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Our Mission

Our mission is to help provide the families and businesses we serve with innovative financial strategies and planning that result in financial clarity, security and overall financial health. Making strong commitments to our clients and building life-long relationships are tenets of success at Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC.

Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC offers comprehensive financial planning ranging from retirement planning, wealth management, income planning, estate planning, and tax planning. Our goal is to educate our clients so that they learn to understand their financial plans by using tools such as seminars, workshops, media, and financial planning software. Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC works together with the client to understand their investment philosophy, goals, and expectations to implement an appropriate plan tailored to their individual or family’s needs. Our financial plans are designed to be simple, understandable, and flexible. In offering workshops for women exclusively, we create a comfortable environment that invites discussion of concerns and challenges that women face when planning for retirement and/or managing their wealth. This environment fosters a safe space for women to voice their questions and concerns so that we can work together to help build a financial plan that is suited for their needs.

The need for financial planning extends to anyone looking to eventually retire, gain knowledge of their income versus expenses, fund college options, plan a legacy, or manage their wealth. Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC caters to seniors looking to preserve their nest eggs, millennials looking to utilize online tools for budget planning, and those needing help with investing or wealth management. Having an expert that is knowledgeable in all of these areas is invaluable to those seeking education about the retirement plans they have through work; how much they can realistically save to retire at a certain age with the income they need; and which assets’ performance will match their investment philosophy and objectives. Tying these areas together allows Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC to implement its holistic philosophy. Our approach is to help ensure retirees and those nearing retirement have the income they can’t outlive; help plan legacies for their children and grandchildren that are built on their values and beliefs; utilize strategies with the goal to maximize Social Security income; and help them implement today’s technology as one of their financial resources. Our expertise with millennials addresses the retirement planning issues the generation faces with higher costs of living and lower earning potential. Devising plans to maximize 401K contributions as well as insight on Roth IRA funding, money saving tips, and everyday budgeting will empower them to combine online technology with fundamental financial philosophies.

Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC provides investors custom-tailored investment strategies to meet short- and long-term needs. Our goal at Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC is to help our clients realize their financial dreams by offering creative solutions through an open and transparent process utilizing both financial and insurance* solutions to achieve financial independence. As a fiduciary, Christina Walasik is legally obligated to put our clients’ interests first. We empower you to navigate today’s complex financial world and customize a plan to fit your individual and family needs.

*Insurance products and services offered through Christina Walasik, independent agent.

What We Do

Seminars

We hold educational workshops on topics such as Social Security Maximization, Legacy Planning and more.

Retirement Planning

Our firm takes pride in providing comprehensive retirement planning services to our clients.

Wealth Management

We’ll work with you to help protect, preserve and enhance your wealth.

Generational Vault

Our clients have access to a proprietary system that helps keep your financial information safe and secure.

Are You Retirement Educated?

Learn more about your retirement options

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Our Services


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Retirement Planning

Our firm takes pride in providing comprehensive retirement planning services to our clients. We review our clients’ wills, estate plans/trusts, taxes and insurance. Our comprehensive services integrate all aspects of our clients’ financial picture in a coordinated effort to provide for financial clarity and multi-generational wealth.

We offer:

  • Beneficiary Review
  • Retirement Planning
  • Financial Needs Analysis
  • Analysis of Present and Future Expenses
  • Estate Preservation
  • Income Planning

Just imagine a complete portfolio, where all your financial, estate and tax preparation needs are addressed in a customized binder. This is your comprehensive retirement plan. Our coordinated approach helps ensure that your plan is developed using an all-inclusive view. We have found that many financial services professionals focus on products; our experience shows that our clients’ needs are best met by focusing on processes and most importantly, people.

Pickwith Wealth Management, LLC, Christina Walasik and Gradient Advisors, LLC do not provide tax and/or legal advice, but will work with your attorney or independent tax or legal advisor. In the event that you do not have your own attorney or tax professional we will partner with local CPA firms to provide tax services.


