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Kensington Financial Advisors LLC
101 Eisenhower Parkway
Suite 300
Roseland, NJ 07068
Phone: 201-201-0439
www.kfinadvisors.com
January 29, 2026
FORM ADV PART 2
BROCHURE
This brochure provides information about the qualifications and business practices of Kensington
Financial Advisors LLC. If you have any questions about the contents of this brochure, please contact
us at 201-201-0439. 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 Kensington Financial Advisors LLC is also available on the SEC's website
at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov. The searchable IARD/CRD number for Kensington Financial Advisors
LLC is 136346.
Kensington Financial Advisors 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 the filing of our last annual updating amendment, dated February 5, 2025 we have no material
changes to report.
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Item 3 Table Of Contents
Item 1 Cover Page
Item 2 Summary of Material Changes
Item 3 Table Of Contents
Item 4 Advisory Business
Item 5 Fees and Compensation
Item 6 Performance-Based Fees and Side-By-Side Management
Item 7 Types of Clients
Item 8 Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss
Item 9 Disciplinary Information
Item 10 Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations
Item 11 Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and Personal Trading
Item 12 Brokerage Practices
Item 13 Review of Accounts
Item 14 Client Referrals and Other Compensation
Item 15 Custody
Item 16 Investment Discretion
Item 17 Voting Client Securities
Item 18 Financial Information
Item 19 Requirements for State Registered Investment Advisers
Item 20 Additional Information
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Item 4 Advisory Business
Description of Services and Fees
We are a registered investment adviser based in Roseland, New Jersey. We are organized as a limited
liability company under the laws of the State of New Jersey and we have been providing investment
advisory services since 2005. David Fuhrman is our principal owner and Chief Compliance Officer.
We provide wealth management services designed to provide you with a complete investment plan
that is aimed at integrating your overall tax, estate and other planning and investment needs. Our
wealth management services consist of discretionary or non-discretionary investment management
services and financial planning services as described below. 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 Kensington Financial Advisors LLC
and the words "you", "your" and "client" refer to you as either a client or prospective client of our firm.
Also, you may see the term Associated Person throughout this brochure. As used in this brochure, our
Associated Persons are our firm's officers, employees, and all individuals providing investment advice
on behalf of our firm.
Investment Management Services
We offer discretionary and non-discretionary investment management services to our clients and
prospective clients. Our investment advice is tailored to meet our clients' needs and investment
objectives. If you retain our firm for investment management services, we will meet with you to
determine your investment objectives, risk tolerance, and other relevant information (the "suitability
information") at the beginning of our advisory relationship. We will use the suitability information we
gather from our initial meeting to develop a strategy that enables our firm to give you continuous and
focused investment advice and/or to make investments on your behalf. As part of our investment
management services, we may customize an investment portfolio for you in accordance with your risk
tolerance and investing objectives and/or we may invest your assets according to one or more model
portfolios developed by our firm. Once we construct an investment portfolio for you, or select a model
portfolio, we will monitor your portfolio's performance on an ongoing basis, and will rebalance the
portfolio as required by changes in market conditions and in your financial circumstances.
As part of our overall wealth management approach, when you retain us to provide investment
management services we will also provide you with financial planning services. Depending upon the
complexity of your needs, we may elect to charge separate fees for financial planning, as described
below, which will be separate and apart from investment management fees.
We may also render investment management services relative to: (1) variable life/annuity products that
you may own; (2) your individual employer sponsored retirement plan; and/or (3) your college savings
plan. In these instances we will either direct or recommend the allocation of your assets amount the
various mutual fund subdivisions that comprise the variable life/annuity product, retirement plan, or
college savings plan. Reviews and recommendations shall be done on a quarterly basis and it shall be
your responsibility to implement any advice relative to these accounts. Your assets for these accounts
will be maintained at either the specific insurance company that issued the life/variable annuity product
or at the custodian designated by the sponsor of your retirement plan or college savings plan.
If you participate in our discretionary investment management services, we require you to grant our
firm discretionary authority to manage your account. Discretionary authorization will allow our firm 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. Discretionary authority is typically granted by
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the investment advisory agreement you sign with our firm or trading authorization forms. You may limit
our discretionary authority (for example, limiting the types of securities that can be purchased for your
account) by providing our firm with your restrictions and guidelines in writing. If you enter into non-
discretionary arrangements with our firm, we must obtain your approval prior to executing any
transactions on behalf of your account.
Financial Planning Services
Financial planning services will typically involve providing a variety of services, principally advisory in
nature, regarding the management of your financial resources based upon an analysis of your
individual needs. At the inception of the relationship, we will obtain relevant information from you to
understand your goals, family, assets, tax rate, risk tolerance, liquidity needs and income. Financial
planning services may include a review of your overall financial situation and preparation of a written
report of recommendations covering cash flow, tax planning, investment planning, estate planning, risk
management, written asset allocation reports and recommendations, written retirement planning
reports and recommendations and written updates of existing financial plans.
