Your investment portfolio is very important.

You worked hard to save that money over many years. You want to be sure the person who is managing that money (a) knows what they are doing, (b) is ethical and (c) cares about your success as much or more than their own.

Here is what we provide at ALTUS Wealth Solutions to our Investment Advisor Clients:

Experience

Your Investment Advisor is John D. Buerger, CFP®. John has a Bachelor's degree in Economics, will complete his Masters of Science in Financial Services in 2012 and is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional with experience in financial planning since 2002. He has been directly managing all client assets since ALTUS Wealth Solutions became a Registered Investment Advisor in late 2007.

John specializes in alternative investments and portfolio hedging strategies. You don't have to use these alternatives, but it is nice to know that your investment advisor (unlike most) not only understands the traditional stocks, bonds and mutual fund products that are out there, but more complex strategies and investment tools that can limit risk and better achieve target returns.

Independence

ALTUS Wealth Solutions is an independent investment advisor firm. While it is true that we don't have a nationally known name (yet), we also don't have any in-house products to push. Also, your investment advisor is the person who actually manages your investments, not some no-name guy in the back room of the home office.

As an investment advisor and portfolio manager, John is looking for the best mix of low-cost investment vehicles in order to minimize risk and achieve target returns. We avoid any incentives to make money just because you choose one product over another. That would go against our ethical duty as a fiduciary to you (see below).

A Holistic View

We look at your investment portfolio as an important part of your whole financial strategy. Investment decisions must be made in concert with other holdings (retirement accounts, pensions, annuities, home equity and life insurance contracts) as well as your income, expenses, retirement timeline, tolerance for risk and long term goals.

We get ALL your financial information (including account balances and asset holdings) into one place so you can see it all and monitor it all easily and so we can make investment decisions that compliment everything else that is going on in your financial life.

Ethics

Your investment success is our #1 objective. We want you to build wealth and enjoy more of what's most important to you in life.

As such, ALTUS Wealth Solutions adheres to the "fiduciary" standard of care - the highest ethical pledge any business can make to their clients. At all times and in every case we must put your best interests first, ahead of our own. All fees and conflicts of interest are clearly stated up front.

Operation By Policy

The number one way most investors lose money with their portfolios is by making buy and sell decisions with their gut - what we refer to as Cycle of Emotion - rather than by policy. Many studies by Dalbar and Morningstar confirm that the average investor under-performs the market by about 6% because they get in and out of their investments at precisely the wrong times.

Every managed investment portfolio at ALTUS Wealth Solutions is operated through an Investment Policy. Which asset classes we hold as well as buy and sell decisions with those asset classes are all dictated by the policy. That way you (the client) know what we are doing with your money at any time.

Accessability

You are always welcome to call your investment advisor.

When you call the office, you won't be forced to speak to an intern and a secretary won't screen your call.

If he can't take your call right when you make it, your advisor WILL call you back within 24 hours. This is the case in the evenings and on weekends, too. Hey, we know you're at your job Monday through Friday during the day. Sometimes the only time you can address your personal finances is after dinner or during the weekend. You shouldn't have to wait until our office opens to get answers to your pressing questions.

Want a Free Portfolio Assessment? 
Call  805-476-0333 for more information on our Wealth Health Snap-Shot™ ($150 value - available for free for a limited time) - a 30 minute review of your personal financial situation with a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professional.