Gone are the days of working with one advisor (at least at Rockbridge!). Our clients have access to the unique skill sets of our entire professional staff. Whether it’s a simple question about budgeting or a comprehensive estate/tax planning concern, we have the expertise to handle anything. We are proud to have a team with the most comprehensive industry credentials, allowing us to provide quality, unbiased advice.
We are solely compensated through your fully disclosed fees. We eliminate any conflicts of interest by refusing commissions or other misaligned third-party incentives. This eliminates any conflicts of interest.
Fees matter, and we realize that. We target specific markets to invest in and gain exposure to those markets at the lowest possible costs–an evidence-based approach to investing. Simply put, we provide high value at fair costs, something much of the industry cannot say.
Perhaps our biggest point of distinction is that all of our services, strategies and advice are centered on ensuring that your unique goals, challenges and opportunities are the driving force behind your financial activities.
Closely related to the fiduciary standard of care offered by Registered Investment Advisor firms, there is the matter of compensation: Who is paying the bills? In a commission-based model, traditional brokers and similar financial intermediaries are paid by the companies whose products they buy and sell. How might that affect their loyalties?
It depends on the fee-only investment advisor, but we can tell you what we do at Rockbridge. At the highest level, we help you build or maintain your wealth in a meaningful way, so you can feel free to do what you want with your life. In the face of life’s many uncertainties, we want to make investing as easy and effective as possible for you.
There are essentially two ways to participate in our financial markets. You can form a relationship with a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) firm to serve as a liaison between you and the brokers who execute your trades. Or you can work directly with a broker.
That’s a fair question. It’s hard to find an advisor who offers all the investment advisor services we’ve described above, but we’d be flat-out lying if we claimed to be the only one. So, beyond our robust services, we believe we’re an appealing choice because our business is built around our commitment to client care.
Yes, you can, sort of. Good, basic investing isn’t rocket science. But even so, most people don’t do it nearly as well on their own.
As if the financial industry weren’t complicated enough, there are fee-only investment advisors and fee-based advisors — and a Registered Investment Advisor firm can be either. As the wording implies, fee-only investment advisors like Rockbridge receive NO commissions or any other forms of compensation from ANY outside sources. At the other end of the spectrum, commissioned brokers receive most or all of their revenue from the companies whose products they buy and sell. Fee-based advisors fall into a gray area. They receive most of their revenue from client fees, but they also receive portions of their revenue from outside sources. A common example is investment advisors who also are insurance agents, receiving fees from their clients as well as commissions from selling insurance policies.
By now, we hope we’ve convinced you of the advantages of turning to a fee-only investment, Registered Investment Advisor firm for assistance in achieving your long-term financial goals. But even within this narrower scope, there are often multiple choices. How do you decide?
Are you seeking to build wealth according to a customized plan, based on your personal goals? Are you willing to adopt a patient, long-term strategy for doing so? If so, we believe you’re a good candidate for working with Rockbridge, or a similar fee-only investment advisor.
The short answer is, it depends. First, it helps to understand different kinds of investment risk.
The best time to “react” to a bear market is long before it happens. To manage your wealth through good times and bad, we emphasize planning and preparation as the foundation upon which to build.
No gimmicks, just clear and honest financial advice you can trust. We’re fee-only advisors—no hidden agendas or conflicts of interest. At Rockbridge, clarity comes first, so you’re always confident in your financial decisions.