
Our investment process is based an investment policy statement (IPS) that defines your investment goals and risk tolerances, establishing the basis for managing investments through an asset allocation strategy for you with discretion. We select mutual funds, exchange traded funds, closed-end funds, and investment trusts that meet our selection criteria, and we monitor the strategy over time.
We have a strong bias for total return. This means that dividends and interest are an important part of overall return. Equally important, are the tax benefits that might be available from differnt types of investment income, and the reinvestment of dividends for compounded growth. Generally, we use bond funds in all of our strategies, but we also make use use of alternative investments that emphasize current income and asset classes that provide greater global diversification.
Clients have the option to work with us either with or without discretion if they wish. However, our recommendation to clients is to engage us on a discretionary basis, as this allows for more effective and responsive investment decisions. That being said, all taxable accounts are managed to minimize current taxes to the greatest extent possible, making use of tax-loss harvesting.
Historically, our clients chose between Growth, Growth and Income, Balanced Income, and Conservative Income Strategies. These differ in the amount of income that is generated, and in the proportion of equity funds relative to bond funds. At present more clients approaching Social Security Retirement Age, have greater needs often for current income, and conservative and balanced Income portfolios are tailored to maximize income that can be used, or that can be compounded for future needs. Full Information about investment strategies is available in our disclosure brochure, and through conversation about your needs and the options that we can use to provide for them.
Bryn Mawr Wealth Management LLC never has actual custody of client funds. However, clients authorize limited powers that allow us to make investments and that gives us the capacity to bill fees. Charles Schwab Institutional is our Custodian for client accounts, and provides all investment services, generates account statements, trade confirmations, and provides a client accessible website. Clients also authorize our ability to distribute funds to them by direct deposit or delivery by written authorization to Charles Schwab Institutional.