How do you charge for your services?
Our normal method for working with clients is a fixed annual retainer fee, payable in quarterly installments. We charge a base fee of $7,000 or $7,700 if taxes are included, plus a fee based on a percentage of your investment assets. Our full fee schedule is available on the Resources tab, under Forms & Documents. Our clients on retainer appreciate the fact that they can call, e-mail or meet with us anytime throughout the year without worrying about the billing clock running. We are your financial partners, so we encourage you to ask us for help with important financial decisions – like choosing the right benefits during your employer’s annual enrollment period, deciding whether to refinance a mortgage or how best to buy that new car. We are here to help you with all financial decisions.
How often will you communicate with me?
We are here for you whenever you need us. You can call or e-mail us anytime, and we can schedule a meeting whenever you have an issue that you would like to discuss in person. The first year we work with you we typically meet at least three or four times. During second and subsequent years, we will always try to schedule at least one meeting per year to revisit your financial plan. We will also call or e-mail you anytime we think there is action you need to take, in response to changes in the investment climate or due to changes in your particular investment holdings. If we provide investment management services for you, you will also receive periodic investment reports from us. You will receive monthly statements from your account custodian, plus quarterly, semi-annual or annual reports from us.
My partner loves details and reading. I prefer actions, pictures and checklists to words. Will one of us have to change our learning style?
No, you don’t have to change. We are well aware that clients have different learning styles. In addition, discussing and making decisions about finances can have a great deal of emotion attached to it. We seek to incorporate varied communication styles so each client is comfortable in the process. We present lots of details and written material for those clients who want to see the “nuts and bolts” behind our recommendations. For the client who is not as interested in the details, we present our recommendations in an easily comprehensible summary letter with an action checklist of our recommendations. We provide material that communicates the information visually and we discuss our recommendations for our clients who communicate best verbally. We are proud that we work well with all learning and implementation styles. Part of collaborating with you, hopefully over your long and happy life, is tailoring your financial plan, investment strategy, and our communication to maximize your understanding, comfort, and success with us.
Will you keep my personal information confidential?
Absolutely. You are entrusting us with very valuable and personal information, and we take that responsibility very seriously. We do not disclose any information about you to anyone outside our firm without your permission. We have a Privacy Policy that summarizes all of the steps we take to protect your personal information. More details found here.
More questions?
Please contact us directly for answers to any other questions you may have.