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Financial Planning

Christina Walasik is an investment advisor representative of Gradient Advisors, LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor serving customers in Glenview, IL and surrounding communities. My mission is to provide local families and businesses with innovative financial strategies and planning.

We offer our prospective clients an initial complimentary risk assessment where we provide third-party analysis of their current investments, personalized income projections and ideas for immediate implementation. We look forward to our initial visit and finding out how we can help you get one step closer to your financial goals.

As an investment advisor representative I strive to:

  • Put your interests first
  • Understand your specific financial situation
  • Offer straightforward advice that reflects your long-term goals

As an investment advisor representative, I provide advice about securities to clients for a fee. Investment advisor representatives receive compensation for providing advice regarding various investment products. Investment advisor representatives are fiduciaries with an affirmative duty of ‘utmost good faith’ and full and fair disclosure of all material fact, as well as an affirmative obligation to employ reasonable care to avoid misleading clients.


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Investment Management

At Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC, we believe no two investors are alike. In order to help each client pursue their financial goals, we use a personalized approach to investing. Our advice and recommendations are tailored to our clients’ investment goals, desired return objectives, risk tolerance, time horizon and income needs.

Strategic Alliances

Christina Walasik offers professional money management through various third-party money managers. One of her strategic alliances is with Gradient Investments, LLC (GI). GI is an SEC registered investment advisor firm offering clients over 20 proprietary portfolios. The portfolios are managed by their Chief Investment Officer, Wayne Schmidt CFA, MBA and Senior Portfolio Manager, Michael Binger, CFA.

Schmidt and Binger are regular contributors to CNBC, Fox Business, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal and have many other national publications. Schmidt has been quoted on the subject of the global economy in numerous nationally and internationally recognized investment publications such as Bloomberg, Reuters and The Los Angeles Times. He is a Chartered Financial AnalystTM* and a member of The Chartered Financial Analyst Institute and the Twin Cities Society of Security Analysts.

Schmidt and Binger each boast over 20 years of institutional investment experience. During his tenure at AXA Investment Managers, Schmidt served as senior portfolio manager for the U.S. Investment Grade Fixed Income Team. As the lead portfolio manager, he managed $9.5 billion of fixed income assets with a variety of mandates ranging from aggregate, corporate and government bond portfolios. Binger spent more than 20 years at Thrivent Financial where he managed numerous equity funds through various economic cycles.

Content provided by Gradient Investments, LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor.


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Wealth Management

As you near retirement, you may find that your attitude about risk begins to change. Protecting and preserving your wealth against market downturns should be an important part of your comprehensive retirement plan, because a significant reduction to your portfolio could potentially derail your retirement plans.

At Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC, we’ll examine issues such as:

  1. How tolerant are you of market volatility and losses in retirement?
  2. What current risks are you taking with your financial assets?
  3. Are your current holdings and strategies consistent with your risk tolerance?
  4. Are your assets well positioned to survive significant market corrections?
  5. How effective are your current retirement savings strategies?
  6. How much of your wealth should be protected from market corrections?

During our discussions, we encourage clients to carefully evaluate their risk tolerance and to develop an overall financial strategy that balances potential safety and growth. From our discussions and examinations, we’ll work with you to utilize retirement products and strategies designed to help protect, preserve and enhance your wealth.


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Social Security Maximization

5 Important Social Security Questions You Should Know

For many retirees, their Social Security benefit forms the foundation of their retirement income plan. In order help to make sure you get the most out of your benefit, you should have a solid grasp on this complex matter.

We have put together an informative brochure that helps answer the following questions:

  • What is your Social Security amount?
  • When is the best time to start taking your Social Security benefit?
  • Are there different options if you are married?
  • Does earning additional income while you are on Social Security impact the value of your benefit?
  • Do you pay tax on your Social Security benefit?

Please contact us to receive your brochure!

Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC, Christina Walasik and Gradient Advisors, LLC are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Social Security Administration or any government agency. This content is for informational purposes only and should not be used to make any financial decisions.


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Life Insurance

Do you have a financial safeguard set up to protect your loved ones after you pass away? With a well-thought-out life insurance plan, you can do just that.

