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Financial Advisory Partners, LLC
1201 S. Orlando Avenue; Suite 350
Winter Park, FL 32789
Telephone: 407-478-6314
Fax: 407-478-6314
January 21, 2026
PART 2A - APPENDIX 1
WRAP FEE PROGRAM BROCHURE
This Brochure provides information about the qualifications and business practices of Financial Advisory
Partners, LLC. If you have any questions about the contents of this Brochure, please contact us at 407-
461-7240. The information in this Brochure has not been approved or verified by the United States
Securities and Exchange Commission or by any state securities authority.
Additional information about Financial Advisory Partners, LLC is available on the SEC's website at
www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.
Financial Advisory Partners, LLC is a registered investment adviser. Registration with the United States
Securities and Exchange Commission or any state securities authority does not imply a certain level of
skill or training.
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Item 2 Summary of Material Changes
Form ADV Part 2 requires registered investment advisers to amend their brochure when information
becomes materially inaccurate. If there are any material changes to an adviser's disclosure brochure,
the adviser is required to notify you and provide you with a description of the material changes.
Since our last annual updating amendment, dated March 18, 2025, we have the following material
changes to our Form ADV Part 2.
We have updated this Brochure to disclose an update to our firm’s ownership structure
resulting from planned business continuity and succession plans. There have been no
changes to our firm’s day-to-today business operations. Please refer to Item 4 of this
Brochure for more information.
Please contact us if you have any questions about these changes.
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Item 3 Table of Contents
Item 2 Summary of Material Changes ................................................................................. 2
Item 3 Table of Contents ..................................................................................................... 3
Item 4 Services, Fees, and Compensation .......................................................................... 4
Item 5 Account Requirements and Types of Clients ............................................................ 8
Item 6 Portfolio Manager Selection and Evaluation ............................................................. 9
Item 7 Client Information Provided to Portfolio Managers ................................................. 14
Item 8 Client Contact with Portfolio Managers................................................................... 14
Item 9 Additional Information ............................................................................................ 14
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Item 4 Services, Fees, and Compensation
Description of Firm
Financial Advisory Partners, LLC is a registered investment adviser based in Winter Park, FL. We are
organized as a limited liability company ("LLC") under the laws of the State of Florida. Our firm has been
a legal entity since 2008, and our firm has been providing investment advisory services since November
2020. We are primarily owned by Alexander van den Berg and David Sutphin, each with over 35 years
in the financial industry. Our firm also has minority owners. NBC Holdings, LLC, Northstar Bank, and
Pierre Allard each hold minority ownership interests in our firm. Please refer to Item 10 of this Brochure
for more information on our firm’s affiliates.
The following paragraphs describe our services and fees. Please refer to the description of each
investment advisory service listed below for information on how we tailor our advisory services to your
individual needs. As used in this Brochure, the words "we," "our," and "us" refer to Financial Advisory
Partners, LLC and the words "you," "your," and "client" refer to you as either a client or prospective client
of our firm.
Wrap Fee Program - Portfolio Management Services
We offer portfolio management services through a wrap-fee program ("Program") as described in this
Wrap Fee Program Brochure. We are the sponsor and investment adviser for the Program. We also use
unaffiliated third-party manager(s), namely NBC Asset Management (doing business on behalf of NBC
Securities), to assist with managing portfolios.
A wrap-fee program is a type of investment program that provides clients with portfolio management and
brokerage services for one all-inclusive fee. Prior to becoming a client under the Program, you will be
required to enter into a separate written agreement with us that sets forth the terms and conditions of
the engagement and describes the scope of the services to be provided, and the fees to be paid.
If you participate in our wrap fee program, you will pay our firm a single fee, which includes our
investment advisory and portfolio management services, custodial services, and the securities
transactions associated with your account(s). You are not charged separate fees for the respective
components of the total services. We receive a portion of the wrap fee for our services. The overall cost
you will incur if you participate in our wrap fee program may be higher or lower than you might incur by
separately purchasing the types of securities available.
Client Investment Process
We offer discretionary portfolio management services tailored to meet our clients' needs and investment
objectives. If you engage our firm for discretionary portfolio management services, we require you to
grant our firm discretionary authority that will allow us to determine the specific securities, and the amount
of securities, to be purchased or sold for your account without your approval prior to each
transaction. This discretionary authority will also provide our firm with authorization to delegate
discretionary management services to other unaffiliated third-party managers selected by our firm based
on your investment objectives and/or determined portfolio strategy. In our sole discretion, we may accept
instructions from you that limit our discretionary authority (for example, limiting the types of securities
that can be purchased or sold for your account). Such requests must be presented to our firm in writing. If
you enter into non-discretionary arrangements with our firm, we will obtain your approval prior to the
execution of any transactions for your account(s).
We will regularly monitor the performance of your accounts managed by the selected third-party
manager, and may hire and fire any third-party manager in our sole discretion. When determining
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the third-party manager, the client’s best interest will be the main determining factor. Other factors that
we take into consideration include, but are not limited to, the third-party manager's services,
performance, investment strategies, fees, and other added value that we believe will benefit our clients.
