Q: What exactly is Appleton Group Wealth Management?
A: Appleton Group Wealth Management LLC is an independent Registered Investment Advisor (RIA), that provides wealth management services to a wide range of investors, primarily in Northeast Wisconsin. We provide wealth management services to individuals, corporations, trusts, endowments, foundations, institutions and corporate sponsored retirement plans.
Q: What is The Appleton Group Wealth Management DisciplineTM?
A: The Appleton Group Wealth Management DisciplineTM is our firm's investment process that helps investors successfully navigate everchanging market environments. This discipline uses independent, objective research to first define the current market environment as either supportive or unsupportive of any particular class of investment (such as equities, bonds, real estate or cash). It then prescribes either overweighting or underweighting these investment classes to both maximize returns over time while simultaneously reducing investment risk.
Q: There are a lot of firms that will invest my money. How does Appleton Group Wealth Management compare to its peers?
A: Recently, On Wall Street Magazine, in conjunction with Morningstar® ranked Appleton Group Wealth Management LLC among the top 75 separate account managers in the country, primarily for our work in balancing the rewards of investing with the risk of investment loss. Our firm was the only Wisconsin-based wealth manager to be so recognized. We were also one of the smallest firms among the top 75 that were ranked. Our firm is one of only a handful of truly independent money managers in the state, and one of the few that is not compensated by commissions at any level.
Q: I like what I hear about your firm. How do I open an account?
A: After having a personal and confidential conversation with us, opening an account is easy. First, we'll help you establish an account at one of several low-cost brokerage firms (i.e. Charles Schwab, etc.) and/or trust companies (i.e. Fiduciary Partners, etc.). We manage assets inside of personal accounts, IRAs, trusts, foundations, corporate sponsored retirement plans, and many other types of accounts, so we'll help you open just the right kind of account to meet your needs. We'll also ensure that everything is set up correctly the first time. Next, we'll help you determine which of our managed composites best fits your needs. Once the account is funded, our services begin.
Q: Why don't you sell securities? Everyone sells securities...
A: We believe that selling securities creates a conflict of interest that simply cannot be resolved. While there are certainly ethical investment advisors in the world, being paid commissions of any kind creates the temptation to simply sell an investor a security in order to generate the highest sales charges possible. In addition, since there exist varying levels of commissions for different kinds of investment products, it stands to reason that an investment advisor might recommend a particular kind of investment over another simply to generate a higher commission. Investors are unfortunately not often made aware of what their advisors are being paid. By eliminating commissions and by instead charging a simple annual management fee, our clients know that the investment guidance and recommendations we make are done only with the best interest of our clients in mind. We applaud the many other fee-based advisors in our industry whose compensation structures are in alignment with their clients' goals.
Q: You talk a lot about managing risk. Why is that so important?
A: By effectively managing risk, we believe investors will achieve the highest possible returns overtime. We also believe it can lead to a much better experience along the way. During every bear market in the history of capitalism, investors have been exposed to periods of great uncertainty. To the large number of Americans set to retire in the next ten years, financial uncertainty just before retirement is quite unwelcome, not only causing undue stress but also potentially forcing lifestyle changes as well. By keeping investment losses to acceptable levels when they inevitably do occur, investors will be more likely to remain invested and will be more likely to realize the historically significant returns of the U.S. markets.
Q: I can manage risk by simply adding a lot of bonds and real estate to my holdings, can't I?
A: Bonds have had a stellar run over the past twenty years, as interest rates have come down from the double-digit rates of the early 1980s. This period of time has been the most favorable environment imaginable for bonds, and we believe that run is likely over. With interest rates near fifty year lows, we believe rates may be backed into a corner, offering little reward for investors going forward. In addition, we believe investors with too much exposure to bonds are likely to face the prospect of outliving their money in retirement.
Q: Aren't fee-based managers too expensive?
A: As a fee-based advisor, we embrace our decision to openly disclose all fees to our clients. We limit our compensation solely to the advisory fees charged to our clients in exchange for the full-time, professional guidance we give. Our advisory fees are among the lowest in the industry, and are often tax deductible by our clients (see your tax advisor for more information).
We believe that all investors have a right to know how much they are being charged, whether the firm receives hidden compensation from other sources that may cause conflicts of interest, whether the firm is paid by other entities to sell their clients specific securities, and specifically what compensation their personal advisor receives. With many of our competitors, investors may find it difficult really know what their actual fees are.