Financial plans are based on your financial situation at the time we present the plan to you, and on the
financial information you provide to our firm. You must promptly notify our firm if your financial
situation, goals, objectives, or needs change.
You are under no obligation to act on our financial planning recommendations. Should you choose to
act on any of our recommendations, you are not obligated to implement the financial plan through any
of our other investment advisory services or through any other professionals we may recommend to
you. Moreover, you may act on our recommendations by placing securities transactions with any
brokerage firm. It is your responsibility to promptly notify us if there is ever any change in your financial
situation or investment objectives for the purpose of reviewing, evaluating, or revising our previous
recommendations and/or services.
Consulting Services
We may provide consulting services where our firm or associated persons provide clients with specific
a la carte services, such as acting as health care power of attorney and providing advice or services on
an as-requested basis. The specific services provided and fees charged will be determined and
negotiated on a client by client basis.
Pension Consulting Services
We offer pension consulting services to employee benefit plans and their fiduciaries based upon the
needs of the plan and the services requested by the plan sponsor or named fiduciary. In general, these
services may include an existing plan review and analysis, development of an investment policy
statement, discretionary or non-discretionary plan-level advice regarding fund selection and investment
options, assistance with vendor selection, investment performance monitoring, and/or ongoing
consulting. For non-discretionary services, the ultimate decision to act on behalf of the plan shall
remain with the plan sponsor or other named fiduciary.
We also assist with participant enrollment meetings and provide investment-related educational
seminars to plan participants on such topics as:
• Diversification
• Asset allocation
• Risk tolerance
• Time horizon
Our educational seminars may include other investment-related topics specific to the particular plan.
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We may also provide additional types of pension consulting services to plans on an individually
negotiated basis. All services, whether discussed above or customized for the plan based upon
requirements from the plan fiduciaries (which may include additional plan-level or participant-level
services) shall be detailed in a written agreement and be consistent with the parameters set forth in the
plan documents.
As disclosed above, we offer pension consulting services designed to assist plan sponsors in meeting
their management and fiduciary obligations to participants under the Employee Retirement Income
Securities Act ("ERISA"). Pursuant to adopted regulations of the U.S. Department of Labor under
ERISA Section 408(b)(2), we are required to provide the Plan's responsible plan fiduciary (the person
who has the authority to engage us as an investment adviser to the Plan) with a written statement of
the services we provide to the Plan, the compensation we receive for providing those services, and our
status (which is described below).
The services we provide to Plans are described above, and in the service agreement that you have
signed with our firm. Our compensation for these services is described above and also in the service
agreement. Our firm does not reasonably expect to receive any other compensation, direct or indirect,
for the services we provide to the Plan or Participants.
In providing services to the Plan and Participants, our status is that of an investment adviser registered
with the SEC, and we are not subject to any disqualifications under Section 411 of ERISA. In
performing ERISA fiduciary services, we are acting as a fiduciary of the Plan as defined in ERISA
Section 3(21).
Wrap Fee Programs
We do not participate in any wrap fee program.
Types of Investments
We do not primarily recommend one specific type of investment over another as each client has their
own investment objectives, risk tolerance needs and goals. We may recommend investments in equity
securities, warrants, corporate debt securities, certificates of deposit, municipal securities, investment
company securities, U.S. Government securities, options contracts on securities, money market funds,
REIT's, and others.
Additionally, we may advise you on any type of investment that we deem appropriate based on your
stated goals and objectives. We may also provide advice on any type of investment held in your
portfolio at the inception of our advisory relationship.
You may request that we refrain from investing in particular securities or certain types of securities.
You must provide these restrictions to our firm in writing.
Assets Under Management
As of December 31, 2025, we manage $159,149,783 in client assets on a discretionary basis, and
$768,559 in client assets on a non-discretionary basis. We also provide pension consulting services
and other advisory consulting services for assets in the amount of $2,575,173 which are not
considered regulatory assets under management as reported on Form ADV Part 1.
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Item 5 Fees and Compensation
Investment Management Services
Our fee for investment management services is negotiable and ranges from 0.40% to 1.00% of the
value of your assets under management. Our fees may also be based on the following negotiable
tiered fee schedule*:
Assets Under Management (AUM)
Less than $500,000
$500,000 to $1,000,000
$1,000,000 to $2,000,000
$2,000,000 to $4,000,000
$4,000,000 to $8,000,000
$8,000,000 to $16,000,000
More than $16,000,000
Annualized Fee
1.0%
$5,000+0.9% of AUM>$500,000
$9,500+0.8% of AUM >$1,000,000
$17,500 +0.7% of AUM>$2,000,000
$31,500+0.6% of AUM>$4,000,000
$55,500 +0.5% of AUM>8,000,000
$95,500 +0.4% of AUM>16,000,000
*In limited circumstances we may charge an annual management fee up to 1.50% for accounts less
than $500,000.
Our annual investment management fee is billed and payable quarterly in advance based on the value
of your account on the last day of the previous quarter. If the investment advisory 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.