To compare the cost of the wrap fee program with non-wrap fee portfolio management services, you
should consider the frequency of trading activity associated with our investment strategies and the
brokerage commissions charged by respective broker-dealer/custodian and the advisory fees charged
by our firm in comparison to other registered investment advisers.
investment objectives, risk
Changes in Your Financial Circumstances
In providing the contracted services, we are not required to verify any information we receive from you
or from your other professionals (e.g., attorney, accountant, etc.) and we are expressly authorized to rely
on the information you provide. Furthermore, unless you indicate to the contrary, we shall assume that
there are no restrictions on our services, other than to manage your account in accordance with your
designated
time horizon (collectively, "investment
tolerance, and
parameters"). It is your responsibility to promptly notify us if there are ever any changes in your financial
situation or investment parameters for the purpose of reviewing, evaluating, and/or revising our previous
recommendations and services.
The Program Fee
We charge an annual "wrap-fee" for participation in the Program where you will pay our firm a single fee,
which covers portfolio management fees, custodial service fees, and the associated costs of the related
securities transaction. Our annual fee is based on a percentage of the assets in your account, which
ranges up to 2.00% (inclusive of any third-party manager fees). The annual portfolio management fee is
billed and payable quarterly in advance based on the value of your account on the last business day of
the previous quarter. If the portfolio management agreement is executed at any time other than the first
day of a calendar quarter, our fees will apply on a pro rata basis, which means that the advisory fee is
payable in proportion to the number of days in the quarter for which you are a client. Our advisory fee is
negotiable, depending on individual client circumstances. Where we use the services of a third-party
manager to assist with your investments, we will pay a portion of our advisory fee to the third-party
managers.
For clients where a managed Futures Mutual Fund advised by PIMCO (symbol PQTIX) and/or a non-
traded /limited liquidity Real Estate Investment Trust BREIT managed/advised by Blackstone are
included in their allocation, our annual fee for management services is 0.75%. Clients may also incur
additional management and/or performance fees imposed by unaffiliated managers. As part of extending
this investment opportunity to clients, we will review the investment and respective management fees
with all relative clients prior to moving forward with the investment. The minimum account size for each
strategy will be $50,000.
Our fees for portfolio management services will be deducted directly from your account through the
qualified custodian holding your funds and securities. We will deduct our advisory fee only when you
have given our firm written authorization permitting the fees to be paid directly from your account.
Further, the qualified custodian will deliver an account statement to you at least quarterly. These account
statements will show all disbursements from your account, and you should review all statements for
accuracy. If you have any questions about the statement(s) you receive from the qualified custodian,
please call our main office number located on the cover page of this Brochure.
Our agreement for services will continue in effect until terminated by either party upon 30-days' written
notice to the other party. You will incur a pro rata charge for services rendered prior to the termination of
the agreement, which means you will incur advisory fees only in proportion to the number of days in the
quarter for which you are a client. If you have pre-paid advisory fees that we have not yet earned, you
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will receive a prorated refund of those fees.
As a client, you should be aware that the wrap fee charged by our firm may be higher (or lower) than
those charged by others in the industry, and that it may be possible to obtain the same or similar services
from other firms at lower (or higher) rates. A client may be able to obtain some or all of the types of
services available through our firm's wrap fee program on an individual basis through other firms and,
depending on the circumstances, the aggregate of any separately paid fees may be lower or higher than
the annual fees shown above.
Payment of Fees
Our fees for portfolio management services will be deducted directly from your account through the
qualified custodian holding your funds and securities. We will deduct our advisory fee only when you
have given our firm written authorization permitting the fees to be paid directly from your account.
Further, the qualified custodian will deliver an account statement to you at least quarterly. These account
statements will show all disbursements from your account, and you should review all statements for
accuracy. If you have any questions about the statement(s) you receive from the qualified custodian,
please call our main office number located on the cover page of this Brochure.
FAP may calculate an additional Program fee or refund a portion of the quarterly fee paid in advance if
any one deposit or withdrawal (without adjustment for any changes in the value of Account assets during
the quarter) causes the value of the assets in the Account to increase or decrease by $25,000 or more.
In each case, the additional fee or refund will be equal to the applicable quarterly fee rate times the
amount of the deposit or withdrawal pro
rated based on the number of days from the date of the triggering
deposit or withdrawal to the last day of the quarter.
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Termination of Advisory Relationship
Our agreement for services will continue in effect until terminated by either party upon 30-days' written
notice to the other party. You will incur a pro rata charge for services rendered prior to the termination of
the agreement, which means you will incur advisory fees only in proportion to the number of days in the
quarter for which you are a client. If you have pre-paid advisory fees that we have not yet earned, you
will receive a prorated refund of those fees.
Wrap Fee Program Disclosures
• The benefits under a wrap fee program depend, in part, upon the size of the Account, the
management fee charged, and the number of transactions likely to be generated in the Account.
For example, a wrap fee program may not be suitable for Accounts with little trading activity. In
order to evaluate whether a wrap fee program is suitable for you, you should compare the
Program Fee and any other costs of the Program with the amounts that would be charged by
other advisers, broker-dealers, and custodians, for advisory fees, brokerage and other execution
costs, and custodial services comparable to those provided under the Program.
• In considering the investment programs described in this Brochure, you should be aware that
participating in a wrap fee program may cost more or less than the cost of purchasing advisory,
brokerage, and custodial services separately from other advisers or broker-dealers.
• Our firm and Associated Persons receive compensation as a result of your participation in the
Program. This compensation may be more than the amount our firm or the Associated Persons
would receive if you paid separately for investment advice, brokerage, and other services.
Accordingly, a conflict of interest exists because our firm and our Associated Persons have a
financial incentive to recommend the Program.
