Darrow offers one service: ongoing asset management and financial planning (commonly called wealth management). The nature of the advice and support we provide evolves over the course of a long-term partnership with our clients, because their financial situation, life stage, and goals will inevitably change.
As a registered investment advisor, Darrow Wealth Management has a fiduciary obligation to act at all times for the sole benefit and interest of our clients. This is the highest act of loyalty, trust and care as established by law.
Unfortunately, not all advisors are held to a fiduciary duty at all times. If your advisor is only a part-time fiduciary, how do you know when they stop acting in your best interest? Darrow Wealth Management is always required to act in our client’s best interest.
We are 100% independent with no affiliation to an independent broker-dealer such as LPL Financial, Raymond James, or others. As an independent wealth management firm, we don’t have allegiances to a particular fund family, platform, or product. Independence and compensation method help an advisor remain objective when making recommendations.
Advisors associated with broker-dealers (even independent BDs) are often dual registered, a hybrid model allows them to offer fee-based as well as commission-based services, such as insurance sales.
Complete independence also matters when a client is in need of other services, such as life insurance or banking. As an independent wealth manager, we will make referrals to other professionals when clients need of insurance or other products, based on what we believe will be in the client’s best interest.
We are currently accepting new wealth management clients who have at least $2,000,000 in investable assets. If you are expecting a large future windfall and don’t currently meet the asset minimum, please contact us to discuss your personal situation.
Investable assets most commonly include current retirement plans, retirement accounts from previous employers, IRAs (traditional, rollover, Roth, SEP, inherited, SIMPLE), brokerage accounts, trusts, proceeds from an IPO or liquidity event, and cash you wish to invest.
Although we collaborate with a client’s team of professionals in other practice areas, such as estate planning and tax preparation, Darrow Wealth Management does not provide legal, tax, or accounting advice. As mentioned above, we do not offer hourly or project-based planning services.
The Darrow Wealth Management team includes nationally-recognized specialists in sudden wealth events, primarily from equity compensation, though business exits and inheritances are also common. The vast majority of our new clients fit this profile. A typical client is an early employee with stock or stock options experiencing a major liquidity event from an IPO.
The majority of our clients live in the greater Boston area, but we have long-standing relationships with individuals around the country. Although we are based in Massachusetts, we’re able to partner with executives and professionals across the United States as a SEC-registered investment advisor.
Technology makes it easy to meet face-to-face, even if we are in different locations. When looking for a fiduciary financial advisor, or specialist in stock options or equity compensation, consider prioritizing the right complete fit over an office location near you. After all, if you move or your advisor does, you probably won’t want to start over with a new firm.
As a Darrow client, you will have a primary advisor who will be your central point of contact. However, we do work as a team in many situations as we believe our clients benefit from the insights and perspectives of more than one seasoned financial advisor.
There are many reasons individuals and families decide to partner with us. Here are five key benefits of becoming a wealth management client.
You may view your accounts and performance at any time via Darrow’s secure client portal. You will also be able to review your holdings daily through our third party custodian’s website.
As fee-only advisors, we are compensated only by our clients. Like most fee-only advisors, our fees are based on a percentage of assets under management (AUM).
This differs from fee-based advisors, who typically charge an AUM-based fee, and receive revenue or commissions from product-based recommendations, such as life insurance, annuities, or even the selection of investments in your portfolio.
As a fee-only advisor, we don’t sell products like insurance or earn revenues from third parties. We do not receive commissions from transactions. At Darrow, if we refer you to another professional, we aren’t collecting a referral fee.
As a registered investment advisor and fiduciary, we’re always working in your best interest.
Our wealth management program encompasses investment management and ongoing advisory support. The annual fee depends on the portfolio size.
For portfolios between $2M and $3M, our management fees begin at 1%. We offer a tiered pricing structure, meaning your overall fee percentage decreases as your total assets grow.
Our pricing is straightforward: one transparent fee for your entire portfolio. For managed assets between $2M and $3M, the rate is 1%. As your wealth grows, this single percentage decreases across your total balance, ensuring you benefit from lower costs on every dollar we manage.
The development of a comprehensive financial plan is an optional service for a separate fee. As there’s a lot of planning and analysis we can do without a full model, we’ll work to understand your needs and goals before making a recommendation.
Our foundational approach centers on proprietary model portfolios, aligned with each client’s risk profile. Our ongoing investment management process also seeks to optimize after-tax returns using strategies such as:
Tax-Loss Harvesting: Systematically capturing losses to offset gains
Tax-Aware Rebalancing: Adjusting allocations while minimizing tax liabilities
Strategic Asset Location: Optimizing the placement of assets across taxable and tax-advantaged accounts
Many factors go into the construction of our model portfolios. We use a global approach in selecting opportunities and employ both passive and active investments. In building diversified portfolios, we aim to reduce fund expenses and turnover and avoid market-timing strategies.
Because many of our high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients have specific investment needs, we also offer an array of customized asset management solutions, engaging external partners as needed. Some of these capabilities include:
Direct Indexing: For enhanced tax efficiency.
Separately Managed Accounts (SMAs): Customized equity and fixed-income sleeves designed for granular control and integration of sector/industry screens.
Options Trading: Strategic options trading for income generation, diversification, or downside protection.
Concentrated Position Management: Exchange Funds and Section 351 ETF exchanges to manage transitions.
Giving: Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) to facilitate charitable giving goals.
Typically not. We employ a mix of passive investments such as ETFs and actively managed mutual funds to build a broadly diversified portfolio designed to withstand market volatility. We do employ strategies involving Treasury bonds, though.
Yes. We incorporate them when they are the best available option.
There are certain situations where the use of options (such as a covered call) is advantageous. We discuss options strategies with clients on a case-by-case basis.
Darrow uses Charles Schwab & Co. Inc. as our clients’ primary independent third-party custodian. We take care of all the paperwork and can typically move assets in-kind to avoid any initial sales or tax implications. Once assets are at Schwab, we will begin to reposition portfolios. Current 401(k) and employer retirement plans cannot be moved, but the management of those accounts can be discussed on a case-by-case basis.
The account transition and onboarding process will be discussed in detail on an individualized basis prior to becoming a client.
Every situation is different and it’s common for new clients to have questions unique to their situation. Please contact our office or schedule a phone consultation with a wealth advisor so we can answer your questions about becoming a wealth management client