At our discretion, we may combine the account values of family members living in the same household
to determine the applicable advisory fee. For example, we may combine account values for you and
your minor children, joint accounts with your spouse, and other types of related accounts. Combining
account values may increase the asset total, which may result in your paying a reduced advisory fee
based on the available breakpoints in our fee schedule stated above. We may also, in our sole
discretion, waive fees for certain accounts.
You may make additions to and withdrawals from your account at any time, subject to our right to
terminate an account. If assets are deposited into or withdrawn from an account after the inception of a
quarter, we will not adjust the fee based on the number of days remaining in the quarter, unless the
additional assets (excluding transfers within accounts) change the value of the individual account (or
total household ) by more than 10%. Any such adjustment shall be at the discretion of the investment
adviser representative. You may withdraw account assets on notice to our firm, subject to the usual
and customary securities settlement procedures. We design portfolios as long-term investments and
assets withdrawals may impair the achievement of your investment objectives.
Additions may be in cash or securities provided that we reserve the right to liquidate any transferred
securities, or decline to accept particular securities into an account. We may consult with you about the
options and ramifications of transferring securities. However, you should be aware that when
transferred securities are liquidated, they are subject to transaction fees, fees assessed at the mutual
fund level (i.e. contingent deferred sales charge) and/or tax ramifications.
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We will send you an invoice for the payment of our advisory fee, or we will deduct our fee 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. You should
review all statements for accuracy.
You may terminate the investment advisory agreement upon written notice to our firm. 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.
Financial Planning Services
We charge either a fixed fee for financial planning services ranging between $250 and $10,000 or an
hourly fee between $200 and $400 per hour. The fees are negotiable depending upon the complexity
and scope of the plan, your financial situation, and your objectives. We require that you pay 50% of the
fixed fee in advance and the remaining portion upon the completion of the services rendered or in the
alternative the total fee shall be due and payable upon completion of the services rendered. Our hourly
fee is due and payable upon completion of services rendered.
We will not require prepayment of a fee more than six months in advance and in excess of $1,200. In
certain circumstances the fees may exceed the initial fee quoted, in which case we will obtain approval
from you before performing additional services. In the event you wish to engage us to provide
additional services beyond the initial engagement an addendum to the financial planning agreement
will be executed.
You may terminate the financial planning agreement by providing written notice to our firm. You will
incur a pro rata charge for services rendered prior to the termination of the agreement. If you have pre-
paid advisory fees that we have not yet earned, you will receive a prorated refund of those fees.
Consulting Services
We may provide consulting services where our firm or associated persons provide clients with specific
a la carte services. The specific services provided and fees charged will be determined and negotiated
on a client by client basis.
Pension Consulting Services
Our annual fee for pension consulting services is negotiable and is 0.40% of the value of the plan's
assets and is billed and payable quarterly in advance or arrears based on the plans asset value on the
last day of the previous quarter, as applicable. If the pension consulting 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.
We will send you an invoice for the payment of our advisory fee, or we will deduct our fee directly from
the plan's account through the qualified custodian holding the plan's 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 the plan's account. Further, the qualified custodian will deliver an account
statement to you at least quarterly. These account statements will show all disbursements from the
plan's account. You should review all statements for accuracy. In some cases, the direct debit of our
fees will be handled by a third party service provider who will debit the fee and remit it to us.
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You may terminate the pension consulting agreement upon written notice to our firm. 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.
Additional Fees and Expenses
As part of our investment advisory services to you, we may invest, or recommend that you invest, in
mutual funds and exchange traded funds. The fees that you pay to our firm for investment advisory
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. You will also incur transaction charges and/or
brokerage fees when purchasing or selling securities. These charges and fees are typically imposed by
the broker-dealer or custodian through whom your account transactions are executed. We do not
share in any portion of the brokerage fees/transaction charges imposed by the broker-dealer or
custodian. 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. For information on our brokerage practices,
please refer to the "Brokerage Practices" section of this brochure.
Any material conflicts of interest between you and our firm, or our employees are disclosed in this
Disclosure 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 Disclosure Brochure.
Item 6 Performance-Based Fees and Side-By-Side Management
We do not accept performance-based fees or participate in side-by-side management. 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.
Performance-based fees are fees that are based on a share of capital gains or capital appreciation of a
client's account. Our fees are calculated as described in the Advisory Business section 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.
Item 7 Types of Clients
We offer investment advisory services to individuals, including high net worth individuals, pension and
profit sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations, and other business entities.
For investment management services, we do not generally impose a minimum portfolio size, nor a
minimum annual fee.
