Explore Demi & Kareem's story.*

See how Schwab Wealth Advisory™ could potentially help investors like Demi and Kareem navigate the complexities of inheritance, asset protection, and shared financial planning while investing in their education, careers, and future together.   

A couple standing outdoors near a lake, smiling at the camera. Speech bubbles beside them read: “How do I manage inherited wealth?” and “How can we plan for career transitions?”

About Demi & Kareem

A circular photo of a couple hiking together, smiling and talking. Below the photo are three icons: a family symbol, a calendar with “SALE” on it, and a briefcase.

Demi and Kareem* are in their mid-30s and recently engaged. Demi, a mental-health professional, inherited income-producing rental properties after losing her mother as a teenager. She's now returning to graduate school and building a counseling practice. Kareem teaches high school science and recently earned a leadership certificate to pursue a role as a department head.

As they planned for their future together, Demi and Kareem had several big questions in mind:

  • How can we use inherited wealth to fund education and business goals—without sacrificing long-term growth?
  • What's the right way to structure our finances when we get married?
  • Are there smarter ways to manage short-term expenses without selling long-term investments?
  • Can we buy a home in the next year while keeping our broader financial plan on track?

We started with a financial plan to help bring clarity and structure to their planning and worked closely with Demi and Kareem to understand their full financial picture, then brought in the right Schwab specialists to explore options that matched their goals.

*These scenarios are for illustrative purposes only, are not the experience of any specific clients, and are no guarantee of future performance or success.

Managing inheritance

Demi* was overwhelmed trying to figure out how to cover tuition, launch costs, and daily expenses without depleting her inherited assets or disrupting the income she received from her inherited income-producing rental properties.

How Schwab Wealth Advisory helped

We began by reviewing Demi's income sources and used the financial plan to model how far that income could go toward meeting her near-term goals.

  • Together, we looked at ways to align her cash flow with projected tuition and startup costs—without jeopardizing long-term growth or the legacy assets themselves.
  • To help supplement income during periods of higher expenses, we introduced a Schwab Bank Specialist who modeled a bridge loan as a way to access liquidity without selling off rental properties or triggering capital gains.
  • We also discussed potential tax considerations, including whether selling a small portion of property could make sense while her overall income and capital gain tax rates were relatively low.

With this plan in place, Demi had a clearer picture of how to fund her goals in the short term—while still protecting her long-term financial foundation.

*These scenarios are for illustrative purposes only, are not the experience of any specific clients, and are no guarantee of future performance or success.

Schwab Wealth Advisory does not provide specific individualized legal or tax advice. Please consult a qualified legal or tax advisor where such advice is necessary or appropriate.

Before executing any tax strategies ensure you understand the technicalities and certain risks including unintended tax implications.

Merging and protecting assets

As they prepared to get married, Demi and Kareem* wanted to merge finances in a way that was open and equitable—while protecting the legacy assets Demi had inherited.

How Schwab Wealth Advisory helped

We started with a values-based conversation to help Demi and Kareem articulate how they each approached saving, spending, and planning for the future. This laid the groundwork for a more intentional approach to merging their finances.

From there, we brought in a Schwab Tax, Trust, and Estate Specialist to walk them through options for account titling, beneficiary designations, and the pros and cons of creating a revocable trust—together or individually. We also referred them to an outside attorney, who helped draft a prenuptial agreement that reflected their shared priorities and goals.

They walked away with a clear plan for how they might protect legacy assets while building a financial future together.

*These scenarios are for illustrative purposes only, are not the experience of any specific clients, and are no guarantee of future performance or success.

Employees of Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc. are not estate planning attorneys and cannot offer tax or legal advice, or create and prepare legal documents associated with such plans. Where such advice is necessary or appropriate, please consult a qualified legal or tax advisor.

Contact your Schwab Financial Consultant or connect with us to learn more.

Let's talk

Buying a home

With wedding planning underway, Demi and Kareem* hoped to purchase their first home together in the next year. They wanted to make sure their budget reflected both their cash flow and investment priorities.

How Schwab Wealth Advisory helped

We walked through multiple home-buying scenarios—factoring in down payment options, monthly payments, and whether to sell investments or use borrowing solutions.

We also coordinated with a Schwab Banking Specialist and their home loan provider, Rocket Mortgage®, to help them understand mortgage options and get prequalified early in the process.