The purpose of life insurance is to help provide a measure of financial well-being for your family and loved ones when you are no longer there. With the purchase of a well-planned life insurance policy, you can help ensure that your family and loved ones will be taken care of.

Life insurance may provide you with an array of benefits such as providing for funeral costs and final medical bills, along with helping with life expenses for your dependents and/or survivors. BUT, what really sets it apart from other financial options is that it receives advantageous tax treatment unlike any other financial tool. Benefits include:

  • Death benefits to the beneficiary are usually income-tax-free.
  • If properly owned, death benefits may be estate tax free.
  • Policy loans are usually income tax free.
  • Cash values can grow tax deferred during the owner’s lifetime.

Insurance products and services are offered through Christina Walasik, independent agent.


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Empowering Women

Women in retirement may face unique challenges. While every woman’s situation in retirement is different, there are a few factors that tend to make retirement planning different for women than it is for men.

The first factor to consider is that women tend to live longer than men. Women typically outlive men by five to six years1. For women this means more time in retirement, which requires more planning to create necessary income. In addition, according to a study done by Forbes, women have to factor in having higher health care costs as they spend more of their time in retirement dealing with disabilities. This same study shows that, at 65 years old, women are expected to spend 3 years living with mild or moderate disability and 2.8 more years living severely disabled2.

Two additional factors to consider stem from women’s attitude toward finances. Women may be more risk averse and are typically comfortable with alternatives that carry less risk. They tend to invest in lower-risk, lower-return options3. Also, according to the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies, on average women tend to feel less confident about making financial decisions. This study shows that only 12 percent of women are “very confident” in their ability to fully retire with a comfortable lifestyle4.

Regardless of age, lifestyle or marital status, I feel it is beneficial for women to know what important steps they should take regarding their finances.

Retirement is a unique experience for women, and there are different concerns and considerations that need to be addressed because of this. At Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC, we can help create a retirement plan that fits women’s particular needs, goals and objectives and empowers them to take control of their financial life.

1http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-women-live-longer-than-men1/

2http://www.forbes.com/sites/pensionresearchcouncil/2015/04/08/retirement-planning-key-but-under-recognized-concerns-for-women/#23f297e8322c

3http://www.cnbc.com/2015/03/04/women-lagging-in-retirement-saving-survey.html

4http://www.transamericacenter.org/docs/default-source/women-and-retirement/tcrs2016_sr_womens_retirement_outlook.pdf


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Legacy Planning

Frank Greenfield

Estate Attorney / Strategic Alliance

Illinois law mandates who will get your assets if you die without a will. Without proper planning, a court will decide who gets your assets and in what proportion. We spend our whole life building a “nest egg” and striving to protect our assets from devastating losses, but then we ignore the absolute necessity of having an estate plan that suits our specific wishes. A properly crafted estate plan goes hand-in-hand with a well-conceived financial plan. Both plans can be best served with the help of your financial planner and an attorney.

The basic components of an estate plan are a will, a durable power of attorney, and a health care directive. In addition, regardless of the size of your estate, circumstances often dictate establishing a living trust. A living trust serves a multitude of purposes, including the management of a bequest to a child or grandchild, insuring that your assets stay in your bloodline, and eliminating the cost and public exposure of a lengthy probate court proceeding. If you have an estate plan but do not really understand what it says or why it takes so many pages to say it, you owe it to yourself to talk to an attorney who speaks in terms you understand. No one should ever sign a legal document they don’t understand, period.

We encourage all of our clients to have an estate plan as a key component of their overall financial plan. Frank is an extremely knowledgeable attorney with over 40 years of experience, who will explain complex legal documents in a respectful and understandable manner. As a courtesy to our clients, we will arrange a meeting for you with Frank.  Contact us to make an appointment or call Frank directly at 312-372-6543.  Mention our name and there will be no fee for your initial consultation.

