More than a financial plan. An ongoing financial partnership.
Our work isn't designed around a single question, investment account, or financial plan that sits on a shelf.
We work across your financial life, bringing together investment management, tax strategy, cash flow, equity compensation, retirement, estate planning, charitable giving, insurance, and other decisions as they arise.
That means getting to know you deeply, collaborating with your other professionals when appropriate, proactively identifying opportunities, and helping you navigate decisions as your life evolves.
Because of the depth of this work, Equalis is best suited for people looking for an ongoing, comprehensive advisory relationship rather than one-time or project-based financial planning.
Unlike other financial advisors,
we focus on understanding the whole person in front of us before we address their finances. Our motto is people first, money second.
Together, we’ll realign your mindset and priorities with your vision, all while helping you build strong financial habits.
Introducing
Financial Alignment Planning™
To move forward with intention, you first need clarity about where you are today and what you want your wealth to make possible.
We start by listening. Through thoughtful conversations and guided exercises, we’ll explore your values, priorities, experiences, and vision for the future. Then, we’ll connect those priorities to the many moving pieces of your financial life.
Once your foundation is solid, we'll shift to refining and monitoring as life happens and priorities realign.
Our Financial Alignment Planning™ Process
PRE-COMMITTMENT
ASSESS FIT + Explore Your Truth
Discovery Meeting
Goal: To ask important questions like What’s important to you?, and What’s essential to living your ideal life?
Takeaway: Gaining more self-knowledge on what’s most important to you, helping you decide if now is the time to invest in financial planning.
Note: If we decide to move forward, we will send a contract and onboarding materials after this meeting.
LAYING THE FOUNDATION
Envision Freedom & Passion
Vision Meeting
Goal: To paint a clear picture of what you desire most and to get organized.
Takeaway: Clarifying your vision in a transformational way that helps you build confidence in your own financial future.
Crunch the Numbers
Money Flow Meeting
Goal: To get a handle on income & expenses and implement a spending plan (a.k.a. budget) to give you insight into your cash flow.
Takeaway: Gaining a deeper understanding of exactly how you will save, invest, spend, and give.
How do I create an intentional spending plan?
How much should I save to buy the house, go on that vacation, grow my family? And where should I save it?
What is my emergency fund target? My long-term savings target? My opportunity fund target?
Build & protect
Insurance + Estate Meeting
Goal: To understand how to best protect yourself and your loved ones.
Takeaway: Reassurance that your family is taken care of should something happen to you and that your assets are distributed per your wishes.
Do I have enough insurance to protect my loved ones if something happens to me?
Are my assets protected?
Will my wishes be met in the unfortunate event of death or disability?
Take Smart Action
Design + Investments Meeting
Goal: To explore options for bringing your vision to life and start implementing your plan of action based on all of the intentional work you’ve done so far.
Takeaway: Having all of your questions answered before you follow along with your personal roadmap.
What are my options for aligning my investments with my values? And what type of accounts are appropriate for me?
How do I create structure for my annual charitable giving?
What’s the best way to save for education?
ONGOING LIFE PLANNING
ONGOING ALIGNMENT
Spring, Fall, & Ad-hoc Meetings
Goal: To ensure the train is still on the tracks and make adjustments as you live your rich life.
Takeaway: Confidence that your resources and intentional actions continue to align with your values.
Spring: Cash flow for the year, getting ready for tax time, confirming income and personal details, Insurance coverage, and life updates.
Fall: Required minimum distributions, tax planning, charitable giving, beneficiaries, estate review, and life updates.
Ad-hoc: As-needed meetings when life throws you a curveball.
Rest assured, with our ongoing alignment we’re in this for the long haul with you, no matter how you define financial success.
What should I expect to invest in working with Equalis?Fees
Our fees reflect the depth and ongoing nature of the advice we provide.
Our minimum annual fee is $7,800 for individuals and $9,600 for couples. However, most new client relationships involve greater financial complexity and a broader planning scope, with annual fees typically ranging from $12,000–$15,000 or more.
Your fee will depend on your individual circumstances, including the complexity of your financial life and the assets we manage on your behalf.
We don't expect you to arrive with every aspect of your financial life figured out… or even with significant investable assets. We're more interested in whether your circumstances and needs are a good fit for the comprehensive work we do.
The fee is the greater of $7,800 for individuals/$9,600 for couples, or the following tiered fee schedule:
For example, Peyton and Charlie are married and have an $800,000 investment portfolio. Because their asset-based fee falls below our $9,600 annual minimum for couples, they would pay $9,600 per year for financial planning and investment management.
If their portfolio were $2 million, their annual fee would be $18,000: 1% on the first $1 million and 0.8% on the next $1 million.
In both cases, their fee covers the full scope of our ongoing relationship, including comprehensive financial planning and investment management.
If you have investable assets outside of an employer-sponsored retirement plan, we generally require those assets to be managed by Equalis so we can provide coordinated advice across your financial life. Managing the full process allows us to do our best work.
FAQS
+If fees for Financial Alignment are paid monthly, does that mean we will meet or check-in on a monthly basis?
Not necessarily. Much of our work together will happen in the first 6 months where we will meet 4-5 times. After our initial work, our meeting cadence will slow quite a bit to every 3-4 months and as needed communication.
+You're a Los Angeles financial advisor, but do you work with non-locals?
Absolutely! Thanks to technology, we can work with anyone pretty much anywhere across the U.S. as we are a completely location independent firm. If you have any questions about how this works, we would be happy to answer them.
+Do you offer hourly work?
We do not offer hourly engagements; however, on occassion, we do offer projects based on availability with fees starting at $6,000.
+Do I need a minimum income or investment portfolio to work with you?
Not necessarily. We work with many clients who are still building wealth and may not yet have investable assets outside of their workplace retirement plans. If that's you, you can absolutely still be a great fit.
Our ongoing advisory relationships combine comprehensive financial planning with investment management. If you have investable assets outside of employer-sponsored retirement plans (such as brokerage accounts, trust accounts, or inherited IRAs), we require those assets to be managed by Equalis Financial so your investment strategy remains fully aligned with your financial plan.
We do not have a minimum account balance. Instead, we have a minimum annual advisory fee of $7,800 for individuals and $9,600 for couples. Generally, our services are the best fit for households with $300,000+ in annual income and/or $500,000+ in investable assets.
+I'm not a member of the LGBTQ+ community, can we still work together?
Absolutely! There’s no single “type” of Equalis client. If you’re values-driven, intentional about your money, and looking for a trusted fiduciary, you’re in the right place