Our planning strategies vary significantly among our clients because of their differing objectives, resources, and appetite for complexity and risk. Each client relationship is built upon the thorough understanding we develop in the early stages of our engagement. The same is true for prospective clients with whom we meet. Consequently, any specifics we post on our website might be highly relevant to some and completely miss the mark for others. Rather than have a prospective client wade through strategies we have used in the past, we believe it to be more meaningful and efficient to get to know the individual or family well enough to discuss potential solutions appropriate to the situation.
Our fundamental belief is that asset allocation is the primary driver of investment returns, and we broadly diversify among cash, fixed income, equities, and illiquid investments as appropriate for each client or family. Our asset allocation strategies are designed to address each client's family-specific goals and risk-return profiles, as determined through the ‘Listen & Learn’ step in our process, with attention to achieving synergy through an integrated approach.
As an independent investment advisor, we do not buy and sell stocks. We select managers who match each client’s needs and our perspectives on asset allocation and value investing and who have excellent long-term track records in protecting and growing capital by taking advantage of market opportunities.
Whereas contemporary portfolio theory has evolved to breaking down asset classes into finer and finer sub-classes and using statistics to allocate the investment mix and thus reduce volatility, we adhere to what is known as a “bottom-up” approach of seeking to buy assets at a discount in relation to their intrinsic value. Accordingly, we select managers who share our grounding in such business fundamentals as free cash flow, ascertainable assets, low debt burden and the ability to finance independent of the capital markets, rather than more abstract concepts like “earnings momentum.” This may lead to a greater allocation to small-cap stocks at one time, large-cap stocks at another, and international at yet another, as appropriate to the opportunities the market presents. During major downturns like the Fall 2008 panic, it is natural that virtually every investment goes down; when rationality returns, however, companies with the attributes on which our managers focus are seen to have a strong foundation of value that will sustain them, even in a prolonged negative environment.
Importantly, we maintain close professional relationships with the money managers we employ, to ensure that their philosophy and strategies stay on track, as well as to monitor investment performance.
That depends on all of the other pieces of your picture – like other planning, it is inefficient at best to consider one such issue in isolation. We have successfully guided clients in navigating the balance, unique to them, between diversification value and tax cost. John Miller’s experience as an options floor trader is particularly valuable in devising strategies for employee stock options and generating income from concentrated positions that are not yet ready to be sold.
We have extensive experience coordinating and collaborating with clients’ accountants, attorneys, and trusted advisors. When a client does not have such professional resources, we are happy to recommend appropriate advisors with whom we have had positive experiences.
To ensure that our goals are aligned with yours, we charge a negotiated quarterly fee that is a percentage of the assets we manage for you. Significant initial planning, or revisions to existing planning, is done on a fixed-fee basis. We do not charge a fixed-fee unless we can identify savings to you in multiples of our fee. Our custodian, Fidelity, charges small commissions for trades; these commissions support the trading infrastructure, rather than to pay us (or anyone else) for the advice. We have deliberately structured our business to be compensated by fees only, so that you know we have no conflicts of interest (in the form of larger or smaller commissions) in making investment recommendations to you.
Whereas investment representatives of broker-dealers are limited to offering the investment products that their broker-dealer has approved, as an independent advisor, we can and do shop the entire investment world for what we judge to be the best opportunities for our clients.
Our experience has shown that, as you evaluate potential providers of wealth advising and/or family office services, there is no substitute for direct, personal interaction. The information on this website provides an overview of the scope of our services and the character of our team, but it cannot begin to address the particulars of every situation. Recognizing that your circumstances and objectives are highly specific and personal, we invite you to contact us, by phone or e-mail, to begin the process of getting to know each other. Initial consultation is free, with no obligation, and confidentiality is assured.