Relationship Philosophy

Our Philosophy

We need to get to know you so you feel comfortable using us as a sounding board for major things going on in your life.  Appropriate Time frames and managing risk is critical. Investing does not end at specific milestones either- life is a series of events and transitions that generate an ongoing need to plan.  We believe in creating a mix of diversified investments that will perform in an up, down or flat market.  We also believe it is critical to match investments with the appropriate investment time  frame and to minimize emotional decisions.

• Maintain discipline: saving, diversification, and minimizing transaction and tax costs
• Model risk and reassess based on market conditions
• Review client life issues to ensure alignment with investment plan and time frame
• Minimize emotion in investment decisions that leads to buying high and selling low

4 Critical Success Factors

1. Asset allocation: According to the Brinson Studies, asset allocation accounts for 93.6% of return performance. Timing the market accounts for very little! Diversification is critical to minimizing risk. During a bubble and bust cycle, the public follows buying and selling trends that defy the fundamentals of profitability in an investment. Diversification guards against these extremes.
   
   History demonstrates that investors follow a herd mentality, which creates bubble and bust cycles. An extremely popular investment provides spectacular short term returns because money floods into it raising the price. A bubble pops when speculators flee. Examples of this include the tech dot com bubble, the real estate boom and mortgage crisis and frequent commodities cycles.
    
2. Appropriate Time frames: Buying the wrong investment for the wrong time frame is like using a rope when you need a saw. It is critical to match the investment time frame to the investment. For example, FDIC insured Certificates of Deposit offer low return in exchange for principal protection. They are excellent short term investments and assure that our money is available when we intend to spend it. They are risky in the long term because they do not keep pace with inflation causing a loss in our purchasing power.
   
   In contrast, stocks prices are volatile, moving up and down dramatically in short time frames. In the short term, you may lose principal. However, over 5 years and more, stocks offer great potential gain that stay ahead of inflation. The longer the investment is held, the higher the likely hood of positive gain.
    
3. Investor Behavior: The most critical factor to success is behavior. Why is it that most people buy high and sell low?? They invest or sell based on fear and excitement. Avoid emotional decisions and keep a disciplined plan in place! Saving routinely and withdrawing in retirement consistently protects against buying high and selling low.
    
4. Open Architecture: How does an independent Registered Investment Advisor with Open Investment Architecture contrast to most financial services firms?