Investment management for doctors: a simpler plan with Assante Wealth Management

What does investment management for doctors cover for someone like me?

For a physician a few years out of training, investment management brings three decisions together and writes them down: how much stays in cash, which two or three funds belong in each account, and which choices cannot easily be undone. It starts when a second account or a 457(b) appears, not when the balance looks impressive.

Cash should cover the disability waiting period plus one month of spending. Fund choices then span the 403(b), non-governmental 457(b) and any brokerage account. Refinancing federal loans, choosing a 457(b) payout election and leaving an old beneficiary form untouched deserve separate labels because each can create a lasting consequence.

Assante Wealth Management keeps the structure visible. Omar's plan names his accounts, gives each fund one job and states his $34,000 cash figure on a single written page, short enough to walk his mother through after a long hospital shift.

How does Assante Wealth Management build the plan before money moves?

Assante Wealth Management begins with five practical steps. The sequence protects cash and postpones decisions that cannot be repaired easily. 1. Inventory. You send statements for every account, the 457(b) payout election form, the servicer's PSLF payment count and every beneficiary form. Assante Wealth Management lists every account and fund on one sheet. Omar's inventory fits on five lines.

2. Cash first. We set a reserve equal to the disability waiting period plus one month of spending. It stays in a savings account, and taxable investing waits until that amount is full.

3. Reversible or permanent. Fund changes inside a 403(b) can usually be reversed without tax. Refinancing federal loans, a 457(b) payout election and realized gains in a taxable account wait until the cash reserve and loan path are settled.

4. Few funds, with a tax estimate. The portfolio uses two or three broad index funds. Before Assante Wealth Management suggests selling in a taxable account, we write down the estimated tax in dollars. If that tax exceeds the yearly saving, the switch waits.

5. One-page plan. We review it after a job change, a health event, a new tax law, or when the 457(b) balance passes one year of take-home pay.

• Send every account statement
• Include the 457(b) election
• Share the PSLF payment count
• List every beneficiary form
• Receive one account inventory
• Build the cash reserve
• Label reversible decisions
• Label permanent decisions
• Use two or three funds
• Review the one-page plan

Which option protects Omar's check to his mother?

The first row to find is “Cash covers under four months.” If your reserve misses the disability waiting period plus one month of spending, build cash before taxable investing. That choice may leave less invested today, but it keeps an illness from forcing a sale during a market drop.

Hypothetical: Omar is 36, a single hospitalist two years out of residency. He earns $280,000, has $310,000 in federal student loans and has saved $90,000. He has a 403(b), a non-governmental 457(b), and sends his mother $1,500 each month. His mother is also the beneficiary on his 403(b).

Omar spends about $7,000 each month and sends his mother $1,500, so his monthly need is $8,500. His disability policy has a 90-day waiting period, and the first check takes about another month. Four months without pay means 4 × $8,500 = $34,000.

Of the $90,000 saved, $56,000 is in the 403(b) and $34,000 is in savings. Suppose he invests that $34,000 and a 30 percent drop hits the same year he falls ill. The account becomes $34,000 × 70 percent = $23,800. The gap is $34,000 − $23,800 = $10,200.

That shortfall equals $10,200 ÷ $1,500 = 6.8 months of his mother's support, almost seven months. A hardship distribution from the 403(b) could add a 10 percent additional tax before income tax, or $10,200 × 10 percent = $1,020, and only if the plan allows it. A plan loan may not be available either.

His mother is the heir as well as the dependent. Because she is older than Omar, a named beneficiary in her position could generally take an inherited 403(b) over her own life expectancy, but only if the form actually names her. An unnamed beneficiary can create a much worse result: the account may go to the estate, pass through probate and generally need to be emptied within five years when death occurs before required minimum distributions begin.

Markets can fall, and money you invest may come back smaller than it went in. The 30 percent drop here is an illustration, not a forecast. We would hold the $34,000 in cash and invest every new dollar after it, because the damage comes from selling while you are not working.

Assante Wealth Management compares cash, invested savings and a 403(b)-based backup against the same four questions: first-month cash, value after a drop, access cost and the effect on the $1,500 monthly support. The table gives the decision shortcut.

How can I tell a careful investment manager from a salesy one?

A careful answer starts with what should wait. Ask whether refinancing federal loans and choosing the 457(b) payout election belong on hold; a full portfolio proposal at the first meeting skips the decisions that may matter more.

Ask for the service cost in dollars on your balance. One percent on $500,000 is $5,000 each year, before fund expenses. Ask how many funds you will own and what each fund does. A dozen funds or a taxable sale without a written tax estimate deserves a pause.

For a non-governmental 457(b), a careful manager brings up the hospital's financial condition. Until it is paid out, that balance can be claimed by the hospital's general creditors, and an IRA rollover is not allowed. Assante Wealth Management lists both risks on the same page as your funds, next to the 457(b) line.

When do my balances and deadlines say it is time?

The IRS limit for 2026 is $24,500 for a 403(b) and a separate $24,500 for a non-governmental 457(b), or $49,000 combined. Once the 457(b) starts building, its payout election and the hospital's financial condition become investment questions, not merely HR paperwork.

Fix a reserve below about four months of spending first. For Omar, that is $34,000. Assante Wealth Management's client minimum is $500,000 in investable assets. Below that amount, a target-date fund in the 403(b) plus a written cash figure may cover the main investment work while the loan decision comes first.

Use this shortcut for fund costs: multiply the expense-ratio gap by the balance. A 0.60 percent gap on $400,000 equals $2,400 each year. Location matters more as taxable savings grow, and the top federal income tax rate for 2026 is 37 percent above $640,600 for single filers.

What will I leave the first meeting with?

The first meeting takes place by video or telephone because Assante Wealth Management advises clients remotely. Omar would share his statements, 457(b) election form and PSLF payment count, then leave with a written reserve amount, a reversible-or-permanent list, beneficiary updates to make and the full service cost in writing before signing anything.

The plan is meant to fit on one page. It names the accounts, assigns each fund one job, records the reserve target and marks the decisions that need more information. The firm serves clients around the country, while its office is at 317 South Juniper Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147, United States.

Ongoing management is not the right service for everyone yet. If everything you own is in one employer 403(b) worth under $100,000 and you are still choosing between PSLF and refinancing, a target-date fund and a written reserve may be enough. Assante Wealth Management's $500,000 minimum also matters.

There is no published phone number. To ask for a first call, use the site's request form and describe your accounts, reserve and pending 457(b) election.