Factors that demonstrate our difference

At Raymond James, we have a tradition of doing things differently. In fact, our firm’s founder, Bob James, pioneered the concept of financial planning for the individual – a concept few in our industry had embraced before. The foundation of the Raymond James Service First philosophy was Bob James’ belief that the best way to ensure the firm’s long-term success was to focus primarily on our clients’ needs.

This philosophy has evolved into a company-wide commitment to upholding a standard of service that enhances both client satisfaction and firm growth, and continues to be an important aspect of the firm’s value system.

One of the ways we distinguish our practice is the process we use in designing and managing client portfolios. Our advisory process helps us fully understand your goals and objectives so we can design, implement and manage a plan specifically for you.

We provide institutional-quality fee-based investment management through the Asset Management Services group of Raymond James as well as our own exclusive and customizable program Managed Index Portfolios℠. This discretionary account program couples the benefits of investing in exchange-traded index funds (ETFs) with the power of strategic asset-allocation and periodic rebalancing. Since everyone’s situation and preferences are different, nothing is done in a cookie-cutter fashion. Each portfolio is uniquely crafted to reflect our client’s personal goals and investment objectives.

Working together, we can help you choose the approach and program that is best for you, and as your advisors, we serve as fiduciaries, which means always putting your interests ahead of our own by providing the best recommendations possible.

Retirement, or more specifically having enough money to retire, is by far the most pressing concern for many of our clients. We understand this, and that’s why we provide a financial planning process that addresses real-life concerns, so our clients can be well-prepared.

We begin by simply asking you what your goals are. For example, we’ll ask when you want to retire and help you determine what your income needs will be. If you have children, we’ll discuss college funding options. Perhaps you have other goals, such as buying a second home or traveling during retirement. Once we have a clear understanding of what’s most important to you, we’ll go to work creating your personal financial plan.

Recognizing that the financial markets rarely behave in a predictable fashion, we examine your financial plan using a statistical method that determines how your investments could potentially perform over a thousand different lifetimes. The end result is a stress-tested financial plan that has a high probability of providing you with the income you will need during your retirement; and unlike many advisors who simply provide a single financial plan, our process is dynamic, updated periodically, and on demand.

Are you tired of receiving statements and tax-documents from multiple financial service companies? We can help you consolidate your various investment and retirement accounts, and serve as your personal wealth manager on an ongoing basis.

We’ll meet with you regularly to review your portfolio and financial plan. We can also collaborate with your other professional advisors, such as your CPA and attorney to ensure that your investments complement your tax and estate plans.

Our firm’s account statements, performance reports and tax documents are straightforward and easy to understand. Our online account access enables you to see your account balances, individual security positions, and overall asset-allocation, as well as suppress paper mailings and receive documents electronically.

Our affiliation with Raymond James is another important part of how we serve our clients. Raymond James is one of the largest independent financial services firms in America. Founded in 1962 and a public company since 1983, Raymond James has always been a different kind of company.

Its unique culture of independence gives us complete freedom to offer our objective, unbiased advice without any pressure to push proprietary investment products. The firm’s 4,400 professionals in its St. Petersburg, Florida, headquarters provide the support and resources we need to best serve the needs of our clients.