A composite story based on real client experiences

A Year withBrooklyn Fi

It's not just your money. It's the tender offer you didn't expect. The parent you lost. The house you're selling. The relationship that's getting serious. It's your whole life. And we're in it with you.

Months

Touchpoints

Team

Scroll to meet Nadia

Meet Nadia

38. Single mom.
Director of Product.
A lot on her plate.

Nadia is a Director of Product at a Series D startup in Brooklyn. She's been there since Series B. She has a six-year-old son, Luca, and a condo in Park Slope she bought when prices were lower.

Her equity package is significant: 40,000 ISOs at a $2.10 strike, with the company's 409A valuation now at $18. The company has been hinting at a tender offer. She doesn't know what that means for her.

Her dad passed away unexpectedly last fall. There's an inherited IRA, an upstate house, and a pile of paperwork she hasn't touched. She's been doing her own taxes on TurboTax. She has a 401(k) she hasn't looked at in two years.

A coworker told her: "You need to talk to these people before the tender offer."

Nadia's Financial Snapshot

Base salary$225,000

Equity40,000 ISOs

Strike price$2.10

Current 409A$18.00

Condo equity~$380K

401(k)~$210K

Savings~$95K

Inherited IRA~$270K

Tax prepTurboTax

Financial plannerNone

John Owens, CFP®

Managing Partner, Brooklyn Fi

"We're going to help you with this. You don't have to figure it out alone."

Winter
January
"Let's figure out where you actually stand."Nadia's Life
Nadia is still processing her dad's death from October. She has a pile of estate paperwork she hasn't opened. Luca just went back to school after the holidays. She's overwhelmed and trying to hold everything together.
What BKFi Does
This is Nadia's onboarding month. John runs a full financial inventory: income, equity grant details, the inherited IRA, the condo, the 401(k), the savings account, her dad's estate documents. The team uses Gemifi to start modeling her ISO position. John doesn't try to solve everything in the first meeting. He tells her: "We're going to build your plan over the next 60 days. Right now, I just need to understand the full picture." When they get to the estate paperwork, John is matter-of-fact and gentle. No pressure. Just: "We'll handle this part. You focus on Luca."

          Discovery callOnboarding callSecure document collectionGemifi equity model started
        
February
"Your dad's estate. One step at a time."Nadia's Life
Nadia's mom keeps calling about the estate. There's the inherited IRA, a small brokerage account, and the question of what to do with her parents' house upstate. Nadia doesn't know what she doesn't know.
What BKFi Does
John connects Nadia with an estate attorney in BKFi's referral network. BKFi coordinates directly with the attorney so Nadia doesn't have to be the middleman. The tax team flags the inherited IRA rules: since her dad passed after 2020, she's on a 10-year distribution clock. They model the optimal distribution schedule based on her income trajectory, because if the tender offer hits this year, her income will spike and the tax math changes completely.
"I thought I'd have to explain everything to another person from scratch. John just handled the handoff. The attorney already knew my situation before we even spoke."Nadia

          Planner call: estate focusEstate attorney introductionInherited IRA strategy memoCheck-in email from John
        
March
"Let's talk about that equity."Nadia's Life
The company sends an all-hands email. The tender offer is confirmed for Q2. Nadia's Slack DMs blow up. Everyone is asking everyone else what they're going to do. She has no idea how to think about this.
What BKFi Does
John and the tax team run the Gemifi model on Nadia's ISOs. The analysis covers: exercise-and-hold vs. exercise-and-sell in the tender, the AMT implications of exercising ISOs, the spread between her $2.10 strike and the tender price, and how much liquidity she needs vs. how much concentration risk she can stomach. They present three scenarios: sell 25%, sell 50%, sell 75%. Each shows after-tax proceeds, AMT credit recovery timeline, and how the cash reshapes her net worth. They don't tell her what to do. They show her what each choice means.

          Equity planning sessionGemifi scenario reportTax team on the callPlain-language follow-up email
        
Spring
April
"Your tax return is done. You barely noticed."Nadia's Life
Nadia is used to spending two weekends in April stress-Googling her way through TurboTax. Not this year. She's busy. Luca has soccer on Saturdays now. She doesn't have time for this and she doesn't want to make time for it.
What BKFi Does
The tax team has had her documents since January. They file her return. Tiffini, Nadia's tax manager, sends her a 5-minute video walkthrough of the return. No meeting required. The video flags things TurboTax would have missed: the proper handling of her dad's estate distributions, a state tax credit she didn't know existed, and the groundwork for AMT planning if she exercises ISOs before the tender. Nadia watches the video on her phone while Luca is at practice. Done.
"She sent me a five-minute video. I watched it at soccer practice. My taxes were filed and I understood what happened. Last year I spent 14 hours on TurboTax and still wasn't sure I did it right."Nadia

          Tax return filed5-min video walkthrough from TiffiniYear-ahead tax planning notes
        
May
"The tender offer is here. You're ready."Nadia's Life
The tender offer window opens. Thirty days to decide. Nadia's coworkers are panicking. She feels calm.
What BKFi Does
Based on the March analysis, Nadia and John already decided: exercise and sell 50% of her vested ISOs into the tender at the offered price. The tax team has pre-calculated the AMT impact. John has already modeled where the after-tax proceeds go: pay off the remaining condo mortgage, fund Luca's 529, and move a significant chunk into a diversified portfolio that BKFi will manage. Nadia signs the tender paperwork on a Tuesday evening after Luca goes to bed. She knows exactly what she's doing and why.
"My coworkers were texting each other at midnight trying to figure out the tax math. I'd already had the conversation two months ago. I just signed."Nadia

          Pre-tender confirmation callCoordination with tender platformTransaction confirmationNext-steps for proceeds
        
June
"You just changed your financial life."Nadia's Life
The tender settles. Nadia has more cash in her account than she's ever seen. It feels surreal and a little scary.
What BKFi Does
The investment team builds a portfolio for the tender proceeds, coordinated with her existing 401(k) allocation (which they cleaned up in Q1). The portfolio is tax-aware because they know her full tax picture. John updates her financial plan in RightCapital to reflect the new reality. For the first time, Nadia can see a projection showing her reaching financial independence. She screenshots it and sends it to her mom.

