Meet Matthew Schuller | Vettra Verified Advisor

This is Matthew. If we matched you with him, this is the person who may be walking through your report. Matthew Schuller is the President of BrightPath Wealth Management, where he helps pre-retirees and recent retirees navigate the transition into retirement. He grew up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, later moved to Cedar Falls, and came to the Kansas City area after college. Matthew played college soccer on scholarship and started his career around insurance and banking before moving deeper into financial planning. A major stop in his career was Creative One, a financial wholesaling firm. There, Matthew worked with independent advisors across the country and helped build retirement plans covering Social Security, taxes, investments, and income. He also saw something that frustrated him. Too often, people were being sold a product instead of being given a complete retirement plan. Matthew wanted to build something different. He took the best parts of the planning systems he had seen, created his own process, trademarked it, wrote a book about it, began teaching educational classes, and eventually started his own independent firm. That independence matters to him. Matthew believes a retirement plan should be built around the individual instead of placing thousands of clients into the same handful of investment models. He compares it to the difference between a large hospital system and a smaller concierge doctor: more attention, more education, and a plan built around the person. Matthew lives in Overland Park, Kansas, with his wife, Ally, and their two children. His dad worked in construction and later owned a restoration business. His mom was a third-grade teacher. Matthew says both influenced the way he works today. From his dad, he learned to finish the job correctly, take the extra step, and take care of people. From his mom, he learned to educate instead of sell. That philosophy shows up throughout his process. Matthew wants clients to understand why they own what they own, how their money works, how the advisor is paid, and how the pieces fit together before making a decision. If someone comes to him after a bad advisor experience, he encourages them to ask questions. How does the advisor get paid? Are they a fiduciary? Do they educate you or pressure you? Matthew has also told people to stay with their current advisor when he believes their existing plan is already solid. And if someone calls wanting to move money immediately, Matthew pumps the brakes. Before moving anything, he wants to educate the client, understand the situation, and show them how the proposed retirement plan would work. He also teaches clients to think about money in three tax buckets: Tax-deferred. Taxable. Tax-free. Before meeting with Matthew, one of the most useful things a client can know is their monthly spending. What comes in? What goes out? Is there an income gap? He also recommends asking the advisor about their process, compensation, licensing, and fiduciary responsibilities. The goal is not just to own investments. It is to have a retirement plan you actually understand. CHAPTERS 0:00 Growing up in Iowa and moving to Kansas City 2:14 Getting into finance 3:50 Why selling products frustrated Matthew 5:35 Why he chose to be independent 8:28 Matthew’s family 10:56 The advice he learned from his parents 15:52 What to do after a bad advisor experience 19:41 When Matthew tells someone to stay with their advisor 22:27 Why he will not rush a money move 25:02 Tax-deferred, taxable, and tax-free money 29:47 What to know before your first meeting WHY MATTHEW IS IN THE NETWORK Every advisor who applies to Vettra answers three questions in writing: how they get paid, who they are not the right fit for, and why they got into this work. About nine out of ten advisors who apply do not get in. Nobody who works at Vettra is an advisor. We do not manage your money or sell financial products. Advisors pay Vettra a flat fee to participate in the verified network. That fee does not change based on whether you work with them. YOUR REVIEW About 30 minutes going through your report together. Through Vettra, the review is free. https://vettraverified.com DISCLOSURE Matthew is an independent advisor in the Vettra network. He is not employed by Vettra and Vettra does not supervise his advice. Nothing in this interview is financial, tax, legal, investment, or insurance advice, or a recommendation to buy or sell any security or financial product. Statements about retirement, investments, taxes, Social Security, markets, and financial strategies are Matthew’s own views. Vettra is not a financial advisor, does not manage assets, and does not sell financial products. Vettra is compensated through flat fees paid by advisors in its network.