Frequently Asked Questions

Bollin Wealth Management does not charge any fees to prospective clients until they actually decide to become clients. We do not charge for our services until we are absolutely sure that we can help a client obtain their goals and objectives. Schedule a meeting to experience the difference of dealing with a true fiduciary.

Bollin Wealth Management provides our financial planning and investment advisory services on a fee-only basis, which means our fees are fully disclosed to clients and we do not receive commissions for our investment recommendations. We utilize fee-only compensation for our financial planning and investment advisory services because it is the most transparent manner of compensation and eliminates any potential conflicts of interests when providing our services.

We offer three different financial planning service models so our clients can choose the best arrangement for their unique needs. Explore Our Financial Planning Solutions >

The Certified Financial Planner™, or CFP®, designation is a professional designation that is considered by most in the industry to be the gold standard for planners. There are several requirements necessary to earn the Certified Financial Planner™ designation:

  • A bachelor’s degree from an accredited university.
  • Three years of experience in the financial planning profession.
  • 225+ hours of instruction or self-study in the following disciplines: financial and retirement planning, estate planning, taxation, employee benefits planning, investments and insurance.
  • Passing of a ten-hour, two-day comprehensive examination over all the topics of instruction. The passing rate for the examination is roughly 50%.

Upon attainment of the initial CFP® designation, practitioners are required to adhere to the CFP Board Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility, and to the Financial Planning Practice Standards, and to complete 30 hours of continuing education every two years.

To learn more about the Certified Financial Planner™ designation, please visit cfp.net.

A fiduciary duty is the highest standard of care that a financial professional can provide. Bollin Wealth Management strictly adheres to the fiduciary standard of care and upholds this standard by always acting in the best interests of our clients. Our fee-only compensation models eliminate conflicts of interest that arise between clients and advisors who earn commission compensation.

We believe that asset allocation and minimizing costs are the fundamental determinants of long-term investment returns. In stark contrast to the typical Wall Street firm, our disciplined approach to investing relies on sound economic and investing principles, not predictions, forecasts, or anticipating/following trends. We work very closely with our clients to ensure that we understand their entire financial situation before making any recommendations. We then advise our clients on the most appropriate mix of assets for their given age, stage of life, risk tolerance, tax situation, growth and income needs.

We build our recommended portfolios with very low-cost, ultra-diversified investment strategies that have been traditionally reserved for the exclusive use of large institutional investors. Finally, we periodically review portfolios and clients’ situations to ensure that our strategies align with their goals. We typically rebalance portfolios on a semi-annual or annual basis to maintain our disciplined strategies and reliably help our clients buy low and sell high during market cycles.

As “Your Financial Engineer,” Bollin Wealth Management only partners with providers who espouse similar beliefs about markets, investing, and financial planning. Dimensional Funds Advisors, or DFA for short, develops strategies based on the science of investing and capital markets; not on speculation, short-term trends, or schemes created to fatten Wall Street’s pockets. DFA’s mission is to deliver the performance of capital markets and increase returns through state-of-the-art portfolio design and trading. In order to achieve that mission, DFA partners with several of the world’s leading financial economists to constantly refine their understanding of the relationship between risk and return in the world of investing. “We believe successful investing means not only capturing reliable sources of expected return but managing diversifiable risks and other risks that do not increase expected returns.” Essential to DFA’s mission and success are diversification and low-cost. DFA’s portfolios comprise well over 10,000 individual securities from around the globe, offering investors a level of diversification not found elsewhere in the industry. And DFA’s portfolios are one-third to one-fifth of the cost of the average retail mutual fund, and never have a sales load associated with them. The cost savings achieved with DFA’s portfolios show up in your wallet and portfolio statement.
We use Charles Schwab and/or TD Ameritrade to custodian our clients’ assets. We have chosen to work with Charles Schwab and/or TD Ameritrade because of their superior customer service and client web interface, concise and accurate monthly client account statements, and low-cost services.

Absolutely! We believe that Dimensional Fund Advisor funds are the absolute best tools available for building, preserving and transferring wealth for all investors. Additionally, we believe that it is hypocritical as well as ethically irresponsible to not invest in the same strategies that we recommend to our clients.

Although our portfolios may look different from our clients in terms of fund weightings and overall asset allocation, you can be sure that we invest in the same exact fund choices we recommend for our clients’ portfolios.

We provide quarterly performance reports, which illustrate the beginning balance, contributions and withdrawals, the different sources of return, the ending balance, and the percentage and dollar return net of fees during that timeframe. We also compare these returns to various benchmarks, depending upon the type of investment strategy. Clients also receive a monthly statement from the custodian, which list their securities and the associated current values as of month-end. Furthermore, as securities trades are executed, each client will receive a confirmation statement with full details of each purchase or sale. These reports may be mailed or emailed to clients, depending on their preferences. Clients may also view accounts in real-time through the custodian’s website interface.
Bollin Wealth Management does not have trading discretion with clients’ accounts. We always confer with our clients and obtain their approval before executing any trades in their portfolios.
Typically, clients’ portfolios experience trade activity once or twice a year. Most frequently, the trades will be a result of rebalancing clients’ accounts so they are within the acceptable tolerances for portfolio weightings. Occasionally, a client’s financial situation will change, or shifting economic conditions will warrant a change in portfolio strategy.

At the beginning of our relationship, we meet with clients more frequently to ensure there is a thorough understanding of the planning process and investment strategies. Once things have been put in place and a couple of quarterly reports are under our belts, we typically meet with most clients twice a year in person to review performance and financial situations.

Some clients prefer to meet quarterly, some prefer to meet twice a year, and some clients prefer to meet only once a year. It really is all about client preference. Of course, we are always available via phone or email for questions or concerns that cannot wait until the next in-person review.

ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS?

If you have additional financial planning questions, we would be happy to assist you. Please fill out the form below and one of our experienced team members will be in contact with you soon.