Matthew Gagnon (CFA, CFP®)

Planning Specialties

Experienced professional working with investments since 2009. I hold both the CFA charter and CFP® certification. The CFA work lets me build and stress-test an investment strategy with rigor. The CFP® work keeps the plan tied to your whole life, not just your portfolio. Most people I meet have done the hard part. They saved for decades and stayed disciplined. What they lack is a clear answer to one question: does it actually work, and how would I know? My job is to answer that in plain language. For clients near retirement, I focus on retirement income. That means sequence-of-returns risk, withdrawal strategy, Social Security timing, Roth conversion planning, and the tax rules that govern distributions. I also work with long-tenured employees at large Dallas-area employers who have built up concentrated company stock inside their retirement plans. That work covers net unrealized appreciation, diversification timing, and the tax traps around rollovers and distribution events. For high earners still in their accumulation years, I build tax-aware investment strategies that account for equity compensation and a long runway. My process is deliberate. We start with a short conversation to confirm fit, then a longer discovery meeting. Every engagement is anchored by a written Investment Policy that accompanies the financial plan.