Derek Merkler, CFP®
Financial Planner
The Hour
- Ask a financial advisor anything about investing in one hour
- No commissions, products, or sales pitch
The Plan
- An 8 week program to achieve a strategic plan for your financial life
- Get an 8+ page financial plan
- $0 due now, pay after your 1st meeting
The Ongoing
- Ongoing support and accountability when you need it
- Quarterly video calls & unlimited emails
- Annual 2 page financial checkup
About Derek
Bio
Many paths can lead to the same destination. I tend to look for the ones that others overlook. By nature, I am somewhat contrarian. Markets, tax strategies, and financial planning trends often move in cycles, and following the crowd is not always the best way to reach long-term goals. I try to evaluate decisions based on fundamentals rather than fads. That mindset shows up in small ways in my own life as well. While many people seek the newest homes, vehicles, or cities, I live in an 1880s brick home, drive a 40-year-old European sedan, and prefer the quiet pace of farm life. You do not need to be unconventional to work with me, but if you value thoughtful analysis, independent thinking, and a planner who is willing to challenge assumptions, we will likely work well together. Contact me for specific pricing on the following: - Long-term Roth Conversion Recommendations - Detailed Current Year Tax Projections
I Can Help You With
I Enjoy Working With
Personal Stuff
Outside of financial planning, I spend much of my time helping my family in our racehorse breeding business. We are a tiny operation but definitely punch above our weight.
Education & Designations
Experience
Reviews
Clients say
Reviewers mention
- Retirement Planning
- Early Retirement And FIRE Planning
- Tax Strategy
- Investment Portfolio Analysis
- Asset Allocation
- Roth Conversions
- Retirement Accounts
- Cash Flow Planning
- Business Owner Planning
- Real Estate Decisions
- Estate Planning
- Insurance Planning
- Knowledgeable
- Thorough
- Patient
- Thoughtful
- Friendly
- Professional
- Clear
- Personable
- Approachable
- Empathetic
- Attentive
- Respectful
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Very helpful and thorough
I had a very helpful session with Derek. He thoroughly answered all my questions and I have a solid plan for moving forward. I especially appreciate the detailed meeting notes recapping our discussion. I will use Derek again and would recommend him to anyone.
Really helpful!
Answered all our questions and some! Thanks for spending so much time with us, Derek!
Sound advice. Excellent at explaining concepts ...
Sound advice. Excellent at explaining concepts and strategies.
Great advice and planning support as always
Great advice and planning support as always
Derek is very knowledgeable and responsive. He ...
Derek is very knowledgeable and responsive. He doesn't tell you what you should be doing but listens to your goals and helps align your finances to achieve those goals.
Excellent Resource
Derek had great advice that was specific to our financial situation. Very helpful in considering all options and strategies.
Great Discussion - Both Broad and Detailed Topics
My husband and I are winding down to an earlier retirement timeline than we had originally planned, and were focused on getting another set of eyes on the forecasts we had for the years ahead, and a subject matter expertise check for any blindspots that we, as non-retirement specialists, might have. Derek proved to be a great resource for a wide array of topics, and we had a dynamic conversation about the options ahead for us in both short and longer time time horizons. I had preloaded our net worth statement into the secure vault, and then shared a detailed multi-year Excel projection with Derek live on our call. He came to the call with a firm grasp of our numbers and questions, and was able to interact with the new document seamlessly in real time. I knew before our hour was up that Derek would be a great partner in this journey, and am already planning our next call!
Derek is intelligent and focused, and was thoro...
Derek is intelligent and focused, and was thorough in answering all our many questions regarding our stock portfolio. He did not waste a minute. We learned a lot in one hour. It was helpful the way he used his software to specifically review individual stocks by quickly pulling up PE ratios, pies and charts, yields, etc. We highly recommend Derek.
Derek did a great job of helping me with a vari...
Derek did a great job of helping me with a variety of questions related to business tax strategy, personal finances, and options for combining finances for marriage. Looking. Forward to scheduling our next call to dive deeper!
Derek was very informative and answered all my ...
Derek was very informative and answered all my questions with pros and cons. He also gave me and scenarios to consider for future years. He had great advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Hour: You'll fill out a short intake form so we can learn about you and your goals for our meeting! In your Nectarine account, you can also enter your personal financial information (net worth and budget details) as well as upload files to your Secure File Vault. We also recommend that you have any necessary account login information ready.
The Plan and The Ongoing: You'll get access to a financial planning portal where you can share your numbers, link your accounts, and upload the requested documents (we'll share a list).
The Hour: Yes, you will receive an email summary with important takeaways and resources so you'll know what to do next.
The Plan: Yes, you will receive a 8+ page roadmap on your full financial picture with detailed information on the next steps. Your advisor will be available to help you implement any items.