Financial Design Studio, Inc.

Financial Design Studio, Inc. We focus on helping professionals with their retirement planning through comprehensive tax planning.

We are a team of fee-only, fiduciary, financial advisors who specialize in retirement planning for professionals who want tax planning for their equity compensation. When mistakes happen with complex income (whether that is RSUs, stock options, deferred compensation, pensions, or some form of an inheritance), your already high taxes can skyrocket. This is the last thing any high-earning profession

al wants to discover in retirement. And that’s where we step in and bring confidence to your financial plan. Each member of our team has an expertise: tax planning, investment management, estate planning, and insurance. This allows us to implement your entire plan, in house, with accuracy. Our team of advisors are certified, experienced, fiduciary, and fee-only; we are based in Deer Park, a Northwest Suburb of Chicago, but serve clients nationwide. Reach out to schedule a free consultation to see if we are a good fit to bring confidence to your retirement plan!

09/02/2026

What happens to your money after you die? We’ve been a part of a lot of inheritances and there are generally two routes we’ve seen . . .

Do your beneficiaries a favor, get an estate plan!

🎙️ EP 77. What does it take to make an impact on your beneficiaries? Your clarity of communication (in advance) and pers...
08/26/2026

🎙️ EP 77. What does it take to make an impact on your beneficiaries?

Your clarity of communication (in advance) and personal touches (left after your passing) go a long way to support beneficiaries in the midst of their grief.

But you can do more.

In this episode, Michelle and Trevore discuss the mindset shift of estate planning. You are no longer accumulating. You are no longer spending. Now you are giving!

So how can you give your assets in a way that makes a real difference in their lives?

🎧️ Take a listen: https://financialdesignstudio.com/podcast-episode-77-what-it-takes-to-make-an-impact-on-your-beneficiaries/

08/24/2026

Investors . . . here's what's up with the Federal reserve and interest rates!

This short is an excerpt from our August investment update, recorded exclusively for clients.

🎉 We're celebrating 5 years of Anna Lewis being at FDS! 🎉 She's been at FDS almost 1/2 of the time that FDS has been in ...
08/20/2026

🎉 We're celebrating 5 years of Anna Lewis being at FDS! 🎉 She's been at FDS almost 1/2 of the time that FDS has been in business! 👏 We are so grateful and thankful for Anna and her creative ideas to keep our team moving forward! 🎶 She is always keeping us up with current marketing trends. Her strategies help us reach new clients and existing clients the best we can! THANK YOU Anna! 🎈

08/17/2026

If you have Restricted Stock Units . . . watch out for the Wash Sale Rule!

If you have Restricted Stock Units, retirement planning can get complicated. Because, if you have RSUs, you likely have ...
08/12/2026

If you have Restricted Stock Units, retirement planning can get complicated. Because, if you have RSUs, you likely have other types of stock compensation. Which means you probably have black out dates too.

Planning with stock options might seem straightforward at first glance. But when layered on top of each other, it can be hard to see how deep the complexity goes.

In the case of RSUs, they usually create very concentrated portfolios.

The unvested shares just seem to accumulate in the background. And once they vest, suddenly your whole retirement plan is based on the performance of just one company. So the obvious next step is to sell and diversify!

But business leaders with RSUs need to CAREFULLY diversify from their employer stock.

You want to be very deliberate so that don’t trigger the Wash Sale Rule. The Wash Sale Rule is an IRS regulation, saying if you sell at a loss, you can’t buy back that stock 30 days before or after, in order to receive the tax deduction.

This rule helps prevent people from gaming the market, but for business leaders who are compensated with stock, this can get tricky.

While diversifying, you might sell off a portion of your stock at a loss, but buy it right back while participating in an employer stock purchase program, which will disallow your tax deduction.

Your simple task of “diversify RSUs,” can create expensive mistakes.

And mistakes are the last thing you want to see before retirement.

Retirement planning is tricky because change is inevitable. Your retirement plan needs to be flexible enough to adapt. W...
08/05/2026

Retirement planning is tricky because change is inevitable. Your retirement plan needs to be flexible enough to adapt. We have a three step process that we walk clients through to make this possible.

The first phase is organization.

It doesn’t matter if this is our very first plan or an annual review. We do this every time. This is part of what ensures the plan adapts as the details of your life change.

Our organization takes the form of a financial blueprint, a sample is pictured.

This blueprint is a comprehensive snapshot of your financial life at a given moment. Within most families, one person usually handles the day-to-day details, while the other is aware of the big-picture, like investments or insurance.

The blueprint brings everything together so anyone can understand the full structure of your finances.

It helps both you and your spouse stay on the same page.
It provides visibility on forgotten accounts or policies.
It's way to communicate important information in context to lawyers or beneficiaries.

But more importantly, it allows you to see new connections. And this leads to our second phase: strategy.

Read more about our retirement planning process on our process page!

08/03/2026

Lots of retirees have a large amount of assets . . . that they won't spend. We always challenge them to consider the impact they could actually be able to witness and enjoy!

🎙️EP 76. Your estate plan isn’t for you. It’s for your beneficiaries. After you die, your estate plan’s job is to clearl...
07/29/2026

🎙️EP 76. Your estate plan isn’t for you. It’s for your beneficiaries.

After you die, your estate plan’s job is to clearly outline what passes to who, so that your affairs are easily handled. Too often, we have seen complicated documents that take months or even years to sort out.

Think about the impact this has on your grieving beneficiaries!

While you want your wishes to be carried out, you do your beneficiaries a service by considering them in the process. That’s why in this episode, Michelle and Trevore discuss the mistakes we see in estate planning that complicate the inheritance process.

🎧️ Take a listen to this episode: https://financialdesignstudio.com/podcast-episode-76-estate-planning-mistakes-that-complicate-the-inheritance-process/

07/23/2026

🧠 You Can't Get to Retirement with the S&P 500 Alone! Here are the numbers behind diversified investing...

Address

21660 W. Field Parkway
Deer Park, IL
60010

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

(847) 238-8050

Website

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