A Financial Planning Process Designed to Keep Decisions Connected
By evaluating investments, taxes, retirement strategy, and long-term goals together, financial planning works most effectively. This is a consistent process that evolves as your life does, so that there is never a disconnect.
Our Financial Planning Process
Marks Wealth Management follows a six-step financial planning process designed to help clients move from financial organization to long-term strategy and ongoing oversight.
Led by a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), the process moves through goal orientation, financial review, planning and forecasting, strategic guidance, implementation, and ongoing monitoring. Each step builds on the one before it so recommendations are grounded in a complete understanding of your financial goals, timeline, and broader financial picture.
As a fee-only fiduciary firm, our planning process is designed to support objective, coordinated financial decision-making over time.
The Six Steps
Step 1:
Goal Orientation:
Defining your financial priorities and vision
Step 2:
Financial Review:
Assessing your complete financial position
Step 3:
Planning and Forecasting:
Modeling your financial roadmap forward
Step 4:
Strategic Guidance:
Delivering personalized, fiduciary recommendations
Step 5:
Implementation:
Executing your plan with precision and transparency
Step 6:
Active Monitoring and Review:
Ongoing oversight as your life evolves
Goal Orientation
By understanding what matters most to you, we are able to create a plan that fits you and your situation best. We discuss retirement goals, lifestyle priorities, family considerations, and financial decisions that will shape your long-term strategy.
These priorities are the foundation of the financial review and the planning that follows.
Financial Review
We are able to establish a clear picture of your current financial position with a thorough financial review, including investments, retirement accounts, insurance coverage, taxes, and estate considerations.
Understanding where you stand today creates the basis for long-term planning and forecasting.
Planning and Forecasting
Planning and forecasting are tools that help evaluate how your financial decisions today can have long-term effects on your goals over time. We model retirement income, cash flow, taxes, and other planning variables to help clients understand and choose their path going forward.
These projections inform the strategic recommendations that follow.
Strategic Guidance
Strategic guidance takes planning analysis and transforms it into considerate recommendations across investments, retirement planning, taxes, insurance, and estate considerations.
Every recommendation is evaluated with your financial situation, strategy, and long-term goals in mind.
Implementation
Implementation moves financial recommendations into action through coordinated account updates, portfolio adjustments, and planning execution.
Our team helps ensure investment strategy, account structure, and planning decisions are implemented consistently within your broader financial plan.
Active Monitoring and Review
Financial planning is ongoing; it is not simply a one-time event. As life changes, markets shift, and your goals evolve, we ensure your plan will evolve with them.
Our team provides ongoing guidance and careful, consistent consideration designed to support clients through changing financial priorities over time.
What to Expect When Working Together
Working with Marks Wealth Management is a collaborative planning relationship built around communication, transparency, and long-term financial guidance.
What We Ask of You
We ask clients to share financial information openly, participate in review meetings, and keep us informed as major life or financial changes occur over time.
What You Can Expect From Us
You can expect direct access to our advisory team, transparent communication, and guidance designed to support long-term financial decision-making as your goals and circumstances evolve.
Meet The Team
Charles N. Marks
Founder and CEO
Recognized by Forbes as a Best-In-State Wealth Advisor for 2025/2026, Charles Marks founded Marks Wealth Management in 2020 on a principle he carried from his first role as an intern at Merrill Lynch at age 20: his clients' best interests come first. He leads the firm's strategy today with the same conviction, building long-term relationships with clients who become friends and family.
Catherine C. Jackson
Principal Financial Planner
Catherine leads the firm's financial planning work, building and guiding plans for clients across retirement, Social Security optimization, and long-term wealth strategy. She earned her CFP® designation in 2019 and has been with the firm since 2016, making her one of the longest-tenured members of the team.
Taylor A. Marks
Managing Director
Taylor oversees client relationships, compliance, and the firm's operational direction. Every piece of content and every client-facing detail passes through her review before it reaches the outside world. She sets the standard for how the firm presents itself and how clients experience the relationship.
Finnian P. Devine
Associate Portfolio Manager
Finnian is one of the youngest Chartered Market Technicians in the country. He works alongside Charles Marks conducting daily portfolio monitoring and market analysis, bringing technical analysis skills to the firm's active management approach.
Richard T. Gloekler
Associate Advisor
Richard guides prospective clients through the firm's planning process, ensuring every new relationship starts with personal attention from the very first conversation. He joined Marks Wealth Management as an intern before moving into a full-time advisory role.
Let’s Talk About Your Financial Goals
Your financial goals are at the core of creating a financial plan that’s right for you. Every decision is evaluated within the context of your situation, goals, timeline, and long-term priorities.
Start with a conversation about where you are today and what you want your financial strategy to support moving forward.