Item 8 Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss
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:
• Charting and Technical Analysis - Charting analysis involves the gathering and processing of
price and volume information for a particular security. This price and volume information is
analyzed using mathematical equations. The resulting data is then applied to graphing charts,
which is used to predict future price movements based on price patterns and trends. Technical
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Analysis involves studying past price patterns and trends in the financial markets to predict the
direction of both the overall market and specific stocks. The risk of market timing based on
technical analysis is that charts may not accurately 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 - 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's industry. The resulting data is used to measure the true value of the
company's stock compared to the current market value. 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Margin Transactions - a securities transaction in which an investor borrows money to
purchase a security, in which case the security serves as collateral on the loan. In a margin
account, you must maintain a minimum balance before your broker will force you to deposit
more funds or sell stock to pay down your margin loan (known as a margin call). If for any
reason you do not meet a margin call, the brokerage firm has the right to sell your securities
without consulting you. In a margin account, you can lose more money than you have invested.
• Options Trading/Writing - An option is the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a
particular security at a specified price before the expiration date of the option. If you write (sell)
an option, and the buyer exercises the option, you are obligated to purchase or deliver a
specified number of shares at a specified price at the expiration of the option regardless of the
market value of the security at expiration of the option. Buying an option gives you the right to
purchase or sell a specified number of shares at a specified price until the date of expiration of
the option regardless of the market value of the security at expiration of the option. Options are
complex securities that involve risks and are not suitable for everyone. Option trading can be
speculative in nature and carry substantial risk of loss.
We may use short-term trading (in general, selling securities within 30 days of purchasing the same
securities) as an investment strategy when managing your account(s). Short-term 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.
However, frequent trading can negatively affect investment performance, 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 horizon, financial information, liquidity needs, and other various
suitability factors. Your restrictions and guidelines may affect the composition of your portfolio.
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 continuously consult with a tax professional prior to and throughout the investing
of your assets.
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Moreover, as a result of revised IRS regulations, custodians and broker-dealers will begin reporting the
cost basis of equities acquired in client accounts on or after January 1, 2011. Your custodian will
default to the FIFO (First In First Out) 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, please provide written notice to our firm immediately and we will alert your account
custodian of your individually selected accounting method. Please note that 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.
Money Market Funds: A money market fund is technically a security. The fund managers attempt to
keep the share price constant at $1/share. However, there is no guarantee that the share price will stay
at $1/share. If the share price goes down, you can lose some or all of your principal. The U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") notes that "While investor losses in money market
funds have been rare, they are possible." In return for this risk, you should earn a greater return on
your cash than you would expect from a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") insured
savings account (money market funds are not FDIC insured). Next, money market fund rates are
variable. In other words, you do not know how much you will earn on your investment next month. The
rate could go up or go down. If it goes up, that may result in a positive outcome. However, if it goes
down and you earn less than you expected to earn, you may end up needing more cash. A final risk
you are taking with money market funds has to do with inflation. Because money market funds are
considered to be safer than other investments like stocks, long-term average returns on money market
funds tend to be less than long term average returns on riskier investments. Over long periods of time,
inflation can eat away at your returns.
Certificates of Deposit: Certificates of deposit ("CD") are generally a safe type of investment since
they are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Company ("FDIC") up to a certain amount.
However, because the returns are generally low, there is risk that inflation outpaces the return of the
CD. Certain CDs are traded in the marketplace and not purchased directly from a banking institution. In
addition to trading risk, when CDs are purchased at a premium, the premium is not covered by the
FDIC.
Municipal Securities: Municipal securities, while generally thought of as safe, can have significant
risks associated with them including, but not limited to: the credit worthiness of the governmental entity
that issues the bond; the stability of the revenue stream that is used to pay the interest to the
bondholders; when the bond is due to mature; and, whether or not the bond can be "called" prior to
maturity. When a bond is called, it may not be possible to replace it with a bond of equal character
paying the same amount of interest or yield to maturity.
Bonds: Corporate debt securities (or "bonds") are typically safer investments than equity securities,
but their risk can also vary widely based on: the financial health of the issuer; the risk that the issuer
might default; when the bond is set to mature; and, whether or not the bond can be "called" prior to
maturity. When a bond is called, it may not be possible to replace it with a bond of equal character
paying the same rate of return.
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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.
Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds: 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.
Variable Annuities: A variable annuity is a form of insurance where the seller or issuer (typically an
insurance company) makes a series of future payments to a buyer (annuitant) in exchange for the
immediate payment of a lump sum (single-payment annuity) or a series of regular payments (regular-
payment annuity). The payment stream from the issuer to the annuitant has an unknown duration
based principally upon the date of death of the annuitant. At this point, the contract will terminate and
the remainder of the funds accumulated forfeited unless there are other annuitants or beneficiaries in
the contract. Annuities can be purchased to provide an income during retirement. Unlike fixed annuities
that make payments in fixed amounts or in amounts that increase by a fixed percentage, variable
annuities, pay amounts that vary according to the performance of a specified set of investments,
typically bond and equity mutual funds. Many variable annuities typically impose asset-based sales
charges or surrender charges for withdrawals within a specified period. Variable annuities may impose
a variety of fees and expenses, in addition to sales and surrender charges, such as mortality and
expense risk charges; administrative fees; underlying fund expenses; and charges for special features,
all of which can reduce the return. Earnings in a variable annuity do not provide all the tax advantages
of 401(k)s and other before-tax retirement plans. Once the investor starts withdrawing money from
their variable annuity, earnings are taxed at the ordinary income rate, rather than at the lower capital
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gains rates applied to other non-tax-deferred vehicles which are held for more than one year. Proceeds
of most variable annuities do not receive a "step-up" in cost basis when the owner dies like stocks,
bonds and mutual funds do. Some variable annuities offer "bonus credits." These are usually not free.