To support longer-term planning, we helped them evaluate how a mortgage might affect their ability to save for retirement and grow Demi's business.

With these tools in hand, Demi and Kareem were able to define their home-buying budget with confidence—knowing it fit into the bigger picture of the life they're building together.

*These scenarios are for illustrative purposes only, are not the experience of any specific clients, and are no guarantee of future performance or success.

Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. does not solicit, offer, endorse, negotiate, or originate any mortgage loan products and is neither a licensed mortgage broker nor a licensed mortgage lender. Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., and Charles Schwab Bank, SSB are separate but affiliated companies and subsidiaries of The Charles Schwab Corporation.**

Education and career planning

Both Demi and Kareem* were investing in their professional futures—Demi through graduate school and Kareem through additional certifications. They wanted to make sure these transitions didn't derail their bigger financial picture.

How Schwab Wealth Advisory helped

We started by helping Demi and Kareem understand how tuition, business startup costs, and potential career changes could impact their overall plan. From there, we built a multiyear cash flow model they could adapt as their careers evolved.

We also helped them prioritize account usage—starting with trust income, followed by income-producing investments, and reserving the bridge loan for one-time larger expenses.

And because Demi's practice would likely have unpredictable early cash flow, we coordinated with a Schwab tax professional to educate her on tax credits that may be available for grad students.

This gave them a roadmap they could use as their careers evolved—and helped reduce the financial uncertainty that often comes with transitions.

*These scenarios are for illustrative purposes only, are not the experience of any specific clients, and are no guarantee of future performance or success.

A plan built around you.

See how we help connect the dots—with guidance that's both holistic and personal.  

The Charles Schwab logo and Wealth Advisory logo appear on an all-white screen. The title reads Professional Wealth Management on Your Terms.

Upbeat music plays throughout.

The logos and text fade away to show Schwab Wealth Advisor, Dean Belknap, PFS, CPWA®, CFP®, seated at a desk.

The process that I use is focusing in on what you have, what's important to you, and what you don't need, what's not contributing.

We never know what trouble or what blessings or what opportunities may present themselves. We can be blind to them.

It is a lot easier for me to identify what's important to you, what your current situation is, and what issues might surprise you if we don't take care of them. Whether it's looking at your estate, thinking about your financial projections, or how well do some of the positions that you own support your future, we take the guesswork out of how to fund each of those important goals that you spent a lifetime thinking about.

My name is Dean Belknap, and I'm a Schwab Wealth Advisor. 

Recently, I sat down with a client who came to me from another investment firm. They didn't like how their investments were performing. They didn't understand a lot of what they held, and they liked a few of them, but weren't sure how to transition into something that looked like success.

We talked about their goals. We assessed what they were likely to need over the next two, three, five, ten years and identified how certain pieces in their portfolio contributed and fit perfectly and others didn't make any sense.

And so through collaborating and developing recommendations and sharing with them what I would keep and what I would sell to show them how all the new pieces will fit together better, save them on taxes, save them on fees, and make sure they have more money to spend when it's important.

Everything that I do starts with what do you own, why do you own it, and what should you own, and how are we going to work together in taking what you have, keeping the best, and finding better solutions than some of the pieces that aren't working well enough for you now.

You get to take a lot of the guesswork out of what you own and why with Schwab Wealth Advisory, because that's why we're here.

The screen fades to white and the following disclosures fade onto the screen:

Schwab Wealth Advisory™ ("SWA") is a non‐discretionary investment advisory program sponsored by Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab"). Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc. ("SWAI") is a Registered Investment Adviser and provides portfolio management for the SWA program. Schwab and SWAI are affiliates and are subsidiaries of The Charles Schwab Corporation.

Portfolio Management provided by Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc., a Registered Investment Adviser and affiliate of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (Schwab). Please read the Schwab Wealth Advisory and the Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc. Disclosure Brochures for information and disclosures about this program. The Wealth Advisor, Associate Wealth Advisor, and other representatives making investment recommendations in your Schwab Wealth Advisory accounts are employees of Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc.

This information provided here is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for specific individualized tax, legal, or investment planning advice. Where specific advice is necessary or appropriate, you should consult with a qualified tax advisor, CPA, Financial Planner, or Investment Manager.

