How did the idea for Planwell come about?
A few years ago, I was looking to buy a home in the Bay Area — but I needed to make sure a mortgage wouldn't crowd out our other goals: retirement savings, college savings for our daughter, and the annual travel that makes life feel worth living.
When I consulted a financial planner, they pushed high-cost funds instead of helping me think through our situation honestly. I talked to friends. Same story, everywhere.
Mortgage lenders approved us for far more than made sense for our family — because their job is to protect their risk, not optimize ours.
“There was a gap between the tools that were too simple and the advisors who had a conflict of interest. No one was just helping people plan.”
Our solution: technology that gives people real financial planning tools
After years at Amazon, Facebook, and an early-stage startup, I decided to build the product I always wished I had. Planwell is the unbiased financial planning co-pilot for households who've outgrown budgeting apps and need an intelligent financial decision engine. And we are just getting started.