We help our clients enhance their quality of life by getting their entire financial house in order and keeping it that way. Starting during our introductory meeting and continuing for our entire relationship, we want to help you make confident, quality decisions that will help move you toward your financial goals.
Comprehensive financial planning involves the ongoing, proactive, detailed review and analysis of each area of your financial situation. We have developed and refined a process that allows us to put together the pieces of the wealth-management puzzle, giving our clients the highest probability of reaching their financial goals. Our process includes planning in five critical areas:
First, a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional holds the highest designation in the investment world. The same is true for CPAs in the tax world. Secondly, taxes play a critical part in wealth accumulation. To achieve the best results, you need to incorporate tax planning as a key part of your financial plan.
As CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals, our advisors are held to a fiduciary standard. This means that they have a duty to put your interests above their own to preserve good faith and trust. Most financial advisors are not held to that standard.
Yes. As a Registered Investment Advisor firm, we are not tied to a larger financial institution. And because we do not sell products or take commissions, you can trust than any advice we give is objective and in your best interest.
We follow the guiding principles of Modern Portfolio Theory and the Efficient Market Hypothesis. Essentially, this means that we believe markets are efficient and the optimal strategy is to hold a diversified portfolio of both stock and bond investments, according to your personal risk tolerance, goals, and need for return to reach those goals. We do not do market timing or try to predict the markets. We build all-weather portfolios that are structured to achieve a long-term expected return based on historical data. Think of the third little pig in the children’s story: our goal is to create a brick house for you that can weather the storms of market cycles.
You should expect a relationship of trust and ongoing support and advice. We will meet with you regularly to review your progress toward reaching your financial goals, as well as the performance of your investments. We act as your advocate in working with other professionals as well, to help make sure that different areas of your financial situation are integrated for your overall financial well-being.
Great question! As fee-only advisors, we are compensated only by our clients. We do not sell any products or earn commissions. We don’t receive kick-backs or referral fees, or any other compensation. This gives you confidence that our advice is always independent and objective. Other than a one-time planning fee at the inception of our relationship, we charge based on a percentage of the investment assets that we manage for you, so our incentive is aligned with your goal to grow your money.
Other than a one-time planning fee at the inception of our relationship, we charge based on a percentage of the investment assets that we manage for you. The schedule is tiered and starts at 1.5% for household assets under $500,000 and goes as low as .75% for larger portfolios.
Many “financial advisors” are no more than stockbrokers or money managers and don’t include comprehensive financial planning as part of their services, because they often ignore important factors such as taxes. In contrast, when you work with us, you’ll receive not only advice, but also a second set of eyes to help detect blind spots so you get clarity in your life.
We can meet either by telephone, virtually, or in person, depending on your preference and location.
Yes! We currently have clients in a number of states and can register in any new state in order to serve clients there.
Absolutely! We can meet with you by phone, Zoom, or Teams meetings, according to your preference. Our favorite option is to see you in person, but we can meet with you in the way that best fits your life. We don’t want meetings to be an obstacle to getting your financial house in order and keeping it there.
No. We understand that many people have busy lives, so we have developed our process so that we can help you move toward your goals without giving up a lot of your time. Other than our regular meetings, our goal is to let you live your life while we handle the financial details.
While each person or family has different goals, resources, timelines, and expenses, we can help you develop a plan that is customized for your specific situation. Through our refined process, we combine the pieces of the tax-planning and wealth-management puzzle to give you the highest probability of reaching your financial goals.
Of course! We regularly assist our clients by developing strategies designed to optimize their Social Security benefits. We have amazing software that allows us to analyze your options and help you make the best decisions for your situation.
Yes. We have a client portal that, in addition to the custodian website, allows you to see all kinds of information about your investments in real time, including performance data. Many advisors do not make performance data readily available for their clients, especially in times of down markets.
Some factors to consider are expected return, cost, and tax-efficiency. We utilize mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) through Dimensional Fund Advisors to create a customized and diversified asset allocation for you. These funds are a low-cost and tax-efficient way to achieve index-like returns, and are not available to the general public. Once the asset allocation has been set, we re-balance the portfolio periodically using a disciplined approach as necessary to maintain its integrity over time. Our philosophy in a nutshell? Buy low and sell high!
Yes. Incorporating all of your investments assets as part of your overall strategy is critical to improving your probability of success. A 401(k) plan is often a large part of your portfolio during the accumulation (savings) phase of your wealth cycle. By not having it professionally managed, you are missing out on some of the benefits of working with us.
Yes. We understand that planning for college is a major goal that requires significant planning. We can help you to understand your options for funding college education for your children and help you develop a plan to meet that goal.
We wish everyone was asking this question! In the United States, there are about 343,000 financial advisors1. About 27% are CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) professionals2. NAPFA (the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors) estimates that less than 4% of advisors are fee-only3.
Around 12% of CFP® professionals are also CPAs4. How many are CPAs, CFP® professionals, and are fee-only? Very few. We are among those few.
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Divorce is one of many events in life that we call Critical Financial Events. During any of these events, the decisions you make will have a lasting implication on your future financial security, so it is very important to make the best choices possible. To do so, having the right advice is a must. Your attorney provides the much-needed legal advice, but may not have the financial expertise. At Bridge Divorce Strategies, we are divorce financial-planning experts who will help you navigate the divorce process, providing expert financial advice to ensure that you receive an equitable settlement without any surprises. Visit our website dedicated to these services at www.bridgedivorcestrategies.com.
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