GUTH FINANCIAL
FAQs
You have questions. Here are the most common ones we hear:
The answer to this question comes down to one word: ownership. In the wealth management profession, ownership comes in many forms, both literally and figuratively. Owning one’s own business is seen as a commitment or a doubling-down on the value one creates for his clients. It comes from being in a place of confidence that the risk of starting over can create something even stronger and better. Ownership of a business is also ownership of the constant feedback and improvements that allow us to best serve our clients. It allows us to give the most personalized service and never worry that a corporate agenda will be holding us back. We can wake up knowing that we’re staying in line with what we know is best for each and every client we serve. Ownership provides us the constant motivation to find high-quality products, establish the best processes, and to continually improve. Ownership is the ultimate expression of “putting your money where your mouth is”. When it comes to business ownership, there’s no safety net. We know full well that tomorrow only comes from doing our absolute best today.
Initially, once you agree to affiliate with Guth Financial, we will need to get you up and running at our new firm. Thankfully, we have a repeatable and effective process to get this done with the help of our new back office, SCF Securities, and our custodian, Charles Schwab. Our commitment to you is to take your interest in doing business with us and following through to the fullest extent. We’ll need some items and signatures from you, but the burden to get your accounts open and assets transferred is mainly on us. Once we have paperwork completed, the whole process takes about 5-7 business days.
Aside from our physical location (with a nicer view), our name, and logo, your experience will feel the same. We’d compare it to when your hair stylist changes salons.
One of the most important decisions we had to make was who would be our custodian. This is the company that will hold on to your assets and keep them safe. We have chosen one of the largest custodians on the planet, Charles Schwab. As of our launch in July 2022, Charles Schwab manages nearly $8,000,000,000,000 ($8 trillion dollars) in assets over more than 32 million accounts. Charles Schwab is about to get much larger with their acquisition of TD Ameritrade in 2023.
Your account holdings will largely remain unchanged, except in circumstances where it makes sense to make improvements on the way over to Guth Financial. It’s important to note that moving assets from one custodian to another generally does not create taxable events. As with most things that require personalized care and advice, there will be (albeit rarely) small exceptions and, should an exception apply, we will make sure you are aware of the details before making any final decisions.
Although it would have been convenient to let you know in advance, we chose to respect and uphold our end of the agreements we made with our previous firm. We are appreciative of the opportunity given to us by our previous firm and are committed to moral and ethical business practices.
CUSTODIAN
This was of paramount importance as we chose a custodian for your hard-earned assets. Please read this from their report on “How Schwab Protects Your Assets”, found here
“The Charles Schwab Corporation is financially strong, and we are committed to our continued financial health. Our capital and liquidity are sound, and we operate the firm conservatively to minimize the kind of investment risks that have troubled many other securities firms. With the majority of our assets in cash and U.S. Treasury-backed and agency–backed securities, we maintain a conservative, high-quality balance sheet. We emphasize a disciplined focus on risk management, and our internal controls and business standards are designed to keep client assets safe. We know that our success ultimately depends on how we serve our clients and their confidence in us.”
SERVICE AND FEES
Only for the positive. We still want to understand what’s important to you, your tolerance for risk, and your wealth’s effect on your life’s goals. Our process will only get better because of the broad array of investment options at our disposal and the tools and software we use to manage your money. No longer is it “one size fits all.” Now, we can custom tailor our process to each individual client without fear.
No. We will use the same fee schedule as our previous firm. In some cases, your overall fees may be reduced as we identify ways to exchange costly products for more cost-effective ones.
Once we submit completed paperwork to our partners, the process will begin. A transition can take as little as 5 days, but we generally say 5-10 business days. Once submitted, we will keep an eye out for your assets and let you know when they’ve arrived safely. The whole process is highly-technological and highly-regulated, thus ensuring your assets move safely in-kind with all dividends and interest being paid along the way.
You can always navigate to our website and click “Client Login”. There, you will be transported to Charles Schwab’s online access portal created specifically for you, our clients. We will also have a portal dedicated to your financial plan, should you wish to check your progress toward your various goals.
We are located at 2440 Louisiana Blvd NE, Suite 570, Albuquerque, NM 87110 (in the Uptown Tower). You can call us at 505-404-9970 or click the contact button above.
Please reach out as soon as possible to let us know you’re interested in working together. Phone calls are preferred, but you can stop in if you’re local, or submit the “Get in touch” contact form here on the website (at the very top). We will get back in touch by the next business day. It is our sincere belief that our ability to serve you will be worth any minor inconvenience related to this transition. You should expect our commitment to you to remain unwavering, and our service continually improving.
