About
Joe Ward
Growing up in Oklahoma City, I've been around the oil and gas business my entire life. I watched it turn what many considered a flyover city into a place people are proud to call home.
As a teenager I had the chance to work on the tree farm of Chesapeake Energy's late founder, Aubrey McClendon. One piece of advice he gave me has stayed with me ever since: study accounting, as it's the language of business.
I took that to heart at Oklahoma State, where I earned a degree in accounting in three and a half years. But after an audit internship at Ernst & Young, I realized I was more interested in finance and investing. The problem was that while getting my finance degree, I discovered most roles back then were really just insurance and product sales. Plus, I'd interned twice with Phillips 66, and frankly they paid more, and wanted me to move to Houston. So that's where I went.
Over nearly a decade with the company, I saw many facets of the business while living in Houston, Bartlesville, Billings, and New Orleans. That experience gave me a firsthand understanding of the careers, compensation, and benefits people navigate throughout their careers.
While working there, perhaps like many of you, I had multiple financial advisors cold-call my desk phone. I questioned whether they knew anything I didn't already know. So during the pandemic, I signed up for the Certified Financial Planning (CFP) program at Rice University, to make sure. As it turned out, there weren't many salespeople spending their nights and weekends in those classes. What I found instead was the depth of planning involved with retirement, taxes, estate, and even insurance.
Along the way, I met a financial planner who said, "If you're doing this for fun, you ought to do it for a living." After much deliberation, I took a 50% pay cut, apprenticed under him, and earned my CFP. He offered me ownership. But I knew I wanted to build my own firm, one designed specifically for the people I understood best. So I joined an oil and gas-focused practice, worked with some amazing clients, picked up additional certifications in tax and retirement planning, and ultimately launched Refined Wealth.
Our mission is not to be the biggest firm, but to be the best firm for high-net-worth oil and gas professionals and their families.
Personal Bio
On the personal side, my wife Angelea and I live in Houston, near the Medical Center where she works as a Nurse Practitioner on the Cardiovascular Surgery team at Texas Children's Hospital. We have a very spoiled three-year-old Golden Retriever, named Basil, snow ski more than most Houstonians, and do our best to escape Texas in the summer.
Retirement Planning Made Easy.
We know the challenges professionals face as they plan for retirement. Our tax strategies, income planning expertise, and down-to-earth advice make it easier to feel confident about what’s next.
Certified Financial Planners® to Rely On.
As CFP® professionals, we bring the highest standard of care and expertise to your retirement planning, ensuring every strategy is tailored to your goals.
Specialists in the Energy Industry
We get what it’s like to navigate the challenges you face in the energy industry. We help tackle your unique challenges and uncover opportunities to maximize your financial future.
Retirement & Tax Planning
As RICP® & TPCP® designated retirement and tax planning experts, we focus on creating sustainable income streams and minimizing taxes so you can enjoy a stress-free retirement.
Find The Answers You're Looking For.
Wondering how it all works? Check out our FAQs for simple, honest answers about retirement planning, tax strategies, and what it’s like to work with Refined Wealth.
What type of people do you work with?
Our best-fit clients are those who have done an excellent job of saving but don’t want to be burdened with the responsibility of doing everything needed to get the most out of their money and their retirement planning.
Our clients generally are nearing retirement and are looking clarity on when they can retire, as well as strategies to optimize saving during their last few working.
If we can’t work with you, we’ll do our best to answer any questions you have and point you to someone who can. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to see what’s possible with your financial planning.
Where is my money held?
One key component of our mission is to provide a world-class client experience.
To help accomplish this objective, we use Altruist as our main custodian. After working with and reviewing the largest players in the custodial space we chose Altruist for 3 reasons.
Highest quality experience for our clients. No conflicts of interest. Best technology.
We don’t work for them—meaning we can determine which custodian makes the most sense based on your situation. In certain circumstances, we will use Charles Schwab instead.
What services do you offer?
Our mission is to help you get the most out of life with your money. To do that means we want to take as much of the planning off your plate as possible. We help clients with:
—Retirement planning
—Investment management
—Tax planning
—Estate planning
—Insurance review
—Cash flow planning
And everything else needed to ensure you feel calm (and excited) about your financial future.
Do you offer proactive tax planning?
Yes.
Your CPA is excellent for accounting for what happened last year. Often, they don’t work on limiting your tax liability in the future.
We help you look at the big picture and offer strategies to optimize your spending and saving for tax efficiencies. You (or your CPA) will still be responsible for filing your return.
What is your process?
Our process begins with a discovery meeting to understand what matters most to you. We then gather data, assess your situation, and decide together on the best way forward. From planning to implementation, we create a tailored strategy and guide you every step of the way.
We stay connected with regular check-ins to keep your plan aligned with your changing needs and help you build financial confidence.
To learn more about our process, click here.
What are your fees?
We provide ongoing planning and wealth management with a transparent, tiered asset-based fee designed to lower costs as your assets grow—no hidden fees, ever.
For those seeking a comprehensive financial snapshot, we also offer one-time plans tailored for both accumulators and retirees, helping you clearly understand your current position and next steps.
For a detailed breakdown of our pricing, click here.