WHY ARE YOU SO EXCITED ABOUT PARTNERING WITH HIGHTOWER?
At Hightower, we have found a partner who shares our vision of sophisticated financial advice, and a company which embraces a fiduciary duty to clients as the central tenet of the firm. We have access to multiple outside investment firms that compete for your business, and we provide unobstructed advice based on your specific needs. We manage our resources with the backing, scale and support of a national boutique firm.
WHY DID YOU LEAVE A BROKER-DEALER AND JOIN HIGHTOWER?
We believe that the best way to provide our clients with transparent advice is to practice independently from a retail or investment bank. In this way, Hightower provides us with a framework to deliver our best advice.
WHERE ARE CLIENTS' ASSETS HELD AND HOW SAFE ARE THEY?
Clients’ assets are held at the custodian of their choice. SEC Rule 15c3-3 (“The Consumer Protection Rule”) requires that client assets be segregated from the assets of their custodial firm. This rule applies to your accounts regardless of which custodian you choose. In addition, all of Hightower’s custodial partners have SIPC Insurance.
WHO IS RJ WEALTH MANAGEMENT'S PRIMARY CUSTODIAN AND WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THEM?
Based on our research and due diligence, we have chosen Schwab Institutional, a division of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., to be our primary custodian. Schwab Institutional holds over $900 billion in assets, and has a long history of providing custodial safety, client service, trading, and technology support to independent financial advisors. We also value Schwab’s trusted brand and stability throughout the financial crisis. Schwab Institutional is one of Hightower’s multiple integrated custodial partners.
AT RJ WEALTH MANAGEMENT, MUST ALL CLIENTS' ASSETS BE HELD AT SCHWAB?
No. We chose Schwab Institutional as our primary custodian because this firm is an excellent fit for most of our clients’ accounts. However, RJ Wealth Management is set up to advise assets held at other third party custodians, including Fidelity Institutional, National Financial Services, and Pershing. Part of our role is to help you select the custodian for your individual financial needs.
CAN I OPEN A COMMISSION-BASED, BROKERAGE ACCOUNT AT RJ WEALTH MANAGEMENT?
Yes. We have the capacity to choose whatever type of account makes sense for each of our clients.
CAN RJ WEALTH MANAGEMENT ACCOMMODATE TRUST ACCOUNTS AND PROVIDE TRUST SERVICES?
Yes. In addition to trust services at Schwab, we have access to additional, independent providers of trust services, including the RBC Trust Company and The Advisory Trust Company of Delaware (ATC). Just as we will advise you on custodian choice, we will also advise you on which trust company we feel is most suitable to your needs.
CAN YOU EXECUTE COMPLEX, MARKET-SENSITIVE TRANSACTIONS FOR ME?
Yes. In addition to our relationships with Schwab, Fidelity, Pershing, and our other custodial partners, Hightower has a robust capital markets desk based in Chicago. Our capital markets desk is staffed with experienced professionals, and it is not a profit center for the firm. This means that Hightower executes clients’ orders at institutional prices, without any markups or extra charges.
HOW IS HIGHTOWER'S RELATIONSHIP WITH CLIENTS DIFFERENT?
All Hightower advisors are committed to a fiduciary relationship with their clients. This means that the discipline of putting your interests first and providing objective advice and solutions is more than just a worthy ambition; it is our duty. The fiduciary duty is the highest standard of care in the investment industry, adhering to the principles of care, loyalty, transparency, trust, and professional responsibility.
DID YOUR WEALTH MANAGEMENT AND INVESTMENT PROCESS CHANGE WHEN YOU JOINED HIGHTOWER?
Our actual processes have improved significantly, due to increased transparency, breadth of investment choices, and research availability. However, our approach to wealth management and our investment process have not changed. We will continue to provide you with comprehensive, long-term financial advice customized to your history and situation. We will continue to align our strategic and tactical market insights with your personal financial goals. We will continue to communicate with you actively about important financial trends and explain how they may affect your financial decisions.
WILL YOU, AS MY ADVISOR, BE ABLE TO VIEW AND ANALYZE ASSETS I OWN OUTSIDE OF HIGHTOWER?
Yes. We have arranged to use reporting software that can provide our clients with truly comprehensive financial reporting. With your consent, we can view accounts held outside of Hightower (such as bank accounts, company 401k plans, and accounts at other investment firms). We can produce comprehensive financial reports for all of your accounts, allowing us to provide integrated, holistic advice.
I USE BANKING FUNCTIONS (LIKE CHECKING, DEBIT CARDS, AUTOMATIC TRANSFERS, AND/OR DIRECT DEPOSIT) LINKED TO MY ACCOUNTS AT MY CURRENT BROKERAGE FIRM. WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO MY BANKING FUNCTIONALITY IF I MOVE MY ACCOUNTS TO RJ WEALTH MANAGEMENT?
If you choose, you will be able to set up all of these banking functions with a new account at your new custodian. However, we encourage our clients to choose the banking arrangement that works for them. Our team will communicate with you to help you coordinate your banking with your investment accounts.
I USE A CREDIT CARD LINKED TO MY ACCOUNTS AT MY CURRENT BROKERAGE FIRM. MAY I KEEP MY CREDIT CARD IF I MOVE MY ACCOUNTS TO RJ WEALTH MANAGEMENT?
Yes. We encourage our clients to use whatever credit card works for them. If your credit card was paid automatically from an account at your old brokerage firm, we will help you set up a new automatic payment arrangement.