Generational Vault

Keeping Your Financial Information
Safe and Secure

A virtual “safety deposit box” for our clients to upload important documents and view financial information. It comprises three dynamic components, including a secure portal to send and store confidential financial documents, daily investment and banking values, as well as snapshots of financial assets and expenses to view. All data is secured with an SSL Certificate, one of the strongest encryption key available, and adheres to compliance and regulatory requirements.

Vault Login

Our Company

Christina Walasik, CFP®

The president of the company, Christina Walasik, has over a decade of experience in the financial services industry. Before starting Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC, she was VP of a successful financial services firm in Skokie, IL for 13 years. Christina’s degree in Finance from DePaul University complements her extensive background that encompasses retirement planning, wealth management, legacy planning, review of social security benefits and tax planning. Christina prides herself on the relationships she’s built with her clients over the years and understands the importance of creating a financial plan that best suits a family’s needs. Christina obtained her CFP® certification through Northwestern University.
Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board) owns the certification marks CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, and CFP® (with plaque design) in the United States, which it authorizes use of by individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements.

Andrew Caverley

Andrew Caverley joins Christina as the Director of Operations of Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC. Andrew completed his degree at Michigan State University (he’s a HUGE Spartan fan) in Human Resources with a specialization in Business and cognate in Political Science. He has extensive experience in financial services and in general management practices. Andrew and Christina have known each other professionally for years, and their complimentary skill sets maximize your experience with our firm.

*Andrew Caverley is not an Investment Advisor Representative and is not affiliated with Gradient Advisors, LLC.

Upcoming Seminars

There are no upcoming events at this time.
Please check back again soon.

 

Women’s Retirement Roadmap Webinar

 

Market Volatility

Strategic Alliances

Micheal Binger, CFA®

President of Gradient Investments, LLC

Mr. Binger is the President of Gradient Investments. He has been with Gradient Investments since 2012 and has more than 30 years of total investment management experience. Mr. Binger’s prior roles include managing multi-billion dollar investment products for a large institutional asset manager. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota and is a CFA® charterholder. We believe that he brings a depth of market experience that is rare within the industry and has been a featured contributor with several media outlets including CNBC, Fox Business, Barron’s, and The Wall Street Journal.

Jeremy Bryan, CFA®

Senior Portfolio Manager of Gradient Investments, LLC

Mr. Bryan is a Senior Portfolio Manager for Gradient Investments. He has been with Gradient Investments since 2016 and has over 15 years of total investment management experience. Mr. Bryan’s job history includes equity research and portfolio management roles for institutional asset managers in Minneapolis and New York. He has been a frequent contributor to media outlets including CNBC, Fox Business, Reuters, and The Wall Street Journal. Mr. Bryan graduated with a bachelor’s degree from St. Cloud State University, earned an MBA from the University of St. Thomas, and is a CFA® charterholder.

Mariann Montagne, CFA®

Portfolio Manager of Gradient Investments, LLC


Ms. Montagne is a Portfolio Manager for Gradient Investments. She has been with Gradient Investments since 2014 and has more than 25 years of total investment management experience. Ms. Montagne’s prior roles include equity analysis for institutional fund managers as well as a senior investment analyst position for a $500M registered investment advisor. She is a frequent contributor to media outlets, including CNBC, Fox Business, Bloomberg, and Barron’s. Ms. Montagne graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Detroit and is a CFA® charterholder.

*Third-Party Money Management is offered through our Strategic Alliances with Gradient Investments, LLC

This endorsement of Gradient Investments, LLC is provided by an investment advisor who refers clients to Gradient Investments, LLC. A conflict of interest exists because this investment advisor receives a portion of the annual management fee charged by Gradient Investments, LLC, based on the assets under management of this investment advisor’s clients. This endorsement could assist in the investment advisor increasing the assets placed with Gradient Investments, LLC, and therefore their compensation. These investment advisors are not affiliated with or supervised by Gradient Investments, LLC.

Our Location

Pickwick Wealth Management, LLC
1701 E Lake Ave.
Suite 235
Glenview, IL 60025

O: 847-730-5597

E: Christina@pickwickwealth.com