Ongoing Advisory

Financial planning and investment management, in one relationship, for one flat fee.

Most advisors sell these as separate things and charge you a percentage of your portfolio for the privilege. I don't think they can be separated. Your investments only make sense in the context of your plan, and your plan only works if your investments are doing their job. So ongoing advisory is both, handled together, for a fee that doesn't grow just because your account balance does.

My first priority is helping you take care of yourself and your family. I want to learn more about your personal situation, identify your dreams and goals, and understand your tolerance for risk. Long-term relationships that encourage open and honest communication have been the cornerstone of my foundation of success.

Financial planning. The work is intensive at the start, then revisited as your life changes. It covers:

• Retirement and pre-retirement income planning
• Cash flow planning
• Regular tax reviews
• Insurance review and evaluation
• Estate planning

Your plan isn't a document that goes on a shelf. It's a model of your financial life in RightCapital that grows and changes with you. It's how I test decisions before you make them, like retiring earlier, taking a sabbatical, giving more to charity, or paying for a child's education. Many people never realize they had those options until they see them in the model.

Investment management. I take the day-to-day off your plate while you keep control of the process:

• An Investment Policy Statement that puts your strategy in writing, reviewed regularly so it keeps matching your goals
• Performance monitoring. A good policy should mean very little trading, but even a simple portfolio can't be ignored.
• Discretionary management. I handle the day-to-day, and you stay in charge of the strategy.
• Portfolio rebalancing back to the mix in your policy
• Tax-loss harvesting when selling is necessary, to keep the tax bill down

I don't try to beat the market. I try to help you capture as much of its return as we can, as simply and tax-efficiently as possible.

I organize your money by when you'll need it and what each dollar has to do. Money you may need soon, money for the middle stretch, and money that can stay invested for decades shouldn't take the same risks. When your money is structured around real timelines, it's easier to make good decisions and to stay calm when markets get noisy. Read about Asset Life Matching.

The first several months are the heaviest. There will be a number of meetings, by Zoom or in person, plus calls and emails, as I learn about your life, your family, your money story and your goals. You'll link your accounts to your RightCapital model, and if you're moving investment accounts to one of my custodians, we'll start that as soon as possible. Be prepared for it to take weeks, sometimes months, depending on how well your old institutions cooperate.

After that, the goal is to take work off your plate, not add to it. My minimum is two structured meetings a year, and I meet more often when your life calls for it. Here's what the process looks like from start to finish.

Ongoing advisory fits if you want someone to do the work, not just tell you what the work is. That means managing the portfolio, keeping track of the details, and bringing things to you that you might not have thought of. It also fits if your situation is changing and you want a plan that keeps pace with it.

If you're comfortable carrying out the plan on your own and your life is on a stable stretch, a one-time financial plan may be all you need. I'll tell you honestly which one I think fits.

I charge a flat annual fee. I don't take a percentage of your assets, I don't earn commissions, and I don't sell products. That's why the advice you get is the advice I would give my own family. If you've done a one-time plan or an Unbiased Portfolio Review with me, the fee you paid is credited toward your ongoing advisory fee. The Services & Fees page has the current fee and the terms.

That has real advantages: you always work with me, not a junior. It also has real limits. I can't always answer unscheduled calls, and some replies take longer. I've been open about the reasons you might not want to work with me, so you can decide with your eyes open.

At the same time, while I am your full time advisor, I have help from the XYPN Saphire team of traders and professionals. I chose this relationship because I think it allows me to provide the best of both worlds to my clients.