In order to fund them, insurance companies typically impose mortality and expense charges and
surrender charge periods. In an exchange of an existing annuity for a new annuity (so-called 1035
exchanges), the new variable annuity may have a lower contract value and a smaller death benefit;
may impose new surrender charges or increase the period of time for which the surrender charge
applies; may have higher annual fees; and provide another commission for the broker.
Real Estate Investment Trust: 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.
Warrants: A warrant is a derivative (security that derives its price from one or more underlying
assets) that confers the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a security – normally an equity – at a
certain price before expiration. The price at which the underlying security can be bought or sold is
referred to as the exercise price or strike price. Warrants that confer the right to buy a security are
known as call warrants; those that confer the right to sell are known as put warrants. Warrants are in
many ways similar to options. The main difference between warrants and options is that warrants are
issued and guaranteed by the issuing company, whereas options are traded on an exchange and are
not issued by the company. Also, the lifetime of a warrant is often measured in years, while the lifetime
of a typical option is measured in months. Warrants do not pay dividends or come with voting rights.
Recommendation of Particular Types of Securities
As disclosed under the "Advisory Business" section in this Brochure, we recommend a variety of
securities and we do not necessarily recommend one particular type of security over another since
each client has different needs and different tolerance for risk.
Item 9 Disciplinary Information
Registered investment advisers are required to disclose all material facts regarding any legal or
disciplinary events that would be material to a client's evaluation of Kensington Financial Advisors LLC
or the integrity of Kensington Financial Advisors LLC's management. Kensington Financial Advisors
LLC has no disciplinary events to report.
Item 10 Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations
We do not have any relationship or arrangement that is material to our advisory business or to our
clients with any of the types of entities listed below.
1. broker-dealer, municipal securities dealer, or government securities dealer or broker.
2. investment company or other pooled investment vehicle (including a mutual fund, closed-end
investment company, unit investment trust, private investment company or "hedge fund," and
offshore fund).
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3. other investment adviser or financial planner.
4. futures commission merchant, commodity pool operator, or commodity trading advisor.
5. banking or thrift institution.
6. accountant or accounting firm.
7. lawyer or law firm.
8. insurance company or agency.
9. pension consultant.
10.real estate broker or dealer.
11.sponsor or syndicator of limited partnerships.
Item 11 Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and
Personal Trading
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 our Associated Persons. 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 of our Associated Persons are expected to adhere
strictly to these guidelines. Our Code of Ethics also requires that certain persons associated with our
firm submit reports of their personal account holdings and transactions to a qualified representative of
our firm who will review these reports on a periodic basis. 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.
Our Code of Ethics is available to you upon request. You may obtain a copy of our Code of Ethics by
contacting David Fuhrman at 201-201-0439.
Personal Trading Practices
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 ("block trading"). Please refer
to the "Brokerage Practices" section in this brochure for information on our block trading practices.
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 Associated Persons nor we shall have priority over your account in the
purchase or sale of securities.
Item 12 Brokerage Practices
We recommend the brokerage and custodial services of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab" or
"Custodian"). Your assets must be maintained in an account at a "qualified custodian," generally a
broker-dealer or bank. In recognition of the value of the services the Custodian provides, you may pay
higher commissions and/or trading costs than those that may be available elsewhere. Our selection of
custodian is based on many factors, including the level of services provided, the custodian's financial
stability, and the cost of services provided by the custodian to our clients, which includes the yield on
cash sweep choices, commissions, custody fees and other fees or expenses.
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We seek to recommend a custodian/broker that will hold your assets and execute transactions on
terms that are, overall, the most favorable compared to other available providers and their services.
We consider various factors, including:
• Capability to buy and sell securities for your account itself or to facilitate such services.
• The likelihood that your trades will be executed.
• Availability of investment research and tools.
• Overall quality of services.
• Competitiveness of price.
• Reputation, financial strength, and stability.
• Existing relationship with our firm and our other clients.
Research and Other Soft Dollar Benefits
We do not have any soft dollar arrangements.
Economic Benefits
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.
The custodian and brokers we use
We do not maintain custody of your assets on which we advise, although we may be deemed to have
custody of your assets if you give us authority to withdraw assets from your account (see Item 15—
Custody, below). Your assets must be maintained in an account at a "qualified custodian," generally a
broker-dealer or bank. We require that our clients use Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., a registered broker-
dealer, member SIPC, as the qualified custodian.
