Why Use This Tool?

Life Transition Planners, Inc. (LTP) is a fee-based, comprehensive financial planning and money management firm with two CFP® practitioners and one ChFC/CDFA planner.  The National Association of Board-Certified Advisory Practices (NABCAP, a 501(c)(3) non-profit) named LTP one of Denver's top wealth managers with the award as a 2010 Denver Premier Advisors practice.  Gary Sidder, Ph.D., CFP®, is the sole owner and principal.  Gary is a four-year (2009-2012) Five Star Wealth Manager award winner. 



We complete financial plans for all prospective clients before recommending a course of action. We prefer to educate and enroll our clients, rather than selling to them. Our practice is mostly focused on families, rather than businesses, although some of our clients are corporate executives or small -business owners. We have two generations of families among several clients. We are looking to build long-term relationships with our clients and to help them meet their financial and life goals and objectives. Our clients' interests will always come first.

Our compensation is primarily fee-based. We serve as Investment Advisor Representatives of our broker/dealer's Registered Investment Advisory service. Our broker/dealer is NFP Securities, Inc. We custody our brokerage accounts with Schwab Institutional.

Gary is President and Chief Investment Officer of LTP. Gary entered the financial services field in 1996 after 20 years working as an economic geologist, including 10 years with the U.S. Geological Survey and 10 years in private industry and teaching in graduate school. He conducts portfolio analysis, investment strategies, and asset allocation* for LTP in addition to comprehensive financial planning. Gary applies his research background and a quantitative approach to allocate client portfolios in an effort to maximize return and minimize risk.

Gary is an Instructor in the CFP® Board-registered Personal Financial Planning program at the Metropolitan State University of Denver where he teaches the Investment Planning and the Financial Calculator courses. These courses are among the seven classes students take to complete the educational requirement mandated by the CFP® Board of Standards. Most students in the class then sit for the CFP Board's two-day, 10-hour comprehensive exam in order to qualify to become a Certified Financial Planner practitioner. Gary has taught more than twenty classes since 2000. Gary also served on the Education Committee and the Career Mentoring Committee of the local FPA chapter. LTP has trained four interns in the past eight years.



Gary holds the following security licenses:  Series 7 General Securities Representative, Series 63 Uniform Securities Agent State Law Exam, and the Series 65 Uniform Investment Adviser Law Exam.

Gary began his 17th year in financial services in September, 2012. He began his career as a stockbroker with a local brokerage firm. After slightly more than two years, he joined Evonne Ryan in a financial planning firm, Financial and Tax Strategies, Inc. In 2000, Gary earned his Certified Financial Planner® designation and with Evonne founded Life Transition Planners, Inc. They made the transition from commission- to fee-based compensation in 2000.  Gary prepares financial plans for all clients and updates them at least annually and for most clients semi-annually. From the plans, priorities for planning are set and addressed. Gary bought Evonne's 50 percent share of Life Transition Planners, Inc. in October 2006.