FAQs

Fiduciary Financial Advisors FAQs

CPA CFP® Credentials

  • The CFP® (Certified Financial Planner) certification identifies individuals who have met rigorous professional standards and have agreed to adhere to principles of integrity, objectivity, competence, fairness, confidentiality, professionalism, and diligence when dealing with clients. To become certified, an individual must meet educational, examination, experience, and ethics requirements.

  • A CPA is a Certified Public Accountant who is licensed by a state board of accountancy. To earn a CPA, one must demonstrate knowledge and competence by meeting high educational standards, passing an exam, and attaining a specific amount of general accounting experience. A CPA license is the accounting profession’s highest standard of competence, a symbol of achievement and assurance of quality.

  • The PFS (Personal Financial Specialist) is a credential for CPAs who specialize in personal financial planning (PFP). The PFS is granted solely to CPAs with considerable PFP education and experience who want to demonstrate their knowledge, skill and experience by earning this exclusive credential.

Wealth Management Services

  • Yes. We update our privacy policy annually and treat the Client-Advisor relationship with utmost confidentiality.

  • Our clients will typically work with one lead advisor, but our firm works as a team. Should something unexpected occur, you can feel comfortable knowing that another team member can pick up right where your advisor left off.

  • We do not sell insurance or provide legal advice.

  • There is no cost for an initial consultation with one of our fiduciary, Fee-Only financial advisors. Before the meeting, we typically request a few documents, including tax returns and investment statements. This will give us a starting point for our conversation.

  • We provide integrated tax services for many of our clients. We work closely with outside CPAs to file income tax returns. In many cases we work with clients’ existing CPAs or refer clients to the right CPA firm for their needs. Comprehensive tax-planning has always been an important part of our service offering.

  • We typically coordinate with a client’s accountant, attorney, insurance agent, and more. We can also provide contacts for our clients, should they be in need of a specific professional. We DO NOT receive referral fees from any other professionals.

  • Thanks to technology, we work with clients all over the United States, and have the ability to work with clients in other countries.

  • As an Registered Investment Advisor (RIA), we use a third-party custodian to hold client assets. We currently use Charles Schwab as custodian for our clients. Having your accounts at a third-party custodian adds an extra layer of protection for your assets.

  • We currently work with just over 90 client families. We pride ourselves on the client-advisor experience and being able to provide comprehensive financial planning and investment management services to our clients, without sacrificing quality. Thus, we strategically have fewer clients per fiduciary investment advisor than the industry average.

  • Commissions are payments made to financial advisors or brokers for the sale of financial products, such as stocks, mutual funds, or insurance policies. Fees are charges for services rendered, commonly calculated as a percentage of assets under management. Fees are more transparent, and have fewer potential conflicts of interest.

  • Fees charged are calculated as a percentage of assets under management.

  • As a Fee-Only RIA, conflicts of interest are minimized between advisors and the investment solutions used for our clients. According to a NAPFA, a Fee-Only financial advisor is compensated solely by the client, and does not receive contingent payments or commissions from the sale of financial products.

  • We have a minimum investable asset requirement of $2 million for new client relationships.

Industry Lingo

  • Discretionary investment management is a form of investment management where trading decisions are made for clients at the portfolio manager’s discretion. Under non-discretionary investment management, trades must be discussed and approved by clients before taking place. Most of our client accounts are managed on a discretionary basis, but our clients are free to choose whichever option they prefer.

  • A fiduciary financial advisor is one who acts in utmost good faith, in a manner he or she reasonably believes to be in the best interest of the client. As a Registered Investment Advisor, we act as fiduciaries to our clients. At marrick wealth, our CPA financial planners have an additional fiduciary standard of care as a result of holding CPA and CFP® certifications.

  • Similar to a mutual fund, a separately managed account is a professionally managed investment strategy that owns a basket of securities (e.g., stocks or bonds). Unlike a mutual fund, which pools the assets of multiple investors, a separately managed account is managed on behalf of only one investor, and therefore can be customized to meet the unique investment and tax objectives of that investor.

  • The National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) is the country’s leading professional association of Fee-Only financial advisors who are committed to working in the best interest of those they serve. All of our fiduciary investment advisors are NAPFA-registered financial advisors, which is the highest level of membership. Each advisor in this category must satisfy several requirements, including: holding the CFP® certification, attaining a Bachelor’s Degree, participating in a peer review, and completing 60 hours of continuing education every 2 years.

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