• Similar advisory services may be available from other registered investment advisers for lower
fees.
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Additional Fees And Expenses
The Program Fee covers the investment advisory services rendered by FAP and the Investment
Manager. The Program Fee, subject to the exceptions listed below, also covers charges applicable to
securities transactions effected for the Account by the Investment Manager through NBC Securities, Inc.
(“NBCS”) and RBC Wealth Management. The Program Fee does not cover, and Client will be additionally
responsible and charged for:
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Interest on debit account balances, where applicable;
•
Investment Access Account fees, where applicable;
•
IRA custodial fees, qualified retirement plan account fees and other account maintenance fees;
• Usual and customary transaction charges on the liquidation of assets not eligible for the ProAm
Program;
• Management and other fees on the ETF securities purchased in the account;
• Margin interest, if applicable; and
• Check reordering cost and fees, where applicable.
The Program Fee does not include mark-ups and mark-downs, dealer spreads or other costs associated
with the purchase or sale of securities, interest, taxes, or other costs, such as national securities
exchange fees, charges for transactions not executed through the Qualified Custodian.
The wrap program fees that you pay to our firm for portfolio management services are separate and
distinct from the fees and expenses charged by mutual funds or exchange traded funds (described in
each fund's prospectus) to their shareholders. These fees will generally include a management fee and
other fund expenses. To fully understand the total cost you will incur, you should review all the fees
charged by mutual funds, exchange traded funds, our firm, and others.
If you have any questions about fees that your account might be responsible for, please contact us.
Brokerage Practices
For clients engaging our firm for portfolio management services, clients must open one or more custodial
accounts in their own name at an independent custodian. We consider several factors in recommending
a broker-dealer/custodian to a client. Factors that we consider when recommending a broker-
dealer/custodian may include ease of use, reputation, service execution, pricing and financial strength.
We may also take into consideration the availability of the research and/or services received or offered
by the broker-dealer/custodian.
While you are free to choose any broker-dealer/custodian or other service provider, we require that you
establish an account with a brokerage / custodial firm with whom we have an existing relationship. Not
all advisers require their clients to direct brokerage. For clients in need of brokerage and custodial
services, we generally recommend the use of NBC Securities, Inc. and RBC Wealth Management,
respectively.
As a registered investment adviser, we have access to the institutional platform of your account
custodian. As such, we will also have access to research products and services from your account
custodian and/or other brokerage firm. These products may include financial publications, information
about particular companies and industries, research software, and other products or services that
provide lawful and appropriate assistance to our firm in the performance of our investment decision-
making responsibilities. Such research products and services are provided to all investment advisers
that utilize the institutional services platforms of these firms, and are not considered to be paid for with
soft dollars. However, you should be aware that the commissions charged by a particular broker for a
particular transaction or set of transactions may be greater than the amounts another broker who did not
provide research services or products might charge.
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Research and Other Soft Dollar Benefits
We do not have any soft dollar arrangements.
Brokerage for Client Referrals
We do not receive client referrals from broker-dealers in exchange for cash or other compensation, such
as brokerage services or research.
Trade Errors
In the event a trading error occurs in your account, our policy is to restore your account to the position it
should have been in had the trading error not occurred. Depending on the circumstances, corrective
actions may include canceling the trade, adjusting an allocation, and/or reimbursing the account.
Aggregated Trades
We may combine multiple orders for shares of the same securities purchased for discretionary advisory
accounts we manage (this practice is commonly referred to as "aggregated trading"). We will then
distribute a portion of the shares to participating accounts in a fair and equitable manner. Generally,
participating accounts will pay a fixed transaction cost regardless of the number of shares transacted. In
certain cases, each participating account pays an average price per share for all transactions and pays
a proportionate share of all transaction costs on any given day. In the event an order is only partially
filled, the shares will be allocated to participating accounts in a fair and equitable manner, typically in
proportion to the size of each client’s order. Accounts owned by our firm or persons associated with our
firm may participate in aggregated trading with your accounts; however, they will not be given preferential
treatment.
We do not aggregate trades for non-discretionary accounts. Accordingly, non-discretionary accounts
may pay different costs than discretionary accounts pay. If you enter into non-discretionary arrangements
with our firm, we may not be able to buy and sell the same quantities of securities for you and you may
pay higher commissions, fees, and/or transaction costs than clients who enter into discretionary
arrangements with our firm.
Assets Under Management
As of December 31, 2024, we provide continuous management services for $325,063,700 in client
assets on a discretionary basis.
Item 5 Account Requirements and Types of Clients
We typically offer investment advisory services to individuals, high net worth individuals, charitable
organizations, corporations or other businesses.
In general, we require a minimum of $100,000 to open and maintain an advisory account. At our
discretion, we may waive this minimum account size. For example, we may waive the minimum if you
appear to have significant potential for increasing your assets under our management. We may also
combine account values for you and your minor children, joint accounts with your spouse, and other
types of related accounts to meet the stated minimum.
For clients where alternative investments are included in their allocation, we require a minimum account
size of $50,000 for each strategy selected.
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Item 6 Portfolio Manager Selection and Evaluation
We are the sponsor and portfolio manager for the Program.
We also use unaffiliated third-party manager(s) to manage your investment portfolio. Typically, we use
NBC Asset Management. We conduct extensive due diligence on any third-party manager that we use
to help manage your account(s) to help ensure that the investment strategies remained allied with your
designated investment objectives.
