How can Portfolio Solutions® help me plan for my financial future?
We’ve grown our wealth planning team and ability to serve you beyond our traditional investment management services. This gives you access to the combined experience of our credentialed professionals, serving more than 600 clients*, who can advise you on a wide range of wealth planning and investment-related topics. These may include financial and investment advice, tax planning, retirement planning, college savings planning, elder care planning, insurance planning, business succession planning, gifting and charitable trust planning, and legacy and estate planning. We can also help with strategies and questions about Social Security claiming, Medicare, healthcare, and other life-changing events such as marriage or divorce, and transition to long-term care.†
† Portfolio Solutions® does not provide tax, legal or accounting advice. You should consult your own tax, legal and accounting advisors before engaging in any transaction.
My current advisor does not communicate well with me. How does Portfolio Solutions® do this better?
With more than 600 clients across nearly all 50 states**, Portfolio Solutions® delivers innovative ways to communicate with you. Our aim is to communicate proactively with you about your investments, your financial needs, and your goals.
Our newly enhanced PS Client Portal is user friendly and allows you easy access to your quarterly statements and other important communications from us. It also includes your secure document vault which you can use to store your vital personal documents such as copies of passports, real estate deeds, your estate plan documents, etc. Your Client Portal is accessible online and on our New Mobile & Tablet App, which is available for Apple and Android devices.
We also provide you with an easy-to-use video conferencing and screen sharing application called Zoom which creates in-person experiences from afar. When our team hits the road, we’re always looking to meet with clients in person. We love getting to know you at your home or any other location convenient for you. Of course, email, phone calls, and visits by you to our Troy, Michigan office are always available and welcomed.
** Portfolio Solutions® has clients in 44 states and the District of Columbia as of 4/15/2021
How can I access my account information electronically?
There are three ways as a client of Portfolio Solutions® to electronically review your information 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.
- We have a mobile app called “PS Client Portal” for both Apple and Android devices, which includes a secure storage vault for electronic documents and files, as well as access to our team and electronic communications from them.
- We also have a new online client portal with the same capabilities for use at your desktop. See our website: https://www.portfoliosolutions.com/ps-portal for all login information. Our team members are always available to help you with any questions as well.
- Finally, you can access your information using a custodian website (BNY Mellon|Pershing, Schwab, or TD Ameritrade). Portfolio Solutions® urges you to compare information provided by our online sources with information you access directly from your independent custodian.
Who makes investment choices at Portfolio Solutions®?
Our Investment Committee is currently comprised of multiple team members. Our committee structure ensures investment decision-making rests with more than a single individual, provides for continuity, generates broader perspectives, and fosters a more measured approach to decision-making.
Has Portfolio Solutions® changed its investment philosophy?
Portfolio Solutions® investment philosophy is in large part inspired by the work of Jack Bogle (1929-2019), the founder of Vanguard. Like Mr. Bogle, we are committed to index investing, building well diversified portfolios, and controlling what is possible such as costs and taxes. The 401k plan maintained for our team offers the same investments used in client portfolios – so we’re also proud to say that “we eat our own cooking” at Portfolio Solutions®. What’s new is our ability to customize your portfolio if needed, considering outside holdings or other important financial matters you may have, while maintaining our core philosophy of long-term index investing.
How does Portfolio Solutions® review my investment accounts, and how often?
Portfolio Solutions® monitors all client accounts daily and rebalances them based on need (as opposed to a specific time interval). For our reviews, we also group all retirement money into one portfolio and all taxable money into another for each client. This allows us to manage the two types of money differently, which is important because of the added cost of taxable gains in taxable accounts. We therefore rebalance retirement accounts more frequently by allowing less variability in holdings compared to your target asset allocation. Our ongoing investment in technology helps us to perform these reviews efficiently, and all trading is reviewed by a member of our portfolio management team prior to execution.
Is Portfolio Solutions® affiliated with its custodians?
We currently work with Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (Schwab) and TD Ameritrade. They act as independent custodians of our client assets, which means they hold securities and cash and facilitate trading activities. Portfolio Solutions® is not affiliated with or compensated by these custodians.
Has Portfolio Solutions® changed to sell investment “products”?
No. Portfolio Solutions® is a Registered Investment Adviser (RIA) regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). We are not a broker-dealer or insurance representative, such as those seen advertising financial products frequently on TV. As a Registered Investment Adviser, we are held to the highest standard of care (fiduciary standard) in our industry to act in the best interest of our clients. We do not sell financial products with commissions, nor will we “upsell” services that are not in the best interest of our clients based on their unique and individual financial situation.
Does anyone at Portfolio Solutions® have access to my money?
No. Portfolio Solutions® employees do not have access to your money. Your money is held in an account in your name at your selected custodian, either Schwab or TD Ameritrade. Portfolio Solutions® only has limited authorization to trade securities with discretion and deduct our quarterly management fee from the account under management. We have no other authority or access to your account(s).