We are independently owned and operated and are not affiliated with Schwab. Schwab will hold your
assets in a brokerage account and buy and sell securities when we instruct them to. While we require
that you use Schwab as custodian/broker, you will decide whether to do so and will open your account
with Schwab by entering into an account agreement directly with them. Conflicts of interest associated
with this arrangement are described below as well as in Item 14 (Client referrals and other
compensation). You should consider these conflicts of interest when selecting your custodian.
We do not open the account for you, although we may assist you in doing so. If you do not wish to
place your assets with Schwab, then we cannot manage your account. Even though your account is
maintained at Schwab, we can still use other brokers to execute trades for your account as described
below (see "Your brokerage and custody costs").
How we select brokers/custodians
We seek to recommend Schwab, a custodian/broker that will hold your assets and execute
transactions. When considering whether the terms that Schwab provides are, overall, most
advantageous to you when compared with other available providers and their services, we consider a
wide range of factors, including:
• Combination of transaction execution services and asset custody services (generally without a
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separate fee for custody)
• Capability to execute, clear, and settle trades (buy and sell securities for your account)
• Capability to facilitate transfers and payments to and from accounts (wire transfers, check
requests, bill payment, etc.)
• Breadth of available investment products (stocks, bonds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds
[ETFs], etc.)
• Availability of investment research and tools that assist us in making investment decisions
• Quality of services
• Competitiveness of the price of those services (commission rates, margin interest rates, other
fees, etc.) and willingness to negotiate the prices
• Reputation, financial strength, security and stability
• Prior service to us and our clients
• Services delivered or paid for by Schwab
• Availability of other products and services that benefit us, as discussed below (see "Products
and services available to us from Schwab")
Schwab - Your brokerage and trading costs
For our clients' accounts that Schwab maintains, Schwab generally does not charge you separately for
custody services but is compensated by charging you commissions or other fees on trades that it
executes or that settle into your Schwab account. Certain trades (for example, many mutual funds and
US Exchange-listed equities, and ETFs) may not incur Schwab commissions or transaction fees.
Schwab is also compensated by earning interest on the uninvested cash in your account in Schwab's
Cash Features Program. For some types of accounts and upon our request, Schwab will charge you a
percentage of the dollar amount of assets in the account in lieu of commissions. Schwab's
commissions and asset-based fees applicable to our client accounts were negotiated based on our
commitment to maintain $10 million of our clients' assets statement equity in accounts at Schwab. This
commitment benefits you because the overall commission rates and asset-based fees you pay are
lower than they would be otherwise. In addition to commission rates and/or asset-based fees Schwab
charges you a flat dollar amount as a "prime broker" or "trade away" fee for each trade that we have
executed by a different broker-dealer but where the securities bought or the funds from the securities
sold are deposited (settled) into your Schwab account. These fees are in addition to the commissions
or other compensation you pay the executing broker-dealer. Because of this, in order to minimize your
trading costs, we have Schwab execute most trades for your account.
We are not required to select the broker or dealer that charges the lowest transaction cost, even if that
broker provides execution quality comparable to other brokers or dealers.
Although we are not required to execute all trades through Schwab, we have determined that having
Schwab execute most trades is consistent with our duty to seek "best execution" of your trades. Best
execution means the most favorable terms for a transaction based on all relevant factors, including
those listed above (see "How we select brokers/custodians"). By using another broker or dealer you
may pay lower transaction costs.
Products and services available to us from Schwab
Schwab Advisor Services™ is Schwab's business serving independent investment advisory firms like
ours.They provide us and our clients with access to their institutional brokerage services (trading,
custody, reporting and related services), many of which are not typically available to Schwab retail
customers. However, certain retail investors may be able to get institutional brokerage services from
Schwab without going through our firm.
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Schwab also makes available various support services. Some of those services help us manage or
administer our clients' accounts while others help us manage and grow our business. Schwab's
support services are generally available at no charge to us. Following is a more detailed description of
Schwab's support services:
Services that benefit you
Schwab's institutional brokerage services include access to a broad range of investment products,
execution of securities transactions, and custody of client assets. The investment products available
through Schwab include some to which we might not otherwise have access or that would require a
significantly higher minimum initial investment by our clients. Schwab's services described in this
paragraph generally benefit you and your account.
Services that do not directly benefit you
Schwab also makes available to us other products and services that benefit us but do not directly
benefit you or your account. These products and services assist us in managing and administering our
clients' accounts and operating our firm. They include investment research, both Schwab's own and
that of third parties. We use this research to service all or a substantial number of our clients' accounts,
including accounts not maintained at Schwab. In addition to investment research, Schwab also makes
available software and other technology that:
• Provide access to client account data (such as duplicate trade confirmations and account
statements);
• Facilitate trade execution and allocate aggregated trade orders for multiple client accounts;
• Provide pricing and other market data;
• Facilitate payment of our fees from our clients' accounts; and
• Assist with back-office functions, recordkeeping and client reporting.
Services that generally benefit only us.
