Robert Phifer

Work history In December of 2007 Rich created IAM Financial to serve clients seeking objective, affordable, independent advice. Prior to this, Mr. Feight was an investment advisor representative of Creative Financial Design, where he was responsible for the selection of securities used in, and management of, asset allocation portfolios for numerous client accounts. His career began as a registered representative of Vestax Securities Corp. where he was a fee-based advisor. Rich was also licensed in the state of Michigan with Jackson National Life to advise and sell life insurance. Education Rich is a graduate of Michigan State University where he received a degree in Finance. Rich earned the Certificate of Financial Planning from The College for Financial Planning in Denver, Colorado that was comprised of intense graduate-level classes grounding him in the various foundations of financial planning. He is a CFP® (Certified Financial Planner®) since 2001, meeting the experience, education requirements and passing the two-day, 10-hour exam, making him one of the few in the country who hold the designation. Rich became an Enrolled Agent (EA) with the Internal Revenue Service in January 2011. An EA is a federally-authorized tax practitioner with technical expertise in the field of taxation. EAs are empowered by the Department of Treasury to represent taxpayers before all administrative levels of the Internal Revenue Service for audits, collections, and appeals. Only Enrolled Agents, attorneys, and CPAs may represent taxpayers before the IRS. Since 2004, Rich has subscribed to the stringent and mandatory annual educational hours, experience, and code of ethics to meet the requirements to be a NAPFA Registered Financial Advisor. Out of the 800,000 individuals in the country who claim they are financial advisors/planners, fewer than 5,000 in the country qualify for the membership; Rich is one of them. Rich is also a member of the National Association of Tax Professionals, Tax Professionals.com and the Greater Lansing Estate Planning Counsel. Volunteering Rich served on the National Board of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors as membership director. He served on the Small Business Association of Michigan's Strategic Communications Committee and is a past President and Chairman of the Board of the Financial Planning Association (FPA) of Michigan, one of the largest and most influential of the FPA chapters in the country. Rich is also a past President for Transportation Toastmasters Club 4776 downtown Lansing where he enjoyed enhancing his speaking skills.

How much can we safely spend? When should we take Social Security? How do we minimize taxes on everything we've saved? If questions like these keep you up at night, you're not alone. You've spent decades building wealth—now you need a plan to turn it into income that lasts. I specialize in tax-smart retirement income planning for families in-or-near retirement: Roth conversions, Social Security timing, pension decisions, and investing built for distribution—because retirement requires a different playbook than accumulation. How would we work together? It starts with a free Retirement Clarity Call where we dig into your situation and confirm we're a good fit. From there, we'll schedule a Blueprint Meeting where I'll walk you through your key challenges, opportunities, and a recommended strategy tailored to your retirement goals. You'll walk away with real clarity on how to lower your taxes, optimize your income, and retire with confidence—whether we end up working together or not. Tell me about your flat-fee membership model? Most advisors charge 1% of your assets—on a $2M portfolio, that's $20,000/year. I charge a flat $400/month for comprehensive planning, plus an optional 0.49% if you'd like us to manage investments. We start with planning first, and there is no requirement to move your assets to begin working together. No pressure. No hard sell. We're looking for long-term relationships, not transactions. If we're not the right fit, I'll gladly point you toward someone who is.