Investment Process

Regardless of your education and experience, most people don’t have the time and resources to successfully design, monitor, and manage their investments. Throw in the human tendency to procrastinate and make emotional decisions, now you have a potential recipe for failure. Working with an independent investment advisor can provide you with the objectivity and accountability you need to avoid mistakes while keeping you on track to reach your financial goals.

At Belle Financial, we provide fee-based asset management services through our RIA, Financial Advocates Investment Management, and third-party custodian, LPL Financial. Many investors prefer a fee-based arrangement to transactional investing for the following reasons:

Continuous account monitoring and management
Independent investment advice
Greater transparency of costs and services
Customization of investments and tax considerations
Account flexibility to accommodate existing holdings and different strategies

Whether you’re retired, independently wealthy, or just getting started, we have strategies designed to help you build and manage your wealth more efficiently and successfully.

Investment Strategies

Without a defined process, strategy, and team of experts, humans are simply not wired to make wise investment decisions, especially during periods of extreme fear or greed. Sticking with your investment strategy during down, volatile, and flat markets requires education, conviction, and a great supporting cast. Our investment strategies and portfolios are designed to weather the storm in all market cycles and provide maximum diversification with more consistent returns to allow our clients the greatest opportunity for success.

We build indexed based portfolios using low cost and low turnover institutional mutual funds or ETFs for both retirement and non-retirement accounts. Depending on the advisory platform being utilized below, we typically select core holdings from one or several of the following Fund Companies: Dimensional Funds Advisors (DFA), Vanguard, iShare ETFs by BlackRock, and SDPR ETFs by State Street Global Advisors. Our client portfolios are globally diversified and strategically allocated with a modest overweight towards the U.S. and other factors. These additional factors may include company size, value, and profitability all within the entire global market capitalization spectrum. We believe this provides the investor with the opportunity to pursue a higher expected return while maintaining full diversification and providing more consistent and better outcomes. We call this smart diversification. Our three-primary fee-based asset management platforms are the following:

Model Wealth Portfolios (MWP): This turnkey, centrally managed, fee-based program offers globally diversified institutional mutual funds and/or ETF model portfolios guided by institutional investment managers, LPL Financial Research, and your dedicated financial advisor. Designed for mid to large account sizes, MWP allows you and your advisor the opportunity to work closely with some of the most respected third-party investment managers in the world, leveraging their keen insight and experience to efficiently and effectively execute your custom investment strategy with precision. MWP provides an additional layer of independent expertise through the LPL Financial Research team to assist with on-going portfolio design and trading, all through one low platform fee based on a percentage of assets managed, separate from your advisor’s asset management fee. Select the MWP Brochure to learn more about this investment platform. Although there are many strategies to select from within MWP (up to 3 strategies within a single account) our primary strategies are:

DFA/LPL: Our DFA models blend both passive and active investing principles, informed by leading academic research and portfolio theorists, including Nobel Prize winning economist. These strategic asset allocation models provide maximum global diversification (over 12,000 stocks throughout 40 countries) while optimizing risk and return characteristics through factor-based investing. Select the MWP DFA/LPL brochure to learn more about this time-tested strategy.
Vanguard/LPL: Our Vanguard global core strategic asset allocation models are designed for investors who are concerned with active manager risk and want a more traditional market weighted portfolio while leveraging the cost efficiencies and diversification benefits of Vanguard ETFs. LPL Financial Research provides on-going portfolio construction using Vanguard's low cost passive ETFs. Select the MWP Vanguard/LPL brochure to learn more about this strategy.
Goldman Sachs/LPL: Our GSAM models blend both passive and active investing principles known as smart beta. These transparent, rules-based strategic asset allocation models are constructed using diversified, low-cast ActiveBeta ETS which tilt towards well-established factors such as good value, strong momentum, high quality, and low volatility. Select the MWP GSAM/LPL brochure to learn more about this strategy.
BlackRock/LPL: Our BlackRock Target Allocation models are designed for investors who want a dynamic strategy that is built on a core strategic asset allocation but provides the flexibility to make changes intra-quarter when unexpected shifts in the market occur and to leverage these opportunities as they arise. These portfolios are constructed using the diversified and low-cost ETF ishares. Select the MWP BlackRock/LPL brochure to learn more about this strategy.
LPL Research: Our core strategic asset allocation models are constructed by LPL's team of independent analysts to provide our clients with objective investment advise. These models are constructed using the most liquid ETFs and our monitored and managed by LPL Research with a dynamic approach, blending strategic investment decisions that work in the current environment while keeping an eye on conditions down the road or as they unfold within the financial markets. Select the MWP LPL Research brochure to learn more about this strategy.

Strategic Wealth Management (SWM): Our discretionary fee-based program through our RIA, Financial Advocates Investment Management, is optimal for clients who want to incorporate our investment philosophy and process but in a way that provides them with more flexibility and customization than what our MWP and GWP model portfolios may provide. In addition, many of the investments you already own may be combined with those we select from within the same account to accommodate your unique set of circumstances. This built-in flexibility may be of value for those investors with taxable accounts and tax sensitivity needs or those with legacy holdings they may have inherited or are simply partial to for a variety of reasons. Trading costs within SWM are paid by the client per trade, separate from your advisor’s asset management fee. Select our SWM brochure to learn more about this flexible investment platform.

Guided Wealth Portfolios (GWP): Investing for your future couldn't be easier through our online centrally managed fee-based program that combines the benefits of a dedicated financial advisor with cutting-edge technology and automated investment advice for one flat fee. GWP was designed for clients with start-up to mid-sized investment accounts who want access to independent and objective investment advice incorporating our investment philosophy and process. GWP provides custom investment management services for retirement and taxable accounts alike guided by several institutional investment managers such as Vanguard, Blackrock, and State Street Global Advisors; LPL Financial Research; and your dedicated financial advisor. Our GWP model portfolios are globally diversified using best-in-class ETFs and are monitored and managed throughout the year and may adjust based on changes within your investor profile as well as changes to the economic and financial landscape. By investing through GWP, you will receive many additional services such as leveraging algorithm-based trading techniques that may help increase diversification and reduce taxes. Select our dedicated GWP (Guided Wealth Portfolios) page to learn more about the program, watch an overview video, and access your dedicated advisor's portal to obtain your free investment proposal and open your new account on-line.

Service Model

As an investment advisor, we have a duty to serve our client’s best interests. As a result, our compensation for portfolio management is based on the assets we manage, not on transactions or product recommendations. We receive no commissions or third-party payments that would inhibit our ability to provide independent and objective advice.

Our asset management fee is based on the value of your account and designed to reward investment advisory clients with reduced fees as their account values grow and reach higher balances. Therefore, the more you invest and/or better performance achieved pushing up your account value, the lower your asset management fee as a percentage of assets managed. Fees are billed on a pro-rata basis quarterly in advance based on the value of your account on the last day of the previous quarter. Fees will generally be automatically deducted from your account by LPL Financial, who serves as our primary custodian for our client’s investment advisory accounts through our RIA, Financial Advocates Investment Management.

Our investment advisory fee includes many aspects of your relationship with our firm, including portfolio design, asset allocation, on-going account management, strategic portfolio rebalancing, third-party custody, account statements and performance reporting, and dedicated on-going client support.