Our Approach to Investing
Strategic allocation of a client's assets, based upon a client's risk tolerance, goals, and objectives is paramount when it comes to formulating client investment plans. We strongly believe in diversification and further believe that over the long term, proper asset allocation is the most important factor impacting client portfolios. Formulating an appropriate asset allocation mix is an interactive process with clients whereby we work with clients to understand those goals, objectives, and appetite for risk. We counsel them as to how to efficiently allocate their investment-mindset focuses on the fact that the investment process is a marathon rather than a sprint. We then put together a written Investment Policy Statement for each client that reflects the specific goals, objectives, and risk tolerance of the client; and serves as a guide for both the advisor and the client as to how the portfolio should be invested.
Unlike many wealth management firms that attempt in vain to consistently outperform the performance of various market indices, we understand that the notion that a particular investment manager can consistently "outperform the market" over the long term is a myth. Study after study reflects time and again that while a particular manager's performance may outperform a given market index for a period of time, his or her performance will eventually "regress to the mean". Instead, we help clients to "get out of the weeds," ignore all the day-to-day noise emanating incessantly from the various media outlets, and focus on their specific long term goals and objectives.
Also, unlike most of the large financial institutions that utilize a "cookie cutter" approach to investing and invest client assets within the confines of a "one size fits all" model investment portfolio that has been pre-approved by various layers of bureaucracy and committees, each of our client portfolios are unique to that particular client. Client goals, objectives, and risk tolerance are the measuring stick for our advice, not the biases of inaccessible committees with their own agenda and are two steps removed from the client.
Where clients seek to delegate their investment management decisions to us, we build investment portfolios for the client and monitor those portfolios regularly to ensure the investment selections remain appropriate. We meet with the clients at least annually (or more often if desired by the client) to monitor investment performance and discuss any changes that would be appropriate. Our fees, in such cases, are based upon a percentage of the assets that we manage.
Where clients desire to manage their own investment portfolios but would like our advice, we help them build and monitor those portfolios. Our fees for these services are charged on a quarterly retainer basis.