About Money Plans
When you become a client of Money Plans, there is no need to consider if your nest egg or financial plan is being managed by a junior partner or a financial management trainee.
The principals of our firm take an active interest in each client. With Money Plans, you can feel assured that your financial strategy is being deliberated and coordinated with care by one of the partners.
The partners:
Peg Downey, CFP
Nationally recognized as one of the top financial advisors in America, Peg is a founding partner of Money Plans and is personally involved in each client's assessment, review and plan development. Her expertise and accessible hands-on approach has won her honors from Worth magazine, Medical Economics, Mutual Funds and Bloomberg's Wealth Manager. She provides financial interviews to a variety of well-known publications, recently wrote a weekly column for myprimetime.com and is launching a new financial column for the upcoming magazine, "Crone, Coming of Age." Peg approaches each individual with empathy and warmth, recognizing the emotional significance of finances as well as the often overwhelming complexity of options and life choices that she helps her clients clarify and organize.
Extensive experience and a lively manner have made Peg Downey a sought-after speaker in financial seminars and adult education. Topics she has focused on have included financial planning for women, planning for living with a life-challenging illness and finances for unmarried couples. Her expertise in financial planning for single parents has led to the popular seminar, "Maybe Baby," helping address the special issues of the unmarried as they consider forming a family, and is addressed in the chapter she authored for The Handbook for Single Parents. She is also a certified presenter for the “Seven Stages of Money Maturity” workshops and trains other advisors in the theories and presentation of this highly regarded approach.
Peg, mother of two adult children, not only experienced the challenge of paying for two college educations, but taught on the collegiate level at Ithaca College, Charles Co. Community College and the U.S.D.A. Graduate School. She also served, prior to founding Money Plans, as Assistant Director and Acting Director of Programs for the American Association of University Women. College funding and the array of programs now available are high among Peg's priorities for her ongoing professional education and she is well-versed in choosing among the array of opportunities for parents to provide for their children’s education.
Whether drawing from personal experience, professional training or her work with diverse clientele over 25 years as a Certified Financial Planner, Peg's focus is to help you plan for your life, your hopes, your goals and your family. Every client is an individual and Peg’s emphasis is on developing plans with each client that can increase their understanding and comfort with the complexities of their own financial picture and make reliable progress toward achieving the life they want for themselves.
Denise Leish, MBA
Money Plans founding partner Denise Leish oversees all portfolio management, tax planning, and investment analysis and evaluation. Denise's knowledge and expertise in taxes, real estate and securities analysis gives her extra advantage to the wealth building process for each client.
Denise's analytical abilities and common sense approach to financial matters helps clients to understand their current financial situation, and prepares them for the next stage in their life - whether it's paying for college, wealth creation or retirement. Denise's investment philosophy is based on the premise that the only rate of return that means anything is the one that reflects the bottom line. In other words, rate of return must be adjusted for all the fees that many investments charge as well as tax considerations before you to get the whole picture. This belief has led Denise to develop very cost and tax efficient investment portfolios. Denise also believes that every sector has their day in the sun; this has helped her develop a very successful strategy for purchasing sectors of the market that are out of favor and selling them later at a higher price. Since Denise manages individual portfolios based on individual needs, goals and risk tolerance, Denise is always being challenged with each of her clients' unique situations. Denise manages money for the very young and the very old, and everything in-between. Since Denise knows her clients well, she can help them through the financial choices they face.
Denise also writes a very popular quarterly newsletter for Money Plans clients. The newsletter reflects what Denise is thinking on the economy, and financial markets, and offers ideas on tax saving strategies as well as unique planning ideas.
Denise received her MBA in International Business Finance from George Washington University in 1982. With this foundation, Denise began her career in finance as an accountant and commercial lender with a major Maryland bank. Seeking more personal and individual planning, Denise co-founded Money Plans in 1983. Denise has taught courses and workshops focusing on managing financial paperwork, picking investments and evaluating mutual funds.
Denise maintains membership in NAPFA, and has served as a member on various committees. Bloomberg Wealth Manager magazine selected Denise as one of "Bloomberg's Top Wealth Managers" for three years. She is often quoted in magazines and newspapers. Denise's prides are her two children, Harry and Hannah.