Success is figuring out what you want to do with your life and pursuing it. Money is the tool you use to get there. At some point in life, you reach a realization that life is about more than money. You experience that aha moment when it dawns on you that a meaningful and significant life shouldn’t be spent in pursuit of money; instead, you realize that money is simply a tool that should be used in pursuit of a meaningful and significant life!

The key question would be “Are you managing your money in a way that improves your life?”

Today, the majority of financial advisors follow a financial planning process that focuses almost exclusively on portfolio performance, otherwise known as Return on Investment (ROI). They seem to work under the assumption that money alone equals a fulfilling life. No wonder it often seems that their only interest is in your account and amounts simply because that what helps their bottom line. The more money you give them to manage, the more revenue they generate off you. Unfortunately, most financial advisors you meet with are typically going to begin the conversation asking about your financial assets–what you have and where it’s invested. Your accounts and your amounts will often be their sole interest. The primary focus for these advisors is the Return on Investment (ROL).

Santa Monica Wealth Management has adopted a different approach towards redefining money: instead of accumulating money for what it can buy, more of us want to use money to live the best life possible with what we have––a concept as Return on Life™ (ROL); a concept that coined by Mitch Anthony. Our financial life planning connects your money with your life.

With our financial life planning approach that incorporates with the Return on Life (ROL) concept, money becomes a tool to help you live the life you want. Accumulating as much wealth as possible is no longer the primary objective of your financial life. With our financial life planning, you don’t give up the best of life or the best parts of yourself just to get money. The money is there to serve you, not vice versa. Instead of focusing on someone else’s definition of success, you will write your own. The financial life planning approach puts quality before quantity by managing your assets in a way that improves your life and provides peace of mind and confidence.

At Santa Monica Wealth Management, we believe that a truly great financial planning is about more than money. So, our primary focus is on helping you get a better Return on Life (ROL). If as a result of implementing our financial life planning approach, we were able to improve the quality of your life by even 25% then we’ve made a difference on your life. Our objective is helping you live the best life possible with the money you have. That focus includes helping you make good choices that work for your unique circumstances.

We recognize that our business is to align our clients’ finances with their goals and values while optimizing growth and minimizing unnecessary costs. It is our purpose to help simplify and clarify those life events which can pose challenges both financially and emotionally and to bring greater ease to transitions that, while may be a cause for joy, come with their share of questions and variables.

The traditional path to saving and investing has been to focus on future goals (retirement) and rely solely on numbers and Return on Investment (ROI). However, this approach often can be misleading because it doesn’t consider your individual circumstances. “Beating the market” is often an artificial objective because it is not likely to have a substantive impact on your unique situation. Consider this: what does beating the market by one percent less (or more) mean to how you live your life? Do market returns have an impact on how you live your life?

Our value proposition is to help you experience the best life possible with the money you have. I believe that the quality of my advice is no longer based on predicting the markets, guaranteeing returns or outpacing competing asset managers, but rather on building a life-centered financial planning.

I believe that money, when combined with purpose and planning, leads to a much more fulfilling life. The result of this life-centered planning approach is that our clients are able to live the best lives possible given the money they have.

At Santa Monica Wealth Management, our mission is doing everything we can to help you make the wisest choices in every financial decision. Then, our focus shifts on helping you grow what you have and only taking risks that are absolutely necessary.

In our unique life-centered approach to financial planning we are going to do some work on the front end that will answer three big questions:
1. How did you arrive at your perspectives on money? What was your past experience?
2. Are you managing your money in a way that is improving your life?
3. Are you financially prepared for life’s big transitions?

If you listen to what so-called experts on CNBC, financial media, radio, and in the press say, you will probably hear a substantial amount of conflicting and, perhaps, confusing information about what you should do as an investor. One person tells you that the stock market is poised to double in the next few years, while another warns of an impending long-term bear market. What are you to believe?

The best thing you can do is to stop listening to predictions (or making predictions yourself) and to use what has worked in investing over the long history of the financial markets. In the age of constant news cycles, this can cause confusion for any investor like yourself. There’s a tremendous amount of noise and very little signal. You have to sift through all that noise to get through to the signal underneath.

Think about it; unless you’re getting market moving news before everyone else, what is the advantage of reading something that’s in Barron’s, the Wall Street Journal or the New York Times if the rest of the investing world is acting on it? Whatever strategic benefit there is to gain from this information is lost in the fact that everyone has access to it.

The following summarizes our philosophy about investing. In implementing this philosophy with our clients, we hope to provide them with a distinct advantage over most investors who “do it themselves.”

WE BELIEVE THAT INVESTORS CAN BE THEIR OWN WORST ENEMIES.

You’ve probably heard the advice “buy low, sell high.” Unfortunately, many investors let their emotions get in the way of making well-informed, logical investment decisions. For one thing, many investors chase after “hot” mutual funds or stocks, investing in them well after they’ve already run their course (and when their prices are at, or near, their high points). This “buying high and selling low” approach has a significant adverse impact on the performance of a portfolio.

