As a fiduciary financial advisor in Harrisonburg, Holland Capital helps JMU faculty and senior staff who chose VRS or the Optional Retirement Plan years ago check whether that choice, plus any other savings, can support retirement. Harrisonburg faculty and staff work with us over video and by phone.
The choice was made long ago. The pension or balance has grown since. Is it enough?
Harrisonburg has about 50,800 residents. James Madison University is a major employer here, along with Sentara and the city schools. Because of the large student population, citywide income figures say little about faculty and staff households.
Eligible JMU faculty choose VRS or the Optional Retirement Plan for Higher Education (ORP) within 60 days of hire, and the election is irrevocable. Years later, the question is whether it is on track. A fixed-fee written plan answers with your own numbers, and your accounts stay where they are. Whoever you ask, find out whether they are a fiduciary and how their pay works.
If You Chose VRS
We read your VRS statement and estimate the monthly pension at each date you are considering. We also note the payout choices your statement shows, since some options are not offered to every member.
If You Chose the ORP
An ORP is a defined contribution account rather than a defined benefit pension. We estimate what it can reasonably provide each year and test that against your spending. Our guide to the 4% rule explains one way to think about withdrawals.
RETIREMENT ENGINEERING™
The Order Matters
Five retirement decisions and why timing matters.
Counting Savings Beyond the Main Plan
If you also save in a 403(b) or another plan, we count it alongside your main benefit. If not, we show what adding savings could change. Social Security, which Virginia does not tax, comes in too. Our retirement planning work brings every piece into one plan.
Investing Once the Picture Is Clear
Our investment management is a separate, later choice, with your plan written up as an investment policy statement first.
How We Work with Clients in Harrisonburg
Holland Capital Management is an independent registered investment adviser and a fiduciary. M. Chad Holland, CFA, CFP® works directly with clients and is responsible for the planning and advice.
Bring the most recent VRS or ORP statement, any other savings statements, a Social Security estimate and the year you hope to leave JMU.
You get a written plan stating whether your benefit and savings meet your goal, and what to adjust if not, for a fixed fee agreed in advance. Use it yourself, share it with a current advisor, or bring us in to act on it.
The first conversation is free. If there is work worth doing after that, we will define the scope and cost before you decide whether to move forward.
Our offices are in Charlotte, North Carolina and Winter Park, Florida. We work with clients in Harrisonburg by video and phone.
We work with clients throughout Virginia. You can see the other Virginia communities we serve here.
Our what we do page explains how a planning engagement works.
RETIREMENT ENGINEERING™
The Order Matters
Five retirement decisions and why timing matters.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is My VRS or ORP Benefit Enough to Retire On?
That depends on your years of service, your pension or balance, your spending and when you plan to stop. Other savings and Social Security count too. We show where you stand.
What Does a Fiduciary Financial Advisor Add to a Faculty Retirement Check?
Holland Capital acts as a fiduciary when providing financial planning and investment advice. In a JMU faculty or staff retirement check, our review of your benefit is the same whether or not an account ever moves to us.
You pay a fixed fee for the plan, set before we begin. Investment management later is billed separately, with that fee spelled out ahead of any decision.
What Does Working with Us from Harrisonburg Look Like?
Everything happens by video and phone. You upload statements securely, and we set meetings around your teaching and campus schedule.
Photo: Strawser / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped.
