Patti Hughes

CFP®, CPA, MSA, CSLP®

Lake Life Wealth Advisory Group LLC

President

Patti Hughes

CFP®, CPA, MSA, CSLP®

Lake Life Wealth Advisory Group LLC

President

As a fee-only financial planner, my focus is to offer unbiased financial advice to help you achieve your life goals. I am a Certified Financial Planner, CPA and also a Certified Student Loan Professional, so I help clients just starting out with significant student loan debt up to helping pre-retirees plan for their retirement expenses and tax efficient withdrawal strategies. - Patti Hughes, CFP®, CPA, MSA, CSLP®

Fee-Only financial planner located in Chicago, IL, serving clients locally and across the country

Patti Hughes is a Chicago, IL fee-only financial planner serving clients locally and across the country. Lake Life Wealth Advisory Group LLC provides comprehensive financial planning, investment consulting and retirement planning to help clients organize, grow and protect their assets through life’s transitions. Additionally, Patti Hughes is a Certified Student Loan Professional (CSLP).  As a fee-only, fiduciary, and independent financial advisor, Patti is never paid a commission of any kind, and has a legal obligation to provide unbiased and trustworthy financial advice.

Patti Hughes, Principal of Lake Life Wealth Advisory Group, is a fee-only financial planner based in Chicago, helping clients with comprehensive financial planning services.

Patti has a certificate in Financial Planning from Northwestern University, a Master’s Degree in Accounting from DePaul University and a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Western Illinois University. In addition, she is a Certified Public Accountant,  a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, a Certified Student Loan Professional and a Registered Investment Advisor in Illinois.

She is a member of the Alliance of Comprehensive Planners, the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) and the Illinois CPA Society.

Patti created Lake Life Wealth Advisory Group LLC because she has a life-long passion for financial planning. She enjoys helping others better understand and organize their finances, then implementing a plan for them to achieve financial goals.

After more than 20 years’ experience including positions in corporate accounting and finance as well as government and public accounting, she enrolled in the Certificate in Financial Planning program at Northwestern University and became a Certified Financial Planner™.  She followed her dream of starting her own financial planning firm to help people navigate through the many changes in life, including repaying student loan debt, college funding for their children as well as planning for retirement. Her clients have sought her help because they wanted someone they could trust and who listened carefully, offered unbiased information, advice and guidance.

As a fee-only financial planner, she does not receive commissions to recommend any stock, bond or mutual fund. She only recommends what is best for her clients based on their life goals, risk tolerance, personal and financial situation. She has a fiduciary duty to her clients.

Patti’s goal is to establish long-term client relationships because comprehensive financial planning is a process, not an event. It focuses on client’s goals first, then integrates all areas of their financial life, recognizes how their beliefs and attitudes impact the financial decisions they make, and makes adjustments as circumstances change. 

All of the clients we serve have a desire to establish a long-term relationship with a trusted professional to provide objective advice to help them make informed decisions relating to their finances. They believe in using professionals such as financial planners, lawyers, or accountants to assist and advise them about such complex personal and financial issues. Most of the clients we serve lack either the time or experience to properly address their important financial issues. They prefer to delegate responsibilities and see the value in paying for professional advice and services.

Financial decisions become more complex as we approach retirement and accumulate more wealth. Our clients value their personal time and want to enhance their quality of life, which drives most of their financial decision making – especially in terms of planning for life in retirement.

Comprehensive financial planning services include retirement planning, tax planning, estate planning, budgeting, insurance and investments. Lake Life Wealth Advisory Group LLC serves the Chicago area, but has offices available at several suburban locations as well. If you can’t visit our office, we can conduct either phone or online meetings. We will do whatever we can to accommodate you. Please don’t hesitate to request an appointment with us or give us a call based on your location.

Patti lives in Deer Park, Illinois with her husband and golden retriever.  She has three grown children, and enjoys spending time boating in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin where they have a vacation home.  She is an avid college football fan, and most Saturdays in the fall can be found at the Notre Dame football games.  In addition, she volunteers with PAWS Chicago, a no kill animal shelter, and at Launch U, providing financial planning services to urban scholars seeking solutions to fund their college education. She is also a member of the Policy Circle, a group committed to discussing policy issues affecting state and local government.

Patti Hughes is a Member of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors

The National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) is a leading professional association of Fee-Only financial advisors - highly trained professionals who are committed to working in the best interests of those they serve.

NAPFA members live by three important values:

  • To be the beacon for independent, objective financial advice for individuals and families.
  • To be the champion of financial services delivered in the public interest.
  • To be the standard bearer for the emerging profession of financial planning.

Lake Life Wealth Advisory Group, LLC is a fee only comprehensive financial planning firm providing advisory services including insurance review, budgeting, retirement planning, tax planning, estate planning, investment allocation and portfolio management. 

Lake Life Wealth Advisory Group was founded to satisfy the need for financial planning advice for those approaching their retirement years. We also focus on women seeking a trusted advisor to help them organize and manage their finances.

The goal is to establish long-term client relationships because comprehensive financial planning is a process, not an event. It focuses on client’s goals as the core objective, then integrates all areas of their financial life, making adjustments as circumstances change.

Fee-Only, Fiduciary, Independent: Three Important Criteria to Consider When Choosing a Financial Advisor.

Specialties

  • Comprehensive Financial Planning
  • Retirement Income Planning
  • Investment Management
  • College Education Planning
  • Tax Planning

Ideal Clients

  • Retirees and Near Retirees
  • Growing Families
  • Business Owners and Executives
  • Sudden Money Situations
  • Novice Investors

Working Together

  • In-Office Meetings
  • Virtual Meetings
  • Clearly Defined Fees
  • No Product Sales
  • Complimentary Initial Consultation

Professional Designations & Affiliations

  • National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA)
    Patti Hughes is a NAPFA-Registered Financial Advisor

    The National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) is a leading professional association of Fee-Only financial advisors—highly trained professionals who are committed to working in the best interests of those they serve.

  • Alliance of Comprehensive Planners
    Patti Hughes is a Member of the Alliance of Comprehensive Planners (ACP)

    Alliance of Comprehensive Planners (ACP) is the community of tax-focused financial planners that operate under the retainer model. Passionately dedicated to superb client service, ACP planners’ only source of income is client retainer fees – not commissions. With an ACP planner, you can be confident you’re getting experience, knowledge, research, and most importantly, advice that is tailored just for you.

  • Certified Financial Planner (CFP)
    Patti Hughes is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professional - Click for Verification

    CFP® professionals are held to strict ethical standards to ensure financial planning recommendations are in your best interest. What’s more, a CFP® professional must acquire several years of experience related to delivering financial planning services to clients and pass the comprehensive CFP® Certification Exam before they can use the CFP® designation.

  • CPA - Certified Public Accountant
    Patti Hughes is a Certified Public Accountant (Learn More)

    A Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is a professional accountant who has met the education and experience requirements set by their state's Board of Accountancy and has passed the Uniform CPA Exam. CPAs are licensed to provide a wide range of accounting services, including financial statement preparation, tax planning and preparation, auditing, consulting, and other financial advisory services.

  • Certified Student Loan Professional (CSLP®)
    Patti Hughes is a Certified Student Loan Professional (CSLP®)

    Financial Advisors having earned the Certified Student Loan Professional designation (CSLP®) understand the complexities of the student loan repayment options and have the advanced knowledge required provide to high quality student loan repayment planning advice within the scope of a holistic financial plan.

Contact Patti Hughes

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Office Locations:

  • 210 N Michigan Avenue
    Suite 810
    Chicago, IL 60601

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