Schwab also offers other services intended to help us manage and further develop our business
enterprise. These services include:
• Educational conferences and events
• Consulting on technology and business needs
• Publications and conferences on practice management and business succession
• Access to employee benefits providers, human capital consultants, and insurance providers
• Marketing consulting and support
Schwab provides some of these services itself. In other cases, it will arrange for third-party vendors to
provide the services to us. Schwab also discounts or waives its fees for some of these services or pays
all or a part of a third party's fees. Schwab also provides us with other benefits, such as occasional
business entertainment of our personnel. If you did not maintain your account with Schwab, we would
be required to pay for these services from our own resources.
Our Interest in Schwab's Services
The availability of these services from Schwab benefits us because we do not have to produce or
purchase them. We don't have to pay for Schwab's services. The fact that we receive these benefits
from Schwab is an incentive for us to require the use of Schwab rather than making such a decision
based exclusively on your interest in receiving the best value in custody services and the most
favorable execution of your transactions. This is a conflict of interest. We believe, however, that taken
in the aggregate, our recommendation of Schwab as custodian and broker is in the best interests of
our clients. Our selection is primarily supported by the scope, quality, and price of Schwab's services
(see "How we select brokers/ custodians") and not Schwab's services that benefit only us.
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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.
Directed Brokerage
We routinely require that you direct our firm to execute transactions through Schwab. As such, we may
be unable to achieve the most favorable execution of your transactions and you may pay higher
brokerage commissions than you might otherwise pay through another broker-dealer that offers the
same types of services. Not all advisers require their clients to direct brokerage.
Aggregated Trades
We 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.
Mutual Fund Share Classes
Mutual funds are sold with different share classes, which carry different cost structures. Each available
share class is described in the mutual fund's prospectus. When we purchase, or recommend the
purchase of, mutual funds for a client, we select the share class that is deemed to be in the client's
best interest, taking into consideration the availability of advisory, institutional or retirement plan share
classes, initial and ongoing share class costs, transaction costs (if any), tax implications, cost
basis; and other factors. We also review the mutual funds held in accounts that come under our
management to determine whether a more beneficial share class is available, considering cost, tax
implications, and the impact of contingent or deferred sales charges.
Item 13 Review of Accounts
Investment Management
David Fuhrman, Managing Member and Investment Adviser Representative, and Cheryl Werbeloff,
Investment Adviser Representative, will monitor your accounts on an ongoing basis and will conduct
account reviews at least annually and upon your request to ensure that the advisory services provided
to you and/or the portfolio mix 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,
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• changes in your risk/return objectives.
We will contact our clients at least annually to review previous services and/or recommendations and
to discuss the impact resulting from any changes in your financial situation and/or investment
objectives. You are provided with transaction confirmation notices and regular summary account
statements directly from the broker/dealer or custodian for your accounts.
Financial Planning
For financial planning clients, reviews are conducted on an as needed basis and we will provide
reports summarizing our analysis and conclusions as requested by you or otherwise agreed upon in
writing.
Item 14 Client Referrals and Other Compensation
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc - Institutional
We receive an economic benefit from Schwab in the form of the support products and services that it
makes available to us and other independent investment advisors that have their clients maintain
accounts at Schwab. These products and services, how they benefit us, and the related conflicts of
interest are described above (see Item 12 – Brokerage Practices). The availability to us of Schwab's
products and services is not based on us giving particular investment advice, such as buying particular
securities for our clients.
We do not receive any compensation from any third party in connection with providing investment
advice to you nor do we compensate any individual or firm for client referrals.
Refer to the Brokerage Practices section above for disclosures on research and other benefits we may
receive resulting from our relationship with your account custodian.
Item 15 Custody
Direct Debiting of Fees
We directly debit your account(s) for the payment of our advisory fees. This ability to deduct our
advisory fees from your accounts causes our firm to exercise limited custody over your funds or
securities. We do not have physical custody of any of your funds and/or securities. Your funds and
securities will be held with a bank, broker-dealer, or other independent, qualified custodian. You will
receive account statements from the independent, qualified custodian(s) holding your funds and
securities at least quarterly. The account statements from your custodian(s) will indicate the amount of
our advisory fees deducted from your account(s) each billing period. You should carefully review
account statements for accuracy.
If you have a question regarding your account statement or if you did not receive a statement from
your custodian, please contact David Fuhrman at 201-201-0439.
Item 16 Investment Discretion
Before we can buy or sell securities on your behalf, you must first sign our discretionary management
agreement, a power of attorney, and/or trading authorization forms.
You may grant our firm discretion over the selection and amount of securities to be purchased or sold
for your account(s) without obtaining your consent or approval prior to each transaction. You may
specify investment objectives, guidelines, and/or impose certain conditions or investment parameters
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for your account(s). For example, you may specify that the investment in any particular stock or
industry should not exceed specified percentages of the value of the portfolio and/or restrictions or
prohibitions of transactions in the securities of a specific industry or security. Please refer to the
"Advisory Business" section in this Brochure for more information on our discretionary management
services.
