Stephen Horstmann is a Financial Planner at RTD Financial and a member of RTD’s Tax Planning Committee. Prior to joining the RTD team in 2022, Stephen was a Wealth Advisor at BlueSky Wealth Advisors in North Carolina where he worked directly with clients of all types, from business owners and young accumulators to those making the transition into retirement. Stephen looks at the client-planner relationship like a partnership. Everyone has different circumstances, goals, and aspirations, so getting to know each client on a deep level is paramount. Stephen helps navigate the waters of personal finance so that families can not only reach, but maintain financial independence, while never feeling alone in the process.
Since entering the industry in 2018, he has been emphatic that the client’s interests come first, no matter what. He is a member of the Financial Planning Association and NAPFA Genesis and has two degrees from Texas Tech University. He received a B.A. in English before working towards and receiving an M.S. in Personal Financial Planning. Stephen is passionate about tax planning – it is the thread that runs through every facet of the financial planning picture, from investment management and estate planning to cash flow and retirement planning.
In his free time, Stephen can be found playing guitar, working out, getting outside and spending time with his friends and family.
Getting to Know Stephen
What do you enjoy most about working at RTD?
My colleagues. Everyone is not only incredibly talented and smart, but humble. Everything we do is for the good of our clients, and when the culture is like RTD’s, everyone can better serve them while always striving to improve.
What makes you good at what you do?
I’ve always been very empathetic. That, coupled with my listening skills, helps me better step into the client’s shoes so I can better understand and serve them.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received?
Compare yourself to who you were yesterday, not to who someone else is today.