          Investment onboardingUpdated financial planMid-year planning callPortfolio construction memo
        
Summer
July
"About that condo..."Nadia's Life
Nadia has been thinking about selling the Park Slope condo and buying a house with a yard for Luca. With the tender proceeds and the mortgage paid off, it's actually possible now.
What BKFi Does
John runs the numbers. What can she afford? What are the capital gains implications of selling (appreciation, primary residence exclusion, timing)? How does a new mortgage change her cash flow? What about the upstate house from the estate? BKFi doesn't sell real estate, but they give Nadia the financial framework to make the decision with confidence. They also flag: selling before year-end has specific tax advantages given her income this year.

          Ad-hoc planner callCash flow analysisHousing scenario modelsTax timing memo
        
August
"Taking a breath."Nadia's Life
Nadia and Luca go to the beach for a week. For the first time in a long time, she's not worried about money.
What BKFi Does
Nothing urgent this month. But the investment team is doing tax-loss harvesting during a market dip. Nadia doesn't even know this is happening. That's the point.
"I got a notification from my portal while I was on vacation. Something about 'tax-loss harvesting.' I didn't fully understand it, but I knew someone was watching. That's a new feeling."Nadia

          Portfolio rebalancingTax-loss harvestingAutomated portal update
        
Fall
September
"Your mom's house, and yours."Nadia's Life
Nadia lists the Park Slope condo. She and her mom decide to sell the upstate house too. Luca starts first grade. Her boyfriend, Marcus, is basically living with them now.
What BKFi Does
The tax team coordinates the timing of both property sales for optimal tax treatment. The estate attorney (still in the loop from February) handles the title transfer on the upstate property. John checks in: "How's the move going? How's Luca handling the new school?" He also starts a conversation Nadia didn't expect: "Have you thought about what happens to your financial plan if Marcus moves in more permanently? We don't need to do anything right now. But it's worth thinking about."

          Tax coordination on dual salesEstate attorney follow-upPlanner check-in callRelationship planning intro
        
October
"Year-end planning. Already."Nadia's Life
The condo sale closes. Nadia moves into a house in Ditmas Park with a yard. Life is good. Life is also complicated.
What BKFi Does
Year-end tax planning begins. The tax team runs a projection: with the tender offer income, the condo capital gains, and her salary, this is a high-income year. They identify moves before December 31: maximize her 401(k) and backdoor Roth, time the remaining inherited IRA distributions, explore a charitable giving strategy using appreciated shares, and confirm estimated tax payments so she doesn't get hit with penalties.

          Year-end tax planning callTax projection memoAction items with deadlinesEstimated payment check
        
November
"Marcus joins the call."Nadia's Life
Marcus is moving in officially. They're talking about combining some finances. Marcus has his own situation: a 401(k) from a previous employer, RSUs at his current company, and student loans he's been paying down.
What BKFi Does
John sets up a joint introductory call. No pressure. Marcus isn't a client yet. But John walks them both through how the relationship works if they want to plan together. He's honest: "We can keep your plans separate, we can merge them, or we can do something in between. Let's figure out what makes sense for where you two are." Marcus asks a few questions about his RSUs. John answers them. He doesn't pitch. He helps.
"Marcus told me afterward: 'I've never had a financial conversation that felt like that. He was just... normal.' That's when I knew this was different."Nadia

          Joint intro callFollow-up to bothNo hard sell
        
December
"A year ago, you were doing this alone."Nadia's Life
Luca's first holiday in the new house. Nadia's mom comes to visit. Marcus is there. It's the first December that feels stable since her dad died.
What BKFi Does
The tax team confirms estimated payments are set. The financial plan is updated: new housing costs, tender proceeds invested and growing, inherited IRA strategy on track, Marcus's potential addition modeled. John sends a year-in-review email. It's one page. It lists every major decision, every coordination point, every problem solved. Nadia reads it and realizes she made more consequential financial decisions this year than in the previous decade of her life. And she didn't do it alone.

          Year-in-review emailUpdated plan snapshotYear 2 kickoff scheduled
        

That's what "comprehensive" means.

In one year, Nadia's BKFi team touched every part of her financial life. Here's the count.

10+

Scheduled calls with her planner

25+

Emails and check-ins

Tax return filed

Tender offer analyzed and executed

Estate coordinated with an attorney

Property sales tax-optimized

Investment portfolio built and managed

Financial plan updates

New relationship brought into planning

"A year ago I was Googling 'what is AMT' at midnight. Now I have a team that knows my name, my kid's name, and my tax bracket. That's the difference."

Your year starts with a conversation.

Book a free 20-minute discovery call. We'll listen to what's going on in your life and tell you honestly whether we can help.

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A Year withBrooklyn Fi

38. Single mom.Director of Product.A lot on her plate.

Nadia's Financial Snapshot

"Let's figure out where you actually stand."

"Your dad's estate. One step at a time."

"Let's talk about that equity."

"Your tax return is done. You barely noticed."

"The tender offer is here. You're ready."

"You just changed your financial life."

"About that condo..."

"Taking a breath."

"Your mom's house, and yours."

"Year-end planning. Already."

"Marcus joins the call."

"A year ago, you were doing this alone."

That's what "comprehensive" means.

Your year starts with a conversation.

38. Single mom.
Director of Product.
A lot on her plate.