We review each third-party manager (Manager) before selecting them to be included in our program to manage
client assets. We also conduct an annual review to ensure that the manager is still suitable for our
programs.
Each Manager is evaluated on the basis of information provided by the Manager including descriptions of its
investment process, asset allocation strategies employed, sample portfolios to review securities selections,
and the Manager’s Form ADV Disclosure Brochure, among other items. We attempt to verify the information
provided by comparing it to other data from publicly available data collection sources.
We do not require that Managers adhere to GIPS/CFA Institute standards. Managers may provide
information that does not entirely conform to these requirements.
Each Manager we recommend is screened and selected using a number of criteria, including but not limited
to:
• Manager or management team tenure and experience;
• Performance within peer group;
• Portfolio turnover;
• Expenses and costs of Manager;
• Meetings and availability with manager of Manager; and
• Participation in educational forums and conference calls offered by the Manager.
Factors influencing a Manager change might include the following:
• Performance;
• Change of ownership;
• Strategic or tactical change away from a particular sector or asset class; and
• Costs.
Please refer to Services, Fees, and Compensation for additional disclosures on costs associated with
your participation in the Program.
Performance-Based Fees and Side-by-Side Management
We do not accept performance-based fees or participate in side-by-side management. Performance-
based fees are fees that are based on a share of capital gains or capital appreciation of a client's account.
Side-by-side management refers to the practice of managing accounts that are charged performance-
based fees while at the same time managing accounts that are not charged performance-based fees.
Our fees are calculated as described above, and are not charged on the basis of a share of capital gains
upon, or capital appreciation of, the funds in your advisory account.
Our Methods of Analysis and Investment Strategies
We may use one or more of the following methods of analysis or investment strategies when providing
investment advice to you:
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Charting Analysis - involves the gathering and processing of price and volume pattern information for a
particular security, sector, broad index or commodity. This price and volume pattern information is
analyzed. The resulting pattern and correlation data is used to detect departures from expected
performance and diversification and predict future price movements and trends.
Risk: Our charting analysis may not accurately detect anomalies or predict future price movements.
Current prices of securities may reflect all information known about the security and day-to-day changes
in market prices of securities may follow random patterns and may not be predictable with any reliable
degree of accuracy.
Technical Analysis - involves studying past price patterns, trends and interrelationships in the financial
markets to assess risk-adjusted performance and predict the direction of both the overall market and
specific securities.
Risk: The risk of market timing based on technical analysis is that our analysis may not accurately detect
anomalies or predict future price movements. Current prices of securities may reflect all information
known about the security and day-to-day changes in market prices of securities may follow random
patterns and may not be predictable with any reliable degree of accuracy.
Fundamental Analysis - involves analyzing individual companies and their industry groups, such as a
company's financial statements, details regarding the company's product line, the experience and
expertise of the company's management, and the outlook for the company and its industry. The resulting
data is used to measure the true value of the company's stock compared to the current market value.
Risk: The risk of fundamental analysis is that information obtained may be incorrect and the analysis
may not provide an accurate estimate of earnings, which may be the basis for a stock's value. If securities
prices adjust rapidly to new information, utilizing fundamental analysis may not result in favorable
performance.
Cyclical Analysis - a type of technical analysis that involves evaluating recurring price patterns and
trends. Economic/business cycles may not be predictable and may have many fluctuations between
long-term expansions and contractions.
Risk: The lengths of economic cycles may be difficult to predict with accuracy and therefore the risk of
cyclical analysis is the difficulty in predicting economic trends and consequently the changing value of
securities that would be affected by these changing trends.
Modern Portfolio Theory - a theory of investment which attempts to maximize portfolio expected return
for a given amount of portfolio risk, or equivalently minimize risk for a given level of expected return, by
carefully diversifying the proportions of various assets.
Risk: Market risk is that part of a security's risk that is common to all securities of the same general class
(stocks and bonds) and thus cannot be eliminated by diversification.
Long-Term Purchases - securities purchased with the expectation that the value of those securities will
grow over a relatively long period of time, generally greater than one year.
Risk: Using a long-term purchase strategy generally assumes the financial markets will go up in the long-
term which may not be the case. There is also the risk that the segment of the market that you are
invested in or perhaps just your particular investment will go down over time even if the overall financial
markets advance. Purchasing investments long-term may create an opportunity cost - "locking-up"
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assets that may be better utilized in the short-term in other investments.
Short-Term Purchases - securities purchased with the expectation that they will be sold within a relatively
short period of time, generally less than one year, to take advantage of the securities' short-term price
fluctuations.
Risk: Using a short-term purchase strategy generally assumes that we can predict how financial markets
will perform in the short-term which may be very difficult and will incur a disproportionately higher amount
of transaction costs compared to long-term trading. There are many factors that can affect financial
market performance in the short-term (such as short-term interest rate changes, cyclical earnings
announcements, etc.) but may have a smaller impact over longer periods of times.
Option Writing - a securities transaction that involves selling an option. An option is a contract that gives
the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a particular security at a specified price on or
before the expiration date of the option. When an investor sells a call option, he or she must deliver to
the buyer a specified number of shares if the buyer exercises the option. When an investor sells a put
option, he or she must pay the strike price per share if the buyer exercises the option, and will receive
the specified number of shares. The option writer/seller receives a premium (the market price of the
option at a particular time) in exchange for writing the option.
