Browse Our FAQs

Yes. NoDa Wealth Management is a fee-only financial planning and investment management firm based in the NoDa neighborhood of Charlotte, and Evan Luongo, CFP®, acts as a fiduciary for clients. That means our advice has to put your interests first, and we are paid only by our clients. NoDa Wealth Management, LLC is an investment adviser registered with the state of North Carolina.

A commission-based advisor is paid when you buy certain products, such as some insurance policies or investment funds, so what they earn can depend on what they recommend. A fee-only advisor doesn't sell products or accept commissions. You pay us directly, so our recommendations aren't tied to what pays us more.

We offer two ways to work together: a one-time financial plan for a flat fee, or ongoing comprehensive wealth management, where the fee is based on the assets we manage. All fee arrangements are negotiable.

Financial planning covers cash flow, net worth, investments, insurance, taxes, estate planning, debt, equity compensation (RSUs, ISOs, NQSOs, and ESPPs), education savings, and charitable giving. Wealth management adds ongoing investment management, including risk analysis, evidence-based investing, rebalancing, tax-loss harvesting, and asset location.

We work with busy professionals, often in their late 30s to early 50s, whose pay includes company equity such as RSUs, an ESPP, or stock options. Many are two-career households with young kids who want to know whether retiring early is realistic. We also work with self-employed professionals and S-corp business owners.

Yes. We're rooted in Charlotte, and we also work with clients across the U.S. virtually, so meetings can happen by video call wherever you live. We can only provide advisory services where NoDa Wealth Management is properly registered or exempt from registration, so we'll confirm this for your state on the intro call.

No. NoDa Wealth Management is an independent, fee-only financial planning firm and is not affiliated with any bank or credit union. We share the "NoDa" name with our Charlotte neighborhood (North Davidson), which other local businesses also use.

The first step is a free, no-pressure 30-minute intro call by phone, video, or over coffee. We talk through your goals, explain how we work and what our fees are, and see whether we're a good fit. There's no cost and no obligation.

If it seems like a fit, we schedule a longer 60-minute discovery meeting, in person or virtually, to dig into your finances and what matters most to you. After that, we review a personalized financial assessment with clear recommendations, and you decide whether you'd like to work together.

Yes. Equity compensation is a core focus. We help you plan around vesting schedules, taxes at vesting and sale, ESPP holding periods, option exercise timing, and how much of your net worth is tied up in one company's stock. The goal is to make your equity part of an overall plan instead of a guessing game each time something vests.

When RSUs vest, their market value is taxed as ordinary income and shows up on your W-2, even if you don't sell the shares. Your employer usually withholds some shares for taxes, often at a flat supplemental rate that can be lower than your actual tax bracket, so some people owe more at tax time. When you later sell, any change in value since vesting is a capital gain or loss.

Brokerages don't always report the full cost basis for RSU shares and sometimes show $0 on the 1099-B. You were already taxed on the value at vesting through your W-2, so using a $0 basis can mean paying tax on the same income twice. If you already filed with the wrong basis, you can generally correct it with an amended return (Form 1040-X), usually within three years of filing.

With non-qualified stock options (NSOs or NQSOs), the spread between the strike price and the stock price is taxed as ordinary income when you exercise. Incentive stock options (ISOs) don't trigger regular income tax at exercise, but the spread can trigger the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The timing of when you exercise and sell can make a meaningful difference in the tax you owe.

It depends on your spending, savings, taxes, and how long your money needs to last. The 4% rule was built around a roughly 30-year retirement starting in your mid-60s, so retiring at 50 or 55 can mean planning for 40 years or more. For longer horizons, a flexible withdrawal approach that adjusts spending as markets move is often more realistic than one fixed rate.

There are a few common options. The Rule of 55 lets you take penalty-free withdrawals from your current employer's 401(k) if you leave that job in or after the year you turn 55. Other tools include 72(t) substantially equal periodic payments, a Roth conversion ladder, and savings in a regular taxable brokerage account. Each has trade-offs, so the right mix depends on your accounts and timeline