client. In addition to working with clients, I’ve explored areas like executive compensation (e.g., employee stock options, restricted stock, …), company stock in retirement plans (Net Unrealized Appreciation), general tax planning (AMT is a favorite topic), Monte Carlo methods for long-term financial projections, tax efficient investing, Roth IRA conversions, what to do if you hit a stretch of unemployment, and how to help elderly family members who live apart from you. Many of these focus on the intersection of investments, taxes, and lifetime income. In most of these areas I’ve done talks at conventions for other professionals, written papers, and applied the work to my firm’s clients.
I was a practicing wealth manager since 1998, with a long runway leading up to that. I was in the midst of a wealth management firm, Summit Financial Strategies, Inc. At the end of 2012 I left the firm as what I describe as a partner emeritus. They are kind enough to let me keep an office and visit with them once in a while. I’ve always been a fee-only planner, and member of NAPFA – National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, the fee-only organization, and the Financial Planning Association, FPA.
School was a graduate program in cognitive psychology, with an emphasis on experimental and quantitative methods. That was research and teaching. Then I had a job at Bell Laboratories starting as a human factors designer for computer systems soon followed by being a technical manager responsible for developing those systems. After about 20 years the career change to financial planning happened and the fun really started.
Tools for Retirement Planning 
It is refreshing to see that the writer is willing to balance his considerable experience against what some consider a hopelessly controversial topic.
Well done. And bears repeating. The negative associations are based in historical fact. And humans will keep gathering evidence for determinations they made long ago. We have to keep reminding that title was granted to some RM lenders. But not now. Equity share was fact. But not now. There were monthly service fees. But not now. There was an unavoidable high upfront MIP. But not now. There was no low cost option for planning. But there is now. Purchasers paid twice. But now it’s a single transaction. The new reverse mortgage is about as close to the old one as a 2014 Corvette is to a 1964 Corvair. Both are Chevrolet, but one is faster, safer and higher performance.
Shelley and Tom,
I am a few years into the HECM Advisor life and I am absolutely starving for more of your advice and mentoring. I send my clients to your sites as well. Please email me any and all steps to become more active with the widespread education and peace of mind of aging in place that I feel I bring to twilight’s who are facing an income crisis one way or another. I am in Scottsdale AZ 50% and Colorado 50% of my time. If there is anything I can host or help you with please let me know. I have become passionate about HECM and the longevity leveraging of assets combining with the sequence of return risk mitigation that Wade Pfau published. Thank you again for your time and attention to the critical tool in the toolbox that has been overlooked with the liquid cash in the attic! Kimberly Widmann linkedin.com/in/closedwithkim
Well done. Definitive, thought-provoking.
Tom, I am addicted to your site. I have been emailing your site to all of the financial planners I have been in contact with. I am a reverse mortgage professional not a financial planner. So, being able to send them to this site has helped solidify my message to them about using a reverse as part of their clients overall plan and that it should not be just a loan of last resort. Keep up the good work and I will keep referring financial planners to your site. Matt Allen MLO 254296
Hi Tom,
Good day.
I am Yolly, StonePayton’s assistant. We’re interviewing Thought Leaders in the Retirement Resource industry, and found you.
We’d be delighted to have you join us On Air for an upcoming episode of Retirement Tips Radio . . .
We would like to set up a call with you and Stone Payton, our Managing Partner, to see if you would be a good fit for our show. There is no fee to participate – this is an Earned Media opportunity.
If you are interested, please use this link to schedule a call time slot that fits your calendar and ours at https://bookus.page/BusinessRadioX/stoney/stonephone.
Thanks,
Yolly