Risk: Options are complex investments and can be very risky, especially if the investor does not own the
underlying stock. In certain situations, an investor's risk can be unlimited.
Trading - We may use frequent trading (in general, selling securities within 30 days of purchasing the
same securities) as an investment strategy when managing your account(s). Frequent trading is not a
fundamental part of our overall investment strategy, but we may use this strategy occasionally when we
determine that it is suitable given your stated investment objectives and tolerance for risk. This may
include buying and selling securities frequently in an effort to capture significant market gains and avoid
significant losses.
Risk: When a frequent trading policy is in effect, there is a risk that investment performance within your
account may be negatively affected, particularly through increased brokerage and other transactional
costs and taxes.
Our investment strategies and advice may vary depending upon each client's specific financial situation.
As such, we determine investments and allocations based upon your predefined objectives, risk
tolerance, time horizon, financial information, liquidity needs and other various suitability factors. Your
restrictions and guidelines may affect the composition of your portfolio. It is important that you notify us
immediately with respect to any material changes to your financial circumstances, including for example,
a change in your current or expected income level, tax circumstances, or employment status.
Tax Considerations
Our strategies and investments may have unique and significant tax implications. However, unless we
specifically agree otherwise, and in writing, tax efficiency is not our primary consideration in the
management of your assets. Regardless of your account size or any other factors, we strongly
recommend that you consult with a tax professional regarding the investing of your assets.
Custodians and broker-dealers must report the cost basis of equities acquired in client accounts. Your
custodian will default to the First-In First-Out ("FIFO") accounting method for calculating the cost basis
of your investments. You are responsible for contacting your tax advisor to determine if this accounting
method is the right choice for you. If your tax advisor believes another accounting method is more
advantageous, provide written notice to our firm immediately and we will alert your account custodian of
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your individually selected accounting method. Decisions about cost basis accounting methods will need
to be made before trades settle, as the cost basis method cannot be changed after settlement.
Risk of Loss
Investing in securities involves risk of loss that you should be prepared to bear. We do not represent or
guarantee that our services or methods of analysis can or will predict future results, successfully identify
market tops or bottoms, or insulate clients from losses due to market corrections or declines. We cannot
offer any guarantees or promises that your financial goals and objectives will be met. Past performance
is in no way an indication of future performance.
Other Risk Considerations
When evaluating risk, financial loss may be viewed differently by each client and may depend on many
different risks, each of which may affect the probability and magnitude of any potential loses. The
following risks may not be all-inclusive, but should be considered carefully by a prospective client before
retaining our services.
Liquidity Risk: The risk of being unable to sell your investment at a fair price at a given time due to high
volatility or lack of active liquid markets. You may receive a lower price or it may not be possible to sell
the investment at all.
Credit Risk: Credit risk typically applies to debt investments such as corporate, municipal, and sovereign
fixed income or bonds. A bond issuing entity can experience a credit event that could impair or erase the
value of an issuer’s securities held by a client.
Inflation and Interest Rate Risk: Security prices and portfolio returns will likely vary in response to
changes in inflation and interest rates. Inflation causes the value of future dollars to be worth less and
may reduce the purchasing power of a client’s future interest payments and principal. Inflation also
generally leads to higher interest rates which may cause the value of many types of fixed income
investments to decline.
Horizon and Longevity Risk: The risk that your investment horizon is shortened because of an
unforeseen event, for example, the loss of your job. This may force you to sell investments that you were
expecting to hold for the long term. If you must sell at a time that the markets are down, you may lose
money. Longevity Risk is the risk of outliving your savings. This risk is particularly relevant for people
who are retired, or are nearing retirement.
Recommendation of Particular Types of Securities
We offer advice on equity securities, exchange traded funds, Mutual Fund Shares and Real Estate
Investment Trust ("REIT"). We may also recommend other types of securities since each client may
have different needs and/or risk tolerances. Each type of security has its own unique set of risks
associated with it and it would not be possible to list here all of the specific risks of every type of
investment. Even within the same type of investment, risks can vary widely. However, in very general
terms, the higher the anticipated return of an investment, the higher the risk of loss associated with it.
Equity Securities (Stocks): There are numerous ways of measuring the risk of equity securities (also
known simply as "equities" or "stock"). In very broad terms, the value of a stock depends on the financial
health of the company issuing it. However, stock prices can be affected by many other factors including,
but not limited to the class of stock (for example, preferred or common); the health of the market sector
of the issuing company; and the overall health of the economy. In general, larger, better-established
companies ("large cap") tend to be safer than smaller start-up companies ("small cap") are but the mere
size of an issuer is not, by itself, an indicator of the safety of the investment.
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Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs): Mutual funds and exchange traded funds ("ETF")
are professionally managed collective investment systems that pool money from many investors and
invest in stocks, bonds, short-term money market instruments, other mutual funds, other securities, or
any combination thereof. The fund will have a manager that trades the fund's investments in accordance
with the fund's investment objective. While mutual funds and ETFs generally provide diversification, risks
can be significantly increased if the fund is concentrated in a particular sector of the market, primarily
invests in small cap or speculative companies, uses leverage (i.e., borrows money) to a significant
degree, or concentrates in a particular type of security (i.e., equities) rather than balancing the fund with
different types of securities. ETFs differ from mutual funds since they can be bought and sold throughout
the day like stock and their price can fluctuate throughout the day. The returns on mutual funds and
ETFs can be reduced by the costs to manage the funds. Also, while some mutual funds are "no load"
and charge no fee to buy into, or sell out of, the fund, other types of mutual funds do charge such fees
which can also reduce returns. Mutual funds can also be "closed end" or "open end". So-called "open
end" mutual funds continue to allow in new investors indefinitely whereas "closed end" funds have a
fixed number of shares to sell which can limit their availability to new investors.
