Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions our team receives:

 

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    What makes Lowe & Associates unique?

  • Our team believes in a holistic approach to financial planning, and the Living Plan can adapt and change as your life does. It takes more than just investing; it’s about making better financial decisions and ensuring you have a financial plan that evolves with you. Our process starts with what you would like to achieve (remembering that your priorities will change over time) and then we build a customized holistic financial plan that suits your family.

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    What provinces are Lowe & Associates licensed in?

  • We hold IIROC in the following provinces:

    • Alberta
    • British Colombia
    • Ontario


    We also hold insurance, both life and disability, in the following provinces:

    • Alberta
    • Ontario


    Most of the clients we work with reside in Alberta; however, many clients have retired to BC, but still maintain the relationship they have with our team. There are also clients who have taken temporary or permanent jobs in other provinces, and we continue to work with them and their families.

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    What is a CFP® professional?

  • A CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® (CFP) professional is the most widely recognized financial planning designation in Canada and worldwide. The CFP designation provides assurance to Canadians that their financial plan is designed by a professional who always puts their clients’ interests first.

    It is a rigorous education program with the highest level of complexity. To maintain certification, the CFP professional must complete 25 hours of continuing education each year. All licensed members on our team are CFP professionals or working towards their designation.

    CFP professionals work with clients to build a financial plan that encompasses all areas of financial planning, including:

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    What should I be investing in right now?

  • That depends on who you are, what your risk tolerance is, why you are investing the money in the first place, and the time frame for the goal. Some people may think that wealth is accumulated by picking the right stocks or buying or selling at the perfect times. This is a myth. We subscribe to asset allocation theory, which tells us that over 90% of portfolio returns come from proper asset allocation.

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    What is Asset Allocation?

  • An investment portfolio is built to balance risk versus reward by using different mixes of each asset class based on the investor's risk tolerance, goals and investment time frame. Harry Markowitz came up with this theory and is the Nobel Prize winning economist who devised the modern portfolio theory.

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    Who do you serve?

  • Clients can be characterized under one of three primary Stages of Life:


    I. Working Life (50+)

    • Executives/professionals
    • Business owners
    • Farming/ranching
    • Professional corp.


    II. Transitioning Life

    • Retirees
    • Severances
    • Divorcees/widows
    • Sale of business
    • Young families and newlyweds


    III. After Life

    • Estate planning
    • Succession planning
    • Charitable giving
    • Generational transfers


    *Illiquid assets will be taken into consideration determinant upon proposed disposition.