CEO & Founder
Taylor Kovar, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® , is the CEO and founder of the boutique investment firm Kovar Wealth Management, headquartered in Lufkin, Texas. After a successful career as a healthcare technology executive, Taylor joined Merrill Lynch to pursue his interest in investing. Driven by the desire to help clients live more fulfilling lives through investing, philanthropy, and meaningful experiences, Taylor left the Wall Street world and created Kovar Wealth Management in 2015.
Through his work in this new endeavor, Taylor has had the opportunity to create or invest in other companies that fulfill his life’s mission of bringing hope to the world. In 2017, Taylor acquired a Texas-based healthcare company providing in-home pediatric care. In four years under Kovar management, the company saw incredible growth and success.
As the business and his outreach expanded, Taylor began creating free resources for his staff and patient families that covered topics such as financial management, business, investing, relationships, and travel. Working with families—and specifically newlyweds—gave Taylor and his wife, Megan, an intimate view of how different money relationships can affect a marriage. The Kovars became passionate about helping other couples overcome the financial struggles that so often tear relationships apart, and eventually took over the title of The Money Couple, delivering tremendous resources and results to married people of all ages and income levels.
While Taylor wears many hats as a business owner and entrepreneur, his favorite titles are Husband and Dad. Creating an investment firm and growing a home health agency takes a lot of dedication and determination, but work has never unseeded family as Taylor’s top priority. He is married to his high school sweetheart, and the couple is raising three precious kids, instilling in them the same values and concepts that have cultivated so much success in Taylor’s professional life.
Taylor’s passion is to help everyone live a life that’s as fulfilling as the one he is able to lead today. He upholds the standard of treating others the way that he wants to be treated; it is this lifestyle that has made him a trusted advisor to individuals and businesses across the globe. Taylor is dedicated to transforming the healthcare and financial industries for future generations.
Chief of Advisors
Claudia Valladares graduated cum laude from Stephen F. Austin State University with a degree in finance. Her education led to a job in banking, where she worked for five years before seeking a career change that would let her do more impactful work and make a difference in people’s lives. That desire to help others combined with a background in finance makes her a perfect fit for Kovar Wealth Management.
Newly married with an eight-year-old son, Claudia has firsthand experience creating the work-life balance that so many working mothers struggle to find. Chief of Advisors by day and soccer mom by night, she manages her personal and professional lives with the utmost grace and efficiency, all while working hard to help other women achieve the same success in their professional journeys.
Even with her devotion to work and family, Claudia somehow finds the time to serve at Timbercreek church and as a board member for Junior Achievement. Her passion to help the next generation succeed runs deep, and teaching kids about financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and work readiness allows her to give back to the community in a meaningful, lasting way.
Financial Advisor
Joshua Vinson graduated top of his class from the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Science. In addition to all his accolades and skills, this education also left more than $160,000 in debt hanging over his head. Over the next several years, while working as a manager and director for numerous companies and paying back his student loans, Joshua developed a passion for financial stewardship and wealth accumulation, which he now passes on to others as an advisor with Kovar Wealth Management.
Having lived through his own financial rebirth, Joshua focuses on helping people from all walks of life reclaim their most valuable asset: time. Through passive income generation and steady, smart investing, he guides clients toward building a financial foundation that can last for generations to come, while also freeing up the time needed to enjoy life in the present.
Joshua pairs a healthy financial life with a healthy personal one, spending time golfing, enjoying the beach, serving at his church and traveling. While helping others find lasting wealth, he also hopes his work can help people discover the eternal rewards found in a relationship with the Lord.
Accountant
For career day in kindergarten, Haley wore a princess dress and carried around a plastic cash register because, in her five-year-old words, she was going to “play with money all day long” when she grew up. There was never any doubt she’d work in finance, the only question was where she’d land.
Haley found her love for accounting while taking accounting classes in high school then moved on to a bachelor’s degree in business administration and then a master’s of professional accountancy from Stephen F. Austin State University. Her achievements have come in rapid succession, and this schooling and experience make her an invaluable asset to clients she serves.
After working in public accounting for two years, Haley switched to private industry. Navigating that shift gave her a broader understanding of finance and how different investors and businesses put money to work. While handling the books for Kovar Wealth Management, she’s also in the process of studying to become a CPA.
On the weekends, Haley heads off for family trips to the lake or a round of golf. She’s the proud parent of a beautiful Goldendoodle named Annie Jo.