ETFs may have tracking error risks. For example, the ETF investment adviser may not be able to cause
the ETF’s performance to match that of its Underlying Index or other benchmark, which may negatively
affect the ETF's performance. In addition, for leveraged and inverse ETFs that seek to track the
performance of their Underlying Indices or benchmarks on a daily basis, mathematical compounding
may prevent the ETF from correlating with performance of its benchmark. In addition, an ETF may not
have investment exposure to all of the securities included in its Underlying Index, or its weighting of
investment exposure to such securities may vary from that of the Underlying Index. Some ETFs may
invest in securities or financial instruments that are not included in the Underlying Index, but which are
expected to yield similar performance.
Real Estate Investment Trust ("REIT"): A real estate investment trust ("REIT") is a corporate entity which
invests in real estate and/or engages in real estate financing. A REIT reduces or eliminates corporate
income taxes. REITs can be publicly or privately held. Public REITs may be listed on public stock
exchanges. REITs are required to declare 90% of their taxable income as dividends, but they actually
pay dividends out of funds from operations, so cash flow has to be strong or the REIT must either dip
into reserves, borrow to pay dividends, or distribute them in stock (which causes dilution). After 2012,
the IRS stopped permitting stock dividends. Most REITs must refinance or erase large balloon debts
periodically. The credit markets are no longer frozen, but banks are demanding, and getting, harsher
terms to re-extend REIT debt. Some REITs may be forced to make secondary stock offerings to repay
debt, which will lead to additional dilution of the stockholders. Fluctuations in the real estate market can
affect the REIT's value and dividends.
Conflicting advice may be given to different clients regarding the same security or investment as our
investment strategies and advice may vary depending upon each client's specific financial situation.
Proxy Voting
We will not vote proxies on behalf of your advisory accounts. At your request, we may offer you advice
regarding corporate actions and the exercise of your proxy voting rights. If you own shares of applicable
securities, you are responsible for exercising your right to vote as a shareholder.
In most cases, you will receive proxy materials directly from the account custodian. However, in the event
we were to receive any written or electronic proxy materials, we would forward them directly to you by
mail, unless you have authorized our firm to contact you by electronic mail, in which case, we would
forward any electronic solicitations to vote proxies.
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Item 7 Client Information Provided to Portfolio Managers
In order to provide the Program services, we will share your private information with your account
custodian and selected third-party manager, as needed. We will only share the information necessary in
order to carry out our obligations to you in servicing your account. We share your personal account data
in accordance with our privacy policy as described below.
Privacy Notice
requirements, we have instituted policies and procedures to ensure that we keep your personal
information private and secure.
We do not disclose any non-public personal information about you to any non-affiliated third parties,
except as permitted by law. In the course of servicing your account, we may share some information
with our service providers, such as transfer agents, custodians, broker-dealers, accountants,
consultants, and attorneys.
We restrict internal access to non-public personal information about you to employees, who need that
information in order to provide products or services to you. We maintain physical and procedural
safeguards that comply with regulatory standards to guard your non-public personal information and to
ensure our integrity and confidentiality. We will not sell information about you or your accounts to anyone.
We do not share your information unless it is required to process a transaction, at your request, or
required by law.
You will receive a copy of our privacy notice prior to or at the time you sign an advisory agreement with
our firm. Thereafter, we will deliver a copy of the current privacy policy notice to you on an annual basis.
Contact our main office at the telephone number on the cover page of this Disclosure Brochure if you
have any questions regarding this policy.
If you decide to close your account(s) we will adhere to our privacy policies, which may be amended
from time to time.
If we make any substantive changes in our privacy policy that would further permit or require disclosures
of your private information, we will provide written notice to you. Where the change is based on permitted
disclosures, you will be given an opportunity to direct us as to whether such disclosure is acceptable.
Where the change is based on required disclosures, you will only receive written notice of the change.
You may not opt out of the required disclosures.
If you have questions about our privacy policies, please contact our main office at the telephone number
on the cover page of this Disclosure Brochure and ask to speak to the Chief Compliance Officer.
Item 8 Client Contact with Portfolio Managers
Without restriction, you should contact our firm or your advisory representative directly with any questions
regarding your Program account(s). You should contact your advisory representative with respect to
changes in your investment objectives, risk tolerance, or requested restrictions placed on the
management of your Program assets.
Item 9 Additional Information
Affiliation and Other Business Activities
Financial Advisory Partners, LLC (“FAP”) is affiliated under common control and ownership with NBC
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Securities, Inc. (“NBC”), a securities broker-dealer and investment adviser registered with the Securities
and Exchange Commission. FAP and NBC are each owned by NBC Holdings, LLC.
Some financial professionals of FAP are dually associated with NBC as Registered Representatives
and/or Investment Adviser Representatives. In these outside capacities, these individuals will receive
advisory fees, brokerage commission-based compensation, including 12b-1 fees for the sale of
investment company products., or both, depending on the services provided through their respective
outside capacities.
Advisory fees charged by FAP are separate and distinct from any advisory or brokerage-related fees
these individuals may receive through NBC. Fees earned through FAP relate solely to advisory services
offered under FAP’s investment advisory programs.