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). You have an unrestricted right to decline to
implement any advice provided by our firm on a non-discretionary basis.
Item 17 Voting Client Securities
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 common
stock or mutual funds, 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 solicitation to vote proxies.
Item 18 Financial Information
We are not required to provide financial information to our clients because we do not:
require the prepayment of more than $1,200 in fees and six or more months in advance, or
take custody of client funds or securities, or
•
•
• have a financial condition that is reasonably likely to impair our ability to meet our commitments
to you.
Item 19 Requirements for State Registered Investment Advisers
We are a federally registered investment adviser; therefore, we are not required to respond to this
item.
Item 20 Additional Information
Your Privacy
We view protecting your private information as a top priority. Pursuant to applicable privacy
requirements, we have instituted policies and procedures to ensure that we keep your personal
information private and secure.
We do not disclose any nonpublic personal information about you to any nonaffiliated 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.
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We restrict internal access to nonpublic 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 nonpublic 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. Please contact David Fuhrman at 201-201-0439 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 contact our main office at the telephone number on the
cover page of this brochure and ask to speak to the Chief Compliance Officer.
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.
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.
IRA Rollover Considerations
As part of our investment advisory services to you, we may recommend that you withdraw the assets
from your employer's retirement plan and roll the assets over to an individual retirement account
("IRA") that we will manage on your behalf. In some cases, we may also be providing pension
consulting services to the plan and/or we may manage individual participant accounts. If you elect to
roll the assets to an IRA that is subject to our management, we will charge you an asset based fee as
set forth in the agreement you executed with our firm. This practice may present a conflict of interest
because Investment adviser representatives providing investment advice on our behalf may have an
incentive to recommend a rollover to you for the purpose of generating fee based compensation (which
fee may be higher or lower than the fee we charge to the plan for pension consulting services and/or
the fee for managing individual participant accounts) rather than solely based on your needs. You are
under no obligation, contractually or otherwise, to complete the rollover. Moreover, if you do complete
the rollover, you are under no obligation to have the assets in an IRA managed by our firm.
Many employers permit former employees to keep their retirement assets in their company plan. Also,
current employees can sometimes move assets out of their company plan before they retire or change
jobs. In determining whether to complete the rollover to an IRA, and to the extent the following options
are available, you should consider the costs and benefits of:
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An employee will typically have four options:
1. Leaving the funds in your employer's (former employer's) plan.
2. Moving the funds to a new employer's retirement plan.
3. Cashing out and taking a distribution from the plan, which may be subject to income tax and/or
an early distribution penalty.
4. Rolling the funds into an IRA.
Each of these options has advantages and disadvantages and before making a change we encourage
you to speak with your CPA and/or tax attorney.
If you are considering rolling over your retirement funds to an IRA for us to manage here are a few
points to consider before you do so:
1. Determine whether the investment options in your employer's retirement plan address your
needs or whether you might want to consider other types of investments.
1. Employer retirement plans generally have a more limited investment menu than IRAs.
2. Employer retirement plans may have unique investment options not available to the
public such as employer securities, or previously closed funds.
2. Your current plan may have lower fees than our fees.
1. If you are interested in investing only in mutual funds, you should understand the cost
structure of the share classes available in your employer's retirement plan and how the
costs of those share classes compare with those available in an IRA.
2. You should understand the various products and services you might take advantage of
at an IRA provider and the potential costs of those products and services.
3. Our strategy may have higher risk than the option(s) provided to you in your employer plan.
4. Your current plan may also offer financial advice.
5. If you keep your assets titled in a 401k or other employer-sponsored retirement account, you
could potentially delay your required minimum distribution beyond a certain age.
6. Your 401k may offer more liability protection than an IRA; each state may vary.
1. Generally, federal law protects assets in employer-sponsored plans from creditors.
Since 2005, IRA assets have been generally protected from creditors in bankruptcies.
However, there can be some exceptions to the general rules so you should consult with
an attorney if you are concerned about protecting your retirement plan assets from
creditors.
7. You may be able to take out a loan on your 401k, but not from an IRA.
8. IRA assets can be accessed any time; however, distributions may be subject to ordinary
income tax and may also be subject to a 10% early distribution penalty unless they qualify for
an exception such as disability, higher education expenses or the first time purchase of a home.
9. If you own company stock in your employer plan, you may be able to liquidate those shares at a
lower capital gains tax rate.
It is important that you understand the differences between these types of accounts and to 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.
IRA Rollover Recommendations
For purposes of complying with the DOL's Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2020-02 ("PTE 2020-02")
where applicable, we are providing the following acknowledgment to you.
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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, so we operate under a
special rule that requires us to act in your best interest and not put our interest ahead of yours. Under
this special rule's provisions, 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 policies 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 conflicts of interest.
We benefit financially from the rollover of your assets from a retirement account to an account that we
manage or provide investment advice, because the assets increase our assets under management
and, in turn, our advisory fees. As a fiduciary, we only recommend a rollover when we believe it is in
your best interest.
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