Personal
After spending a dozen years practicing out west, Amanda, Abigail, Sophia and I heard the call of our New Jersey roots and came home. I like to spend my free time with friends and family; playing guitar, cooking, and being outside enjoying all this beautiful state has to offer. My favorite part about my career is how many of my clients have become personal friends, and how many of my friends I’ve been able to serve. Though we met in high school, I had to move to Utah to be with the girl of my dreams. Together, we now have the family of my dreams. Of all my roles in this life, “Dad” must be my favorite. Becoming a father has really made me understand the importance of being the best that I can be, and it has given me that much more passion for helping my clients do the same.
Lending a hand in my community.
As part of Northwestern Mutual, I'm proud to help accelerate the search for better childhood cancer treatments while supporting families undergoing treatment, and survivors from late effects. Here are some of the organizations we partner with:
Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer (ALSF)
ALSF funds cancer research, raises awareness, and supports the families of children with cancer. Since 2012, Northwestern Mutual, its employees, and financial professionals like me have donated more than $20 million to support ALSF and fund over 400,000 research hours.
Beads of Courage
Beads of Courage is an art-in-medicine program that helps kids with cancer tell their unique treatment story through colorful beads that are symbols of their courage.
Professional
Ben Balikov is a Financial Advisor, associated with Northwestern Mutual for nearly 20 years. Ben specializes in Comprehensive Retirement Planning, to help make retirement dreams a reality. Along with his partners, Ben helps his clients:
- Plan for the retirement YOU want to happen
- Protect against what YOU don’t want to happen
- Provide expert guidance for the rest of YOUR life
Ben is a graduate of Rutgers College, Rutgers University. Beginning with Northwestern Mutual in 2001, Ben has spent his career working both directly with clients as an advisor, and internally, providing training and consultations to Northwestern Mutual Representatives and Advisors on planning for a wide range of client needs, including:
- Retirement & Estate Planning
- Asset Management
- Risk Management
- Special Needs Planning
- Small Business Planning
- Education Funding
- Investment Advisory & Brokerage Platforms
- Life, Disability, & Long-Term Care Insurances & Annuities
Having recently relocated back to New Jersey, Ben understands that no two situations are exactly the same, and therefore boiler-plate planning is never the best strategy. Ben takes the time to get to know each of his clients thoroughly, as well as make sure that his clients get to know him. “Any long-term relationship is built on a foundation of respect and trust.” Says Ben, “we really make it a point to see each potential client as an individual, and to be open about who we are, so THEY can determine if we’re a good fit.”
Here are my areas of expertise
Financial Planning
Insurance Protection Strategies
Life Insurance Strategies
Retirement Planning & Income Strategies
Education Planning & Funding
Disability Planning
Multigenerational Planning
Estate Planning
How Northwestern Mutual helps you live the life you want.
When people feel better about their money, good things happen—they become more confident and feel more secure. For more than 160 years, Northwestern Mutual has helped people achieve the financial flexibility they need to live more and worry less.
Being a mutual company means Northwestern Mutual reports to its clients, not Wall Street. They don't believe in chasing fads or taking undue risk for short-term gains. Instead, they take a long-term approach—both in the way we help people plan to reach their goals, and in the way they do business. This has served their clients (and mine) well through all kinds of economic ups and downs, including wars, recessions, even the recent pandemic.
It's why I'm happy to be part of a company that's in it for the long-haul and prioritizes clients over profit.