Clients who engage NBC for separate services will receive NBC’s Form ADV 2A and/or applicable
disclosure documents and will enter into a separate client agreement describing the services provided
and the associated fees, among other important disclosures.
As noted above, our firm’s financial professionals are registered representatives and will receive
commission-based compensation. These financial professionals may also be licensed insurance agents.
Compensation earned in these separate capacities is separate and in addition to our advisory fees. The
sale of insurance instruments and other commissionable products offered by these persons are intended
to complement our advisory services. However, these practices present a conflict of interest because
these individuals have a financial incentive to effect securities transactions on your behalf and/or sell
insurance products to you. We only assist you in these outside capacities where we in good faith believe
that it is appropriate for the client’s particular needs and circumstances. Clients who choose to purchase
insurance services may use the insurance brokerage firm and agent of their choice and are under no
obligation to use a financial professional associated with our firm.
Where fixed annuities are sold, clients should also note that the annuity sales result in substantial up-
front commissions and ongoing trails based on the annuity’s total value. In addition, many annuities
contain surrender charges and/or restrictions on access to your funds. Payments and withdrawals can
have tax consequences. Optional lifetime income benefit riders are used to calculate lifetime payments
only and are not available for cash surrender or in a death benefit unless specified in the annuity contract.
In some annuity products, fees can apply when using an income rider. Annuity guarantees are based on
the financial strength and claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company. We urge our clients to
read all insurance contract disclosures carefully before making a purchase decision. Rates and returns
mentioned on any program presented are subject to change without notice. Insurance products are
subject to fees and additional expenses.
Northstar Bank, a state-chartered Michigan bank, has a minority ownership interest in our firm, but does
not have control of our firm's day-to-day operations or advisory practice. From time to time and if
appropriate, we may refer advisory clients to Northstar Bank, or a bank affiliated with Northstar Bank, for
banking and/or lending services. There is no referral and/or compensation arrangements. Northstar Bank
(and/or its affiliates) may indirectly benefit from the referral. Clients may choose any banking institution
to work with and are under no obligation to use Northstar Bank nor any of its affiliates.
Any material conflicts of interest between you and our firm, or our employees are disclosed in this
Brochure. If at any time, additional material conflicts of interest develop, we will provide you with written
notification of the material conflicts of interest or an updated Brochure.
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Disciplinary Information
We are required to disclose the facts of any legal or disciplinary events that are material to a client's
evaluation of our advisory business or the integrity of our management.
While not applicable to the material items delineated in the Form ADV instructions, Alexander van den
Berg, an owner and investment adviser representative of our firm, was involved in a FINRA arbitration
dispute in 2007 alleging excessive trading in a client's brokerage account. The arbitration claim was
settled in 2008 with $15,000 paid by Alexander van den Berg's employer. No monetary compensation
was paid directly by Alexander van den Berg. In 2019, the former client that filed the arbitration claim,
Alexander van den Berg's former stepmother, signed a notarized attestation whereby she stated that the
claim was unfounded and that Alexander van den Berg's conduct was professional and ethical at all
times during their professional relationship.
This FINRA arbitration was resolved and Alexander van den Berg has no outstanding issues. The details
on this matter can be found by visiting the following link to the IAPD: www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.
Description of Our Code of Ethics
We strive to comply with applicable laws and regulations governing our practices. Therefore, our Code
of Ethics includes guidelines for professional standards of conduct for persons associated with our firm.
Our goal is to protect your interests at all times and to demonstrate our commitment to our fiduciary
duties of honesty, good faith, and fair dealing with you. All persons associated with our firm are expected
to adhere strictly to these guidelines. Persons associated with our firm are also required to report any
violations of our Code of Ethics. Additionally, we maintain and enforce written policies reasonably
designed to prevent the misuse or dissemination of material, non-public information about you or your
account holdings by persons associated with our firm.
Clients or prospective clients may obtain a copy of our Code of Ethics by contacting us at the telephone
number on the cover page of this Brochure.
Participation or Interest in Client Transactions
Neither our firm nor any persons associated with our firm has any material financial interest in client
transactions beyond the provision of investment advisory services as disclosed in this Brochure.
Personal Trading Practices
Our firm or persons associated with our firm may buy or sell the same securities that we recommend to
you or securities in which you are already invested. A conflict of interest exists in such cases because
we have the ability to trade ahead of you and potentially receive more favorable prices than you will
receive. To mitigate this conflict of interest, it is our policy that neither our firm nor persons associated
with our firm shall have priority over your account in the purchase or sale of securities.
Aggregated Trading
Our firm or persons associated with our firm may buy or sell securities for you at the same time we or
persons associated with our firm buy or sell such securities for our own account. We may also combine
our orders to purchase securities with your orders to purchase securities ("aggregated trading").
A conflict of interest exists in such cases because we have the ability to trade ahead of you and
potentially receive more favorable prices than you will receive. In efforts to mitigate this conflict of
interest, it is our policy that neither our firm nor persons associated with our firm shall have priority over
your account in the purchase or sale of securities.
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Review of Accounts
The investment adviser representative assigned to your account will monitor your accounts on an
ongoing basis and will conduct internal account reviews on a periodic basis (at least annually) and
upon your request to ensure that the advisory services provided to you are consistent with
your stated investment needs and objectives. Additional reviews may be conducted based on various
circumstances, including, but not limited to: contributions and withdrawals; year-end tax planning; market
moving events; security specific events; and/or, changes in your risk/return objectives.