Information provided herein is for general information purposes only and should not be considered an individualized recommendation or personalized investment advice. The investment strategies mentioned may not be suitable for everyone. Each investor needs to review an investment strategy for his or her own particular situation before making any investment decisions.

Financial Planning consultations are conducted by employees of Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc. ("SWAI") or Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab") depending on the complexity of your financial situation. SWAI and Schwab are Registered Investment Advisors and wholly owned subsidiaries of the Charles Schwab Corporation.

Certain services may be provided by affiliated professionals and third-party firms. Schwab Wealth Advisory does not provide specific individualized legal or tax advice. Please consult a qualified legal or tax advisor where such advice is necessary or appropriate.

Asset allocation and diversification strategies do not ensure a profit and do not protect against losses in declining markets.

© Charles Schwab & Co, Inc., Member SIPC. All rights reserved.

(0924-KPP9)
Video Transcript

Personalized guidance

The Charles Schwab logo and Wealth Advisory logo appear on an all-white screen. The title reads Professional Wealth Management on Your Terms.

Upbeat music plays throughout.

The logos and text fade away to show Schwab Wealth Advisor, Dean Belknap, PFS, CPWA®, CFP®, seated at a desk.

The process that I use is focusing in on what you have, what's important to you, and what you don't need, what's not contributing.

We never know what trouble or what blessings or what opportunities may present themselves. We can be blind to them.

It is a lot easier for me to identify what's important to you, what your current situation is, and what issues might surprise you if we don't take care of them. Whether it's looking at your estate, thinking about your financial projections, or how well do some of the positions that you own support your future, we take the guesswork out of how to fund each of those important goals that you spent a lifetime thinking about.

My name is Dean Belknap, and I'm a Schwab Wealth Advisor. 

Recently, I sat down with a client who came to me from another investment firm. They didn't like how their investments were performing. They didn't understand a lot of what they held, and they liked a few of them, but weren't sure how to transition into something that looked like success.

We talked about their goals. We assessed what they were likely to need over the next two, three, five, ten years and identified how certain pieces in their portfolio contributed and fit perfectly and others didn't make any sense.

And so through collaborating and developing recommendations and sharing with them what I would keep and what I would sell to show them how all the new pieces will fit together better, save them on taxes, save them on fees, and make sure they have more money to spend when it's important.

Everything that I do starts with what do you own, why do you own it, and what should you own, and how are we going to work together in taking what you have, keeping the best, and finding better solutions than some of the pieces that aren't working well enough for you now.

You get to take a lot of the guesswork out of what you own and why with Schwab Wealth Advisory, because that's why we're here.

The screen fades to white and the following disclosures fade onto the screen:

Schwab Wealth Advisory™ ("SWA") is a non‐discretionary investment advisory program sponsored by Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab"). Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc. ("SWAI") is a Registered Investment Adviser and provides portfolio management for the SWA program. Schwab and SWAI are affiliates and are subsidiaries of The Charles Schwab Corporation.

Portfolio Management provided by Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc., a Registered Investment Adviser and affiliate of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (Schwab). Please read the Schwab Wealth Advisory and the Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc. Disclosure Brochures for information and disclosures about this program. The Wealth Advisor, Associate Wealth Advisor, and other representatives making investment recommendations in your Schwab Wealth Advisory accounts are employees of Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc.

This information provided here is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for specific individualized tax, legal, or investment planning advice. Where specific advice is necessary or appropriate, you should consult with a qualified tax advisor, CPA, Financial Planner, or Investment Manager.

Information provided herein is for general information purposes only and should not be considered an individualized recommendation or personalized investment advice. The investment strategies mentioned may not be suitable for everyone. Each investor needs to review an investment strategy for his or her own particular situation before making any investment decisions.

Financial Planning consultations are conducted by employees of Schwab Wealth Advisory, Inc. ("SWAI") or Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab") depending on the complexity of your financial situation. SWAI and Schwab are Registered Investment Advisors and wholly owned subsidiaries of the Charles Schwab Corporation.

Certain services may be provided by affiliated professionals and third-party firms. Schwab Wealth Advisory does not provide specific individualized legal or tax advice. Please consult a qualified legal or tax advisor where such advice is necessary or appropriate.

Asset allocation and diversification strategies do not ensure a profit and do not protect against losses in declining markets.

© Charles Schwab & Co, Inc., Member SIPC. All rights reserved.

(0924-KPP9)

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