The CFA institute (the global leader in the investment profession) published in its study of the common investors mistakes states that “fundamental principle of investing is to buy low and sell high, so why do so many investors do the opposite? Instead of rational decision making, many investment decisions are motivated by fear or greed. In many cases, investors buy high in an attempt to maximize short-term returns instead of trying to achieve long-term investment goals. A focus on near-term returns leads to investing in the latest investment craze or fad or investing in the assets or investment strategies that were effective in the near past. Either way, once an investment has become popular and gained the public’s attention, it becomes more difficult to have an edge in determining its value.”

Unfortunately, many investors are also their worst enemies because they are overconfident. These investors trade (buy and sell) their investments more often, because they think they’re right. However, at least one study has shown that such overconfidence hurts the performance of a portfolio. Finally, investors tend to hold on to their losing investments and sell their winners. The losers that investors hold on to generally go on to underperform the stocks that were sold.

WE HELP YOU STAY DISCIPLINED AND MANAGE THE INEVITABLE EMOTIONS THAT COME WITH INVESTING.

Sometimes, you may hesitate to invest because you’re waiting for the right opportunity. Or maybe you’re waiting for the market to goes down deeper so you can re-enter the market. Let’s face it, it is tough to separate your emotions from investing, especially when you’ve spent years saving. Reacting to current market conditions may lead to poor investment choices. We will help you stay disciplined to improve your long-term success.

WE DON’T TRY TO TIME THE MARKET.

We believe that investors should never try to time the market. In fact, nobody has ever done this successfully and consistently over multiple business or stock market cycles. Catching the tops and bottoms is a myth. It is so till today and will remain so in the future. In fact, in doing so, more people have lost far more money than people who have made money. As fiduciaries, we won’t gamble your hard-earned money and life-time savings. A study has been made by the CFA Institute shows that an investor that was out of the market during the top 10 trading days for the S&P 500 Index from 1993 to 2013 would have achieved a 5.4% annualized return instead of 9.2% by staying invested. This difference suggests that investors are better off contributing consistently to their investment portfolio rather than trying to trade in and out in an attempt to time the market.

WE AGREE THAT ASSET ALLOCATION HAS, BY FAR, THE LARGEST IMPACT ON THE PERFORMANCE OF A PORTFOLIO.

Many professional money managers and other investors spend a large part of their investment decision-making time on which specific stocks, bonds, or mutual funds to buy or sell. However, a landmark study concluded that more than 90% of the return of a portfolio is due to how it is allocated among asset classes. In other words, your investment returns are dominated by how your portfolio is allocated, rather than by which specific investments you hold.

A study by Dalbar showed that individual investors made a 3% annualized return in the 1990’s when the market returned 17% a year. This was because retail investors were buying at the top and selling at the bottom in response to emotions. Regarding “efficient market hypothesis” there was a study done that showed that mutual funds that had portfolios that were significantly different from an index fund did beat the market; the funds that did not beat the market were “closet indexers” who lost money because their annual fee caused them to lag the market index.

We believe investment failure is analogous to a pilot who stalls out because he was aiming the airplane up in an excessively steep climb. The proper way to invest is to slowly make gains, rather than seek to make a sudden fast windfall.

WE FOCUS ON MAKING MULTIYEAR INVESTMENTS IN COMPANIES WE THINK WILL THRIVE OVER THE LONG TERM

We focus on the positive and negative developments that are likely to play out over the next 3 to 5 years or longer. Because we seek to benefit from superior long-term corporate performance in excess of market expectations, our holding period is designed to match the multiyear period over which corporate performance unfolds.

Our clients care primarily about the long-term performance of their assets and our investment analysis is focused on meeting those long-term goals. Our average holding period for a stock is three or more years. The average holding time of a stock by the typical Wall Street firm on the other hand is just 11 months. Other investors’ short-term focus plays to our advantage, allowing us to buy stocks that have fallen due to short term issues or sell stocks that have increased excessively in price based on passing good fortunes.

WE KNOW THAT NO ONE CAN CONSISTENTLY OUTPERFORM, OR TIME, THE STOCK MARKET.

The key word here is “consistently.” Sure, some professional money managers and individual investors outperform the stock market now and then, or on a short-term basis. Some people even get lucky and accurately guess what the market will do over a short period of time. Don’t be fooled into thinking that any such short-term “success” translates into long-term success. For example, over longer periods, a mutual fund’s performance tends to revert to the performance of the overall market. The tendency of investors to be influenced by the recent success of a specific mutual fund or asset class results in many people chasing “hot” funds or classes and bailing out of recent poor performers. This is completely contrary to a disciplined asset-allocation strategy, where periodic rebalancing takes the emotion out of investing.

