Meet Kastler Financial Planning
Who We Are and Why We Do It
About Kastler Financial Planning
Retirement planning shaped by clarity, thoughtful guidance, and personal service
As a Michigan-based, fee-only, fiduciary, and independent firm, we believe financial advice should begin with planning, not product sales, so recommendations are developed in the context of your goals, values, and overall financial picture.
We are a boutique firm by design, serving a limited number of clients so each household receives careful attention and direct access to Mike Kastler. We work with clients locally in Michigan and virtually across the U.S., with a special focus on helping individuals and families prepare for retirement and navigate it with a sound, personalized plan. Learn more and Meet Mike Kastler.
We are a boutique firm by design, serving a limited number of clients so each household receives careful attention and direct access to Mike Kastler. We work with clients locally in Michigan and virtually across the U.S., with a special focus on helping individuals and families prepare for retirement and navigate it with a sound, personalized plan. Learn more and Meet Mike Kastler.
Our Mission
Our mission is to provide clear, personalized retirement planning through thoughtful guidance, ongoing service, and a fiduciary commitment to act in our clients’ best interests.
Kastler Financial Planning was built on the belief that people deserve retirement guidance that is clear, thoughtful, and centered on their best interests rather than a sales process. That conviction continues to shape how we serve clients today through a planning-first philosophy, personal service, and transparent fees. For transparent pricing, you can view our service modules and pricing page.
What Makes KFP Different
Three qualities define how we serve clients: we are fee-only, fiduciary, and independent:
1. Fee-only means our advice is not tied to commissions or product sales.
2. Fiduciary means we are committed to acting in our clients’ best interests.
3. Independent means we are not limited to the products or platforms of a brokerage firm or insurance company.
As a Michigan-based boutique firm, Kastler Financial Planning combines the personal nature of a local advisor relationship with the flexibility to serve clients virtually across the U.S. We intentionally keep the number of client relationships manageable so clients can work directly with Mike Kastler and receive thoughtful retirement planning shaped around their goals, values, and circumstances.
1. Fee-only means our advice is not tied to commissions or product sales.
2. Fiduciary means we are committed to acting in our clients’ best interests.
3. Independent means we are not limited to the products or platforms of a brokerage firm or insurance company.
As a Michigan-based boutique firm, Kastler Financial Planning combines the personal nature of a local advisor relationship with the flexibility to serve clients virtually across the U.S. We intentionally keep the number of client relationships manageable so clients can work directly with Mike Kastler and receive thoughtful retirement planning shaped around their goals, values, and circumstances.
Our Planning-First Approach
At Kastler Financial Planning, planning-first means retirement decisions are made within the context of a broader, well-considered plan rather than as isolated investment or product decisions.
We begin by understanding your goals, values, concerns, and full financial picture. From there, we develop a personalized retirement plan that coordinates the key areas of retirement planning, including income, taxes, investments, healthcare, risk, and legacy considerations.
This approach is intended to help clients make thoughtful decisions with greater clarity and confidence. It also reflects the way we believe retirement planning is best done: personally, carefully, and with an awareness of how each financial decision may affect the others.
That is why our work is organized around the 7 Pillars Retirement Planning® framework, a practical structure that helps bring the major parts of retirement planning together in one coordinated process.
We begin by understanding your goals, values, concerns, and full financial picture. From there, we develop a personalized retirement plan that coordinates the key areas of retirement planning, including income, taxes, investments, healthcare, risk, and legacy considerations.
This approach is intended to help clients make thoughtful decisions with greater clarity and confidence. It also reflects the way we believe retirement planning is best done: personally, carefully, and with an awareness of how each financial decision may affect the others.
That is why our work is organized around the 7 Pillars Retirement Planning® framework, a practical structure that helps bring the major parts of retirement planning together in one coordinated process.
A Thoughtful Retirement Planning Process
Our planning process is intended to bring structure to retirement decisions through thoughtful discovery, careful analysis, and collaborative review.
We take time to understand your goals, concerns, and financial picture before developing recommendations, so the plan is shaped around your circumstances rather than fitted into a one-size-fits-all solution. Using our 7 Pillars Retirement Planning® framework, we evaluate the major areas of retirement planning together so recommendations are developed in context rather than in isolation.
This approach helps clients see more clearly how one decision may affect another and move forward with greater clarity and confidence. For clients who want additional support, we can also help with implementation and ongoing stewardship to keep the plan aligned as life changes.
We take time to understand your goals, concerns, and financial picture before developing recommendations, so the plan is shaped around your circumstances rather than fitted into a one-size-fits-all solution. Using our 7 Pillars Retirement Planning® framework, we evaluate the major areas of retirement planning together so recommendations are developed in context rather than in isolation.
This approach helps clients see more clearly how one decision may affect another and move forward with greater clarity and confidence. For clients who want additional support, we can also help with implementation and ongoing stewardship to keep the plan aligned as life changes.
How We Serve Clients
Kastler Financial Planning offers retirement planning structured to meet clients where they are.
For some, that means receiving a personalized written retirement plan and clear guidance to implement it on their own. For others, it means continuing the relationship through ongoing support after the Initial Plan is complete.
We offer two ongoing support paths for clients who want continued guidance. One option is ongoing retirement plan monitoring for those who prefer to manage their own investments while receiving periodic reviews and plan updates. The other combines that same ongoing support with investment management for clients who want portfolio oversight as part of a more comprehensive relationship.
In either case, our goal is the same: to provide thoughtful advice, practical structure, and personal service that help clients move forward with greater clarity and confidence.
We offer two ongoing support paths for clients who want continued guidance. One option is ongoing retirement plan monitoring for those who prefer to manage their own investments while receiving periodic reviews and plan updates. The other combines that same ongoing support with investment management for clients who want portfolio oversight as part of a more comprehensive relationship.
In either case, our goal is the same: to provide thoughtful advice, practical structure, and personal service that help clients move forward with greater clarity and confidence.
Short Videos About Our Firm and Approach
If you would like a more personal introduction to Kastler Financial Planning, the brief videos below offer additional background on how the firm began and the principles that continue to shape how we serve clients today.
A Message from Mike: "Built Differently from the Start"
A brief introduction to how Kastler Financial Planning was built differently from the start.
Three Ways We Serve Clients Differently
In this brief video, we explain three qualities that continue to shape the firm today: being fee-only, fiduciary, and independent. Together, these principles support a planning-first approach designed to provide thoughtful guidance without product pressure or platform limitations.
Commitment to Our Community
We believe financial planning is one way to serve people well, but it is not the only way. Kastler Financial Planning also values opportunities to invest in the local community.
In 2018, the Clarkston Independence District Library opened its Business Center, an initiative designed to bring business and community together through meeting and presentation space supported by modern technology. Kastler Financial Planning was pleased to help support that effort through sponsorship and a technology donation that continues to serve the space today.
We are grateful for opportunities like this to contribute in practical ways to the communities we serve. Photos from the opening below:
In 2018, the Clarkston Independence District Library opened its Business Center, an initiative designed to bring business and community together through meeting and presentation space supported by modern technology. Kastler Financial Planning was pleased to help support that effort through sponsorship and a technology donation that continues to serve the space today.
We are grateful for opportunities like this to contribute in practical ways to the communities we serve. Photos from the opening below:
Is our business model a good fit for you?
Schedule a ConsultationIf you would like to explore whether Kastler Financial Planning may be a good fit for your needs, we invite you to reach out.
There is no cost and no obligation to schedule your first 30-minute conversation so we can determine whether there may be a good mutual fit.
There is no cost and no obligation to schedule your first 30-minute conversation so we can determine whether there may be a good mutual fit.