Values

Some of the values that are important to us:

Making unbiased, professional financial planning and education accessible to all

Keeping confidentiality, integrity, and care for clients as a fiduciary that always puts the best interests of clients first

Bringing financial planning to more people in underrepresented groups in order to improve financial wellness and make progress towards closing wealth gaps

Donating 2 hours per week of free, pro-bono financial planning or financial education time

Supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) through efforts to increase the number of Black financial planners, woman financial planners, and financial planners from other underrepresented groups

As of February 2024:
-Less than 2% of all CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professionals are Black or African American
-Less than 25% of all CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professionals are Women
-Less than 4% of all CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professionals are Hispanic or Latino
-Less than 5% of all CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professionals are Asian or Pacific Islander
Statistics are from the CFP Board

In addition to Dawn’s personal values, feel free to check out the Core Planning approach and values.

Learn more about Core Planning

How We are Different

Fiduciary

It is common in the financial industry for there to be conflicts of interests in which advisors or agents offer products or approach that might be most profitable for their company and not the best solution for their clients.

We are required to be a fiduciary, who is someone who always does what is best for clients instead of themselves or the company. We do not sell financial products or receive any pay, incentives, or company awards for recommending a particular approach.

Simplicity

It is common for unnecessarily complicated strategies to be marketed as the best approaches.

We offer multiple solutions and explain them in simple terms, without financial jargon. We want to empower you with advice that you can understand. Our investment management approach is long-term, low-cost, and disciplined.

Full-Service Financial Planning

It is common for companies to only manage investments under their investment management fee.

For a similar or often lower investment management fee, we provide ongoing service from the same financial planner, investment management, goal planning, budgeting and cash flow analysis, employee benefits review, investment planning, tax planning, retirement planning, estate planning, and more.

No Asset Minimums for Financial Planning

It is common for financial planners to only accept clients with more than a certain amount of money that can be invested. These amounts are sometimes $250,000, $500,000, $1 million, or more.

We do not require a minimum amount of money for financial planning. Fee-only financial planning is available so that clients can pay a defined rate for services, based upon the complexity of their situation.

Human Advice while Maximizing Technology

It is common for companies to use fully automated investing tools to manage investments. This happens most often for clients who request investment management for amounts below their preferred asset minimums.

We leverage professional financial planning tools and provide reports and software app access for clients. We combine this with knowledge, experience, and the individual needs of clients to develop solutions that clients can complete with success.

Independence

It is common for many companies that manage investments to receive payments (ongoing service fees, trail commissions, payment for distribution, etc.) from mutual fund or annuity companies that create an incentive to recommend funds or annuities from those companies.

We do not receive payments from anywhere outside of our clients. We provide unbiased advice and can assist with implementing this advice through various products at many companies.