We provide advice, not products.

Ballast Point Financial Planning is a fee-only firm that does not receive commissions, kickbacks, or any type of revenue from our vendor relationships. The only fees we collect come directly from you, the client. Whether we recommend life insurance, a specific investment strategy, paying down debt, or getting your estate plan done, you can rest assured that we are making these recommendations because they are in your best interest and not to pad our bottom line. We intentionally chose this fee model because we believe it reduces as many conflicts of interest as possible.

Three Major Services

What do you get?

1. Comprehensive financial planning as described below

2. Forward-looking tax advice. Plus the preparation and filing of one personal Federal and state tax return

3. Investment management

How do the fees work?

We try to keep our fees as simple and transparent as possible. To match the timing of the work provided and the complexity of your situation, we charge a one-time onboarding fee and an annual retainer tied to your net worth.

Fees are charged on a flat-fee basis. The flat fees are based on your relationship status and net worth. Your fee will be reviewed annually and adjusted as your financial situation changes. We do not charge an additional investment advisory fee or an additional fee to file your personal tax returns (one Federal return and one state return is included with your annual fee).

The base fee is for clients with net worth up to $2M. For those with a net worth above $2M, there is an additional fee of 0.10% based on the amount of your net worth exceeding $2M. Essentially, for each additional $1M of net worth above $2M, your annual fee increases by $1,000.

Net worth is defined as your total assets (cash, retirement accounts, brokerage accounts, real estate, vested employer stock options, RSU’s, crypto assets, etc.) less total liabilities (student loans, mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, etc.) rounded to the nearest $100k.

There is no required minimum time commitment, however, our services are designed for clients who wish to build a comprehensive long-term advisory relationship.

We review the fee every 12 months. At that review, we adjust it if your financial circumstances have changed. If you grow your wealth significantly (through an IPO, for example) or your financial situation becomes more complicated (you take a job with a complicated equity compensation structure, for example), then your fee will increase in step with your increased wealth and/or complexity.

We believe this fee structure aligns our interests with yours as we both want your net worth to grow! We reserve the right to adjust your fee for special circumstances if there is additional complexity that is not captured by your net worth (ex: pre-IPO planning, inter-family planning, cross-border planning, complex stock planning, private company stock, etc.).

Pricing Examples:

Example 1: A single client with a net worth of $1,500,000 (consisting of home equity, 401k, RSU’s, and taxable brokerage accounts) would pay an annual base fee of $7,200. The one-time onboarding fee would be $1,250 and the base fee would start after the client’s first meeting.

Example 2: A couple with a net worth of $4,000,000 would pay an annual fee of $11,600 ($9,600 base fee + 0.10% of $2,000,000). The one-time onboarding fee would be $1,875 and the base fee would start after the client’s first meeting.

Example 3: A single client with a net worth of $5,000,000 would pay an annual fee of $10,200 ($7,200 base fee + 0.10% of $3,000,000). The one-time onboarding fee would be $1,250 and the base fee would start after the client’s first meeting.

COMPREHENSIVE FINANCIAL PLANNING

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We will follow a three-step process to create a comprehensive financial plan that aligns your finances with your values.

1.     First, we will understand what money means to you and how it fits into your life. Then we will organize your finances so you have a clear picture of where you currently stand right now.

2.     Next, we will talk about your financial goals. What are your short, medium, and long-term goals? What are your dreams? We will work together to clarify your goals so that they are crystal clear and tangible.

3.     Finally, we will create actionable steps to get you on a path towards financial independence, whatever that means to you. 

This process is not something we do once and set aside on a bookshelf. Like physical fitness, your financial fitness needs constant attention throughout your professional career and beyond. But don’t worry, we will be there every step of the way to guide you and to make sure your money is working hard for you! 

Tax Preparation and Forward-Looking Tax Advice

We have found that it is very difficult to find a forward-looking tax advisor that will help you optimize your tax strategy over multiple years. Which is why we go way beyond tax preparation, which is typically backward-facing, to help you develop an ongoing strategy to minimize the impact of taxes on your personal finances over time.

Services include:

• Ongoing strategies to reduce the impact of taxes on your personal finances by creating tax projections

• Preparation and filing of your individual tax return (one personal Federal return and one state return)

• Stock option planning to make the most out of your company equity (including ISOs, NQSOs, RSUs, ESPPs, founders shares, etc.)

• Year-end tax planning

• Estimating your quarterly tax payments to eliminate/reduce any under-withholding penalties

• Amending your historical returns when necessary

Investment Management

We provide full-service investment management for all types of short- and long-term goals. We do not charge a separate fee for investment management, but there is a small platform fee you will pay directly to our investment provider Betterment (note: we negotiated Betterment’s platform fee down from 0.25% to 0.14% so you keep more money in your pocket) and the underlying expense ratios of the funds. We mostly use Vanguard funds to keep your investment expenses as low as possible. We believe in passive investment management and focus on what we can control like global diversification and tax minimization strategies.

Services include:

• Developing an investment strategy based on your specific goals

• Helping you pick the investments within your 401(k)

• Divesting concentrated stock positions

• Tax-loss harvesting

• Facilitating and reporting of Backdoor Roth IRAs

• Monitoring of investment allocations and recommending changes when appropriate

• Paperless account application and transfer process

• Web-based performance reporting

• Automatically investing additional contributions

• Rebalancing of investments