We are proud to announce our new company name, Reegan Financial.

Why the new name? Deciding on a company name isn’t easy. It wasn’t easy for us. So why change it at all? As they say, if it ain’t broke…why fix it?  We have our reasons.

Malis Financial…Ah,Don’t Think So.

Many firms are named after their founders. Why not do the same? Malis Financial doesn’t exactly have the warmest, welcoming ring to it, but that is not the only reason to go a different route.

I started the firm, but it can’t end with me.  Clients and their younger generations will need our help long after I ride off into the sunset.  My plan is to work for the next 15 years, at least.  I enjoy my work. It provides me meaning and purpose.  But client needs will continue for decades to come, particularly as clients who have children with disabilities pass away and the financial reigns are handed over to the next generation.

The financial expertise our clients need is terribly absent from the marketplace.

You can’t walk into a bank and expect staff will know how to answer your questions, if you have a disability or care for somebody who does.  Most financial professionals do not understand your unique needs.  Financial planners and advisors are not required to understand even the basic issues our clients face.  Certifications and professional designation have not focused on this area, at least not sufficiently.   And we don’t see government, regulators or any of the large financial institutions working to rectify this issue.

Our vision is to address this absence of expertise in the financial services sector.  Even if we move the needle on this issue in the right direction, and provide our clients with the advice they need, we are committed to providing this over the long-term.

Why Not Call it (Dis)Ability Financial?

I never liked the idea of a name like Disability Financial, or Ability Financial.

Sure, it speaks directly to the nature of our work and the clients we serve. But, no matter how you slice it, these names allude to our clients’ supposed deficits and inabilities. You might think our clients retain us because they or their children have a disability.  I don’t believe that is the case.

The financial-related obstacles and issues we help our clients resolve are not somehow borne of their disabilities. They need our services because the world was not designed with them in mind.  Our clients retain us because key programs, services and benefits specifically created to assist people with disabilities are so complex.  Calling attention to our clients’ disabilities in the name of our firm might have been expedient, but it would not reflect our beliefs or our values.

So…Why Reegan Financial?

Reegan is the name of a client’s service dog. A black labrador who popped out from under our boardroom table at the end of a meeting. I didn’t even know she was there until she was called to come out. There was something about Reegan that struck me at a time when I was constantly thinking up names for the firm and tossing them aside, frustrated.

The unfortunate, preconceived notion is that people with disabilities need to be managed because the are, “not able.” Reegan, like other service animals, is there to help my client navigate a world that isn’t built with her in mind. But Reegan’s assistance comes without the prejudicial, paternalistic notions held by too many people, including some who work in the “disability sector.” It struck me that Reegan empowers my client to live and actively participate, meaningfully and independently, in the world, rather than relegating her to a prescribed, restrictive program that separates her from life.

For us, Reegan represents how people with disabilities and their families need assistance navigating a world that wasn’t build with them in mind. Believe me, the financial services sector wasn’t designed and built to serve people with disabilities. Far from it. And we don’t expect that to change, at least not anytime soon. Our commitment is to help them understand and navigate their financial terrain.  Like Reegan, our intent is to provide guidance, information and assistance so our clients (and not us) can make informed decisions in their own best interests.

Thank you…and welcome to Reegan Financial,

Ron Malis