Senior Financial Advisors in Sarasota, FL
Seniors Blue Book
For more information about the author, click to view their website: Seniors Blue Book
Sep 01, 2026
Florida - Sarasota, Bradenton & Charlotte Counties
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Retirement changes the questions people ask about money.
During the working years, the focus may be on building
savings and investing for the future. Later, priorities often shift toward
creating reliable retirement income, managing investment risk, protecting
assets, preparing for healthcare expenses, coordinating insurance, planning an
estate, and determining what can eventually be passed to children or
grandchildren.
A financial advisor can help organize these decisions into a
broader strategy.
For people searching for senior financial advisors in
Sarasota, FL, Chad Choate of Level Four Financial provides
wealth-management, retirement-planning, insurance and related financial
services to individuals and families in the Sarasota-Manatee area.
What Does a Financial Advisor Do?
The term "financial advisor" can cover
professionals who provide different services, credentials, products, and
compensation arrangements.
Depending on the professional and firm, services may
include:
- Retirement
planning
- Investment
management
- Cash-flow
planning
- Insurance
analysis
- Estate-planning
coordination
- Tax-planning
coordination
- Long-term
care considerations
- Business
succession planning
- Risk
management
- Charitable
planning
- Multigenerational
wealth planning
A financial advisor does not replace an attorney, CPA, or
medical professional. Instead, effective financial planning often involves
coordinating decisions across several disciplines.
Level Four Financial – Chad Choate
1001 3rd Avenue West, Suite 500, Bradenton, FL 34205
Phone: 941-730-5983
Chad Choate, III, AAMS®, CEPA® is a Business Unit Leader, Private Wealth Advisor, and Insurance Agent with Level Four Group.
Although the office is in Bradenton, Choate works in the
greater Sarasota-Manatee market and is listed by Seniors Blue Book as a
financial resource serving area clients.
AAMS and CEPA Designations
Choate holds the Accredited Asset Management Specialist,
or AAMS®, designation and the Certified Exit Planning Advisor, or CEPA®,
designation.
Professional designations can provide useful information
about specialized training, but consumers should still evaluate the
professional's services, licenses, compensation, experience, and fit.
FINRA cautions investors not to rely solely on a title or
designation when choosing a financial professional and encourages consumers to
conduct their own review.
Comprehensive Financial Planning
Level Four describes its approach as integrating several
areas of financial planning rather than treating each decision separately.
According to the Seniors Blue Book profile, services
available through Choate and the broader Level Four platform include:
- Financial
planning
- Investment
management
- Retirement
planning
- Insurance
planning
- Estate-planning
coordination
- Family-needs
planning
- Tax-planning
strategies
- Financial
organization and analysis
For retirees, this coordinated approach can be useful
because one financial decision often affects several others.
For example, taking more from a retirement account may
influence taxes. Buying an insurance product can affect available assets.
Estate-planning goals may influence investment strategy. Long-term care
concerns can affect how much liquidity a household wants to maintain.
Retirement Planning
For many seniors, one of the biggest financial questions is
how to turn accumulated savings into sustainable income.
A retirement-planning conversation may consider:
- Current
expenses
- Social
Security
- Pensions
- IRA
or 401(k) assets
- Investment
accounts
- Required
withdrawals
- Taxes
- Healthcare
costs
- Emergency
reserves
- Desired
legacy
No advisor can guarantee investment performance or eliminate
retirement risk.
A useful planning relationship should instead help the
client understand assumptions, risks, trade-offs, and possible strategies.
Investment Management
Level Four offers investment-management resources that
include portfolio-management strategies and access to investment products
through its financial platform. Its Seniors Blue Book profile identifies
stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds, annuities and other investments among the
products accessible through the firm's brokerage platform.
Before purchasing any investment, the SEC recommends asking
how the investment works, how it fits the investor's goals, what risks are
involved, and what total fees may apply.
Insurance and Risk Management
Choate is also identified by Level Four as an insurance
agent.
The Level Four platform includes access to insurance-related
planning involving:
- Life
insurance
- Long-term
care solutions
- Medicare-related
options
- Annuities
- Business
insurance considerations
Insurance can be an important part of financial planning,
but products differ substantially in cost, guarantees, restrictions, liquidity
and suitability.
Clients should understand whether a recommendation is an
investment, insurance policy, or combination product and how the professional
is compensated.
Business Owners and Exit Planning
Choate's CEPA designation is particularly relevant for
business owners.
Level Four offers services involving:
- Exit
planning
- Business
succession
- Tax
planning
- Employee-retention
strategies
- Executive
benefits
- Retirement
plans
- Risk
management
- Buy-sell
planning
For Sarasota-area business owners approaching retirement,
personal retirement planning and business-exit planning may need to be
coordinated rather than addressed separately.
Why Financial Advice Matters Locally in Sarasota
Sarasota County is one of the country's most
retirement-oriented communities.
U.S. Census Bureau estimates show that 38.8% of Sarasota
County residents are age 65 or older.
Many residents are managing retirement assets rather than
receiving employment income.
That means decisions about investment risk, withdrawals,
healthcare expenses, estate planning, insurance and wealth transfer may have a
direct effect on whether savings last through a long retirement.
The Sarasota-Manatee area is also home to many current and
former business owners, professionals, entrepreneurs, and retirees who may have
several types of assets requiring coordinated planning.
How to Get Started
1. Identify Your Financial Priorities
2. Gather Financial Records
Bring information on investment accounts, retirement
accounts, insurance, Social Security, pension income, debt and major expenses.
3. Discuss Risk
Be clear about how much market volatility you can tolerate
financially and emotionally.
4. Ask How the Advisor Is Paid
Understand every major fee and commission before
implementing recommendations.
5. Verify Credentials and Registration
Do not rely only on titles printed on a business card.
6. Coordinate With Other Professionals
Your financial advisor, CPA and estate-planning attorney may
need to work together when decisions overlap.
7. Review the Plan Regularly
Update your plan after major financial, health or family
changes.
Related Categories
- Estate Planning Attorneys
- Retirement Planning
- Long-Term Care Insurance
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