Newsletter
“If you have no idea how much is enough, you’ll never be satisfied with what you have.”
-Ben Carlson
I met with an employee of a publicly traded tech company earlier this year.
Over the past few years, the value of their company stock soared, and at the beginning of this year it was worth over $6 million.
But their company stock has been crushed this year and they never sold.
The value of those shares today is less than $1 million.
Today’s newsletter is something my dad wrote over 10 years ago.
It’s a topic I’ve thought a lot about recently, both in my life and in the families I work with - how as we earn more, we spend more.
In financial planning, we call this lifestyle creep.
While my dad is in commercial real estate, a lot of the same lessons apply to people in tech.
I’ll let my dad take it from here.
Welcome to the 16th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) newsletter.
I wrote last week about my two favorite ways for tech employees to get free money.
One of them is your company ESPP, and this week is a great case study of how ESPP’s can work in your favor.
Procore employee’s just got a whopping 44.1% return on their most recent ESPP purchase
Let’s dive in
Welcome to the 15th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) newsletter.
In this week’s issue, I want to share my 2 favorite ways for tech professionals to get “free” money from their company.
No, this isn’t anything crazy, sketchy, or illegal.
In this newsletter, we’ll break down 401k matching and ESPP programs, and why these can be two of the biggest no-brainers for tech professionals.
Welcome to the 14th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) newsletter.
When you have a lot of company stock, you also usually have significant gains.
Which means if you sell, you will likely pay a lot in capital gains.
But done correctly, you can “hack” your way to diversification and little to no taxes.
In this newsletter, we will break down why you might consider selling more company stock by the end of the year and how to not get killed on taxes.
Welcome to the 13th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) Newsletter.
If you joined Procore in ~2016, received 100k stock options, and exercised them all, you would take home $3.77M after taxes if you sold everything today.
But if you waited until Procore was public to exercise and sell (for argument’s sake, let's also say today) you’d take home $2.87M – a difference of $896,680.
Let’s break it down.
In this newsletter we will break down why you might consider exercising your options before an exit, the potential tax savings, and the risks
Welcome to the 11th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) Newsletter.
Unsurprisingly, one of the top questions I’ve been asked this year is “should we make changes to the plan?”
With most investors getting hammered, people want to know what they should do.
In this newsletter, we will break down when you should make changes to your plan and when you shouldn't.
Welcome to the 11th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) Newsletter.
At this point, everyone is pretty aware that interest rates have gone up a ton this year.
There’s certainly been some downsides, like mortgage rates skyrocketing.
But one positive is that there is finally a chance to earn some money on your cash.
In this newsletter we will break down 3 opportunities for your cash, so you can make more money.
Welcome to the 10th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) Newsletter.
Back in August, I had a 1:1 call with a new client who reached out because she just got a new job with a big increase in total compensation.
Emily (not her real name), is a product marketer at a large tech company and is set to earn just over $400,000 this year.
In this newsletter we will break down the 3 challenges Emily was facing and how we solved them together.
Welcome to the 9th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) Newsletter
So you have a big chunk of money in your company stock.
Through hard work, good fortune, and some solid equity awards, you’ve built up a nice nest egg.
You’ve done well for yourself, so why should you sell (hint - the Titanic was supposed to be unsinkable)?
In this newsletter we will go over the real risk of concentrated positions, how to think about holding one, and some thoughts on selling.
Welcome to the 8th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) Newsletter.
It goes without saying, this hasn’t been a great year for the stock market.
Interest rates are up, investors are scared, and no one is really sure what the next few months hold.
Have we hit the bottom? Are we in a recession? What should we be doing?
In this newsletter we’ll cover why down markets are some of the best times to invest, some tangible steps you can take, and what not to do.
Welcome to the 7th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) Newsletter.
What are you working for?
And what are you saving & investing for?
These aren’t trick questions.
In this newsletter we will take a detour from our normal planning topics and focus on some ways of thinking about goals and dreams.
Welcome to the 6th edition of the Tech Financial Planning (TFP) Newsletter.
I was talking with someone on Linkedin and they were asking about getting RSUs at a private company.
How the heck does that work exactly?
Hello double-trigger RSUs
In this newsletter we will go over what double-trigger RSUs are, how they differ from “traditional” RSUs, and some important considerations.
So you just had some RSUs vest.
Should you sell and diversify or hold onto the stock (diamond hands - to the moon!)?
Enter the great financial planning mantra of “It depends.”
In this article we will go over some important considerations for your RSUs, some reasons you might diversify, and some reasons you might hold.
I had the chance to interview a friend who’s been in the tech industry for almost 10 years. He started with a couple smaller companies and then got hired by Uber, where he was with them through their IPO. From there, he joined a startup which ultimately didn’t work out, and now is at Netflix.
We chatted through his experience navigating the equity compensation world, particularly RSUs, and the learning lessons he gained along the way. As you will see, it can build great wealth, but it doesn't come with instructions.
Here are 7 of his top lessons from his time in tech so far.
Before I became a financial advisor and helped start Coastal Capital Advisors, I actually worked at Procore for 4 years (employee #450!). I saw the company go from a single product, primarily Carp-only company to the juggernaut it is today.
Through my own experience and working with many current and former Procorians, we have a wealth of experience in working with clients at Procore. We’ve helped Procore employees make decisions around their Procore equity, maximize their 401k, and optimize their cash flow. And we've designed financial plans that are tailor made for Procore employees to achieve their dreams.
Think of us as a guide. Or sherpa. That’s more fun.
A big part of our job is helping you understand the wide-ranging benefits Procore offers. More importantly, how each benefit connects to the rest of your financial life.
We recognize each of our clients (an you) has their own priorities and agenda. For some, that may be owning real estate. For others, that may be retiring in Costa Rica in 10 years.
Based on your dreams, we want to make sure you make the most of your benefits so you can get there.
This isn’t going to cover every in and out of your Procore equity, every strategy, etc. That would be a full length novel, and it still wouldn’t cover everything.
This is intended to be an overview. A starting point if you will. A guide to many of the different benefits Procore offers.
But also to illustrate how we’ve helped clients navigate through the many benefits Procore offers.
My goal is that this helps you avoid some common pitfalls, sparks a few questions, and gives you more insight and clarity.
If you are the DIY type, I hope this inspires you to do some more research and guides more productive planning.
If this all seems overwhelming and you feel like you need some help, I’d love to chat!
We will break this out into 3 sections
Making sense of your Procore Equity
Understanding your 401(k) plan at Procore
Maximizing other benefits
Let’s get started!