We may provide you with additional or regular written reports in conjunction with account reviews.
Reports we provide to you may contain relevant account and/or market-related information such as an
inventory of account holdings and account performance, etc. You will receive trade confirmations and
monthly or quarterly statements from your account custodian(s).
Client Referrals and Other Compensation
As disclosed under the Fees and Compensation section in this Brochure, investment adviser
representatives of our firm may also be registered representatives with NBC Securities, Inc and/or
licensed insurance agents. For information on these outside capacities and the associated conflicts of
interest, please refer to Item 5 (Fees and Compensation section) of this Brochure for more information.
We directly compensate non-employee (outside) consultants, individuals, and/or entities (solicitors) for
client referrals. In order to receive a cash referral fee from us, solicitors must comply with the
requirements of the jurisdictions in which they operate. If you were referred to us by a solicitor, you
should have received a copy of this brochure along with the solicitor's disclosure statement at the time
of the referral. If you become a client, the solicitor that referred you to us will receive a percentage of the
advisory fee you pay us for as long as you are our client, or until such time as our agreement with the
solicitor expires. You will not pay additional fees because of this referral arrangement. Referral fees paid
to a solicitor are contingent upon your entering into an advisory agreement with us. Therefore, a solicitor
has a financial incentive to recommend us to you for advisory services. This creates a conflict of interest;
however, you are not obligated to retain us for advisory services. Comparable services and/or lower fees
may be available through other firms.
Class Action Lawsuits
We do not determine if securities held by you are the subject of a class action lawsuit or whether you
are eligible to participate in class action settlements or litigation nor do we initiate or participate in
litigation to recover damages on your behalf for injuries as a result of actions, misconduct, or negligence
by issuers of securities held by you.
Financial Information
Our firm does not have any financial condition or impairment that would prevent us from meeting our
contractual commitments to you, and we have never filed for bankruptcy. We do not take physical
custody of client funds or securities, or serve as trustee or signatory for client accounts, and we do not
require the prepayment of more than $1,200 in fees six or more months in advance of services rendered.
Therefore, we are not required to include a financial statement with this Brochure.
IRA Rollover Considerations
In conjunction with the advisory services offered, we may provide recommendations related to the
rollover of funds from an employer sponsored retirement plan. A plan participant leaving employment
has several options with respect to their employer sponsored retirement plans. Each choice offers
advantages and disadvantages, depending on desired investment options and services, fees and
expenses, withdrawal options, required minimum distributions, tax treatment, and the investor's unique
financial needs and different retirement plans. The complexity of these choices may lead an investor to
seek assistance from us.
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When our firm or our Associated Person(s) recommends an investor roll over plan assets into an
Individual Retirement Account (“IRA”), we and our Associated Person(s) may earn an asset-based fee
as a result. In most cases, we do not receive an asset-based fee if assets are retained in the plan. Often,
account fees and expenses will increase because fees will apply to assets rolled over to an IRA and
ongoing services will be extended to these assets. Thus, while there is arguably an economic incentive
to encourage an investor to roll over plan assets into an IRA, we cannot and do not place our interests
ahead of yours.
A rollover may also result in the assessment of other levels of fees and expenses, including, but not
limited to, investment-related expenses imposed by other service providers and mutual fund managers
not affiliated with us, as well as other fees and expenses charged by the custodian, third-party
administrator, and/or record-keeper. We make no representations or warranties relating to any costs or
expenses associated with the services provided by any third parties, and you understand that these fees
are in addition to the fee paid to us for the rollover advice.
In cases where we provide you with rollover advice as defined by the Department of Labor, which may
also include setting up and/or completing the rollover transaction, we do not serve as a custodian, and
we do not provide legal or tax advice to you. In addition, we do not have any responsibilities or potential
liabilities in connection with assets not related to the rollover and investments that are not managed by
us.
When we provide investment advice to you regarding your retirement plan account or individual
retirement account, we are fiduciaries within the meaning of Title I of the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act and/or the Internal Revenue Code, as applicable, which are laws governing retirement
accounts. The way we make money creates some conflicts with your interests. In accordance with
various rules and regulations, we must act in your best interest and we must not put our interests ahead
of your interests. Additionally, we must: meet a professional standard of care when making investment
recommendations (give prudent advice); never put our financial interests ahead of yours when making
recommendations (give loyal advice); avoid misleading statements about conflicts of interest, fees, and
investments; follow polices, and procedures designed to ensure that we give advice that is in your best
interest; charge no more than is reasonable for our services; and give you basic information about any
conflicts of interest.
We rely on all information you provide to us, whether financial or otherwise, without independent
verification. We request that you promptly notify us in writing of any material change in the financial and
other information provided to us, and to promptly provide any such additional information as may be
reasonably requested by us.
Due to the volatile and unpredictable nature of financial markets, we do not guarantee any future
performance, any specific level of performance, or the success of any recommendations or strategies
that we may take or recommend for you, or the success of our overall recommendations. Investment
recommendations are subject to various market, currency, economic, political, and business risks, and
that investment decisions will not always be profitable.
It is important that you understand the differences between these types of accounts and decide whether
a rollover is best for you. Prior to proceeding, if you have questions contact your investment adviser
representative, or call our main number as listed on the cover page of this Brochure.
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