WE KNOW THAT YOUR OVERALL INVESTMENT STRATGEY MATTERS.

The idea behind our strategy is to build a solid foundation using a group of Core Investments and then layering in additional asset classes or sectors or individual securities that typically outperform at different periods in the economic cycle.

One of our key differences is that we take a proactive view in determining client investment strategy. We believe that clients hire an advisor to be proactive and to protect their money in difficult times just as well as helping them make decent returns during the good times. While we present an asset allocation model to each client and strive for that model, if the market dictates a change in strategy, we will notify each client and then implement.

HERE’S WHAT YOU EXPECT WHEN YOU WORK WITH US.

• As an Investment Advisor we assist you in setting up an account with the custodian we use to hold client assets, TD Ameritrade Institutional. You the client then assign us as the Investment Manager over the account. We don’t ever physically have possession of your assets.
• We meet with you to develop an Investment Portfolio that meets your objectives and once you approve the strategy, we begin the investing process.
• TD Ameritrade holds your accounts and will send you monthly statements along with providing online access to view your accounts.
• As a client of Santa Monica Wealth Management, we send you a detailed monthly Statement of Management Fees, so you know exactly how much you pay us for servicing your account(s).
• We maintain an open dialogue with clients via email, phone calls, text messaging and personal meetings.
• We are not paid on commission for investing money, rather an annual fee that is debited by 1/12 of the amount at the end of each month from your account(s).
• We continuously monitor both the markets and your assets to make sure they are performing according to your plan, rebalancing and making adjustments as necessary. Nothing happens in a vacuum — in the markets or in your life. When you have questions, we are there with answers.

We’re here to help you make smarter decisions and to provide the discipline you need to stay the course. As your trusted advisor, we are always here for you, so you never have to worry.

ARE YOU A YOUNG PROFESSIONAL…

• Who loves to travel and enjoy life and in the last few years, your life suddenly got a lot more complicated?
• Who recently got graduated and started a career, moved, or switched jobs again…and now you feel like you’re supposed to have it all figured out?

• Who got a lot going on: growing your career, getting engaged, planning a wedding, or got married recently, starting a family, paying off student loans, buying a home, trying to save what you can, and more?
• Who’re making good money, but can’t decide if it’s better to save for a down payment or pay off your student loans?
• Who want to plan for your honeymoon, but also save for retirement?
• Who want to talk to someone whom you can relate to and someone who understands you?

ARE YOU STRUGGLING TO…

• Balance different financial priorities like saving for short and long-term goals and paying debt?
• Understand your options to best take advantage of financial opportunities and invest?

DO YOU WANT TO…

• Have a life full of meaning and adventure without compromising your financial future?
• Enjoy the daily conveniences that make life more manageable without the nagging stress that you should be doing something different?

If you answered yes to any or all of these questions, then you are in the right place. You don’t have to do your finances alone anymore. We’re here to help you.

WE WORK WITH YOUR BUSY SCHEDULE AND LIFESTYLE

Everyone is busy these days and for most Millennials who are working long hours, building families, and taking time off to jet around the world it can be hard to make time to schedule appointments. Virtual meetings and video conferencing are a solution – based out of Houston area, we work with clients all over the country through virtual client meetings. We wanted to be as accessible to our clients as possible and meet them when it works for them. We want to make our service as convenient for clients as possible. At Santa Monica Wealth Management, we make sure we can work with your lifestyle and will be available when you need us to be.

WE USE HOLISTIC VIEW OF YOU AND YOUR GOALS

I don’t care how much money you have. It’s finding a life plan and strategy so that money isn’t everything, it’s just the tool to help you reach your goals. 80% of what we do at Santa Monica Wealth Management with young professionals like yourself has nothing to do with investing. We help our clients navigate the world of travel hacking (using credit card points to get free flights and trips around the world). Another thing I could help you with is providing a career and business coaching using my own experience as an example. For a number of years I worked for Corporate America, I started my career right after college, working for one of the Big-4 (the largest CPA firms in the world), then years later I worked for one of the “old school” financial planning firm. I’ve always wanted to get more control of my own time and future. I use personal experience as a model for my Millennial entrepreneur clients. Many of them want to have flexibility in their own lives and want to start and launch their own business someday down the road. Another group of my clients don’t see themselves as business owners; they just want to accomplish more and take their careers to the next level. They want to save for and have a lot of mini-retirements “breaks”. Maybe take an extended trip here, work a little bit more, and then take another one. Millennials are most likely going to spend the rest of their lives working not because they necessarily have to, but because they want to be engaged in a work, they are passionate about.

I understand the pressures of what you’re going through, and how this generation has unique concerns and challenges, not faced by our parents, or our parents’ financial advisors.

That’s why we’re at Santa Monica Wealth Management listen and respond to your goals, dreams, concerns and challenges.

Schedule your appointment NOW