Frequently Asked Questions

Your first meeting generally takes anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, depending on the complexity of your financial situation. During this time, we will address your goals and objectives, current financial position and personal situation. It is an opportunity for us to get to know you and you to assess whether we are the right fit for you.

During your first appointment, we will establish why you are seeking financial advice, what your goals are and what you expect from us.  This entire meeting can be just a conversation.  However, if you would like to bring specifics for us to discuss/review, then we ask that you bring (or email us) as many documents as you can.

For investment management, copies of account statements are desired.

For financial planning services, some helpful documents include, brokerage statements, 401(k) statements, tax returns, loan and bank statements, copies of wills, insurance details, and/or a budget.

Your initial appointment with Ankerstar Wealth is provided free of charge. If you decide to proceed, we will send you a New Client Form to provide us with basic details and then we will prepare an Investment Policy Statement for your consideration, input, and approval.  This first meeting can be in person, over the phone, or over videoteleconference (Zoom, Facetime, Skype) depending on client preference.

After your initial appointment, we will send you a New Client Form as well as all compliance documentation that outlines the services we will be providing and our fees. The inputs you provide on the  New Client Form will serve as the baseline for the client agreement which (once signed) establishes our business relationship. You should take the time to read and consider your client agreement before signing and returning it to us. There is no rush to make a decision. We commence work once a signed client agreement is received.  Most paperwork can be accomplished using DocuSign and can be completed in just a few minutes.

Yes, the client can withdraw any or all of the funds at any time.  Ankerstar Wealth does not invest in any investments that lock up your money.  Small withdrawals are generally available same day, while entire account withdrawals often need three days to settle the final trades and process the paperwork.  As always, early communication with your advisor is key when you anticipate withdrawing funds.

No.  We do not offer accounting or legal services. Our license stops short of being able to do this.  However, we are happy to work with your existing accountant. Similarly, we are not lawyers and cannot provide legal advice. But we will happily work with you to draft documents for your existing lawyer to help save on expensive hourly lawyer fees.

Ankerstar Wealth will not take custody of your funds at any time.  Our investment managers use both Schwab and TD Ameritrade as custodians for client funds, therefore money movement transactions are between you and the custodian via electronic funds transfer, We have a separate advisor portal that allows us to manage your accounts, but prohibits us from moving money into or out of your account.  To move money, we simply send you a form through DocuSign for your signature.

After a thorough and detailed analysis of the client’s specific circumstances, an Investment Policy Statement is constructed for the client’s review, consideration and approval. Ankerstar Wealth’s primary goal is to be thoughtful, detailed and consistent when dealing with the client’s legacy of wealth.

It depends on market conditions and client preference.

In general, Ankerstar Wealth (AW) uses the following investment strategy:

• All investments begin and end with value.  Price is a major consideration when initiating or adjusting a positon.  While best of breed investments are desired, other positions may be initiated to capitalize on a short-term unique undervaluation opportunity—often through a buy-write strategy.
• AW seeks to identify and invest in major macroeconomic and demographic themes. For example, AW currently seeks for each client to have exposure to the health care sector due to the aging population.  The security selected will differ with client risk tolerance and objectives:  biotech (CELG, REGN) for aggressive accounts, big pharma (PFE, MRK) for moderate accounts, or ETFs (IBB, VHT) for conservative accounts.  These are not absolute criteria, but provided for explanatory purposes only.
• Maximum total return is sought. Therefore, each portfolio is likely to contain a combination of both growth and income securities.  AW is only concerned with maximum total return and is not concerned with specific income generation unless specifically requested by the client.
• Diversification across securities as well as sectors is preferred to mitigate single stock risk; however, AW attempts to capitalize on profitable opportunities by maintaining a core group of equities—stocks, bonds, ETFs, Mutual Funds—to remain focused on generating maximum total return. This allows AW to be nimble in adjusting portfolios as market conditions change to capitalize on emerging opportunities as well as reduce risk when desired in volatile conditions.   Each AW portfolio is monitored daily to mitigate the reduced level of diversification inherent in a focused portfolio.
• AW’s investment strategy ends with value as well. While a three-to-one reward to risk ratio is desired prior to entering a position, once that ratio has decreased to one-to-one, some or all of the security may be sold to pursue other opportunities if they exist at that time.  Securities will generally be sold under four conditions.  First, a partial sale is necessary to rebalance the portfolio or reduce exposure to a sector/theme.  Second, the security no longer provides an acceptable reward to risk ratio.  Third, the security failed to achieve the stated investing thesis under which the security was purchased.  Fourth, a more attractive opportunity presents itself.
• Each potential portfolio adjustment is considered against the backdrop of each portfolio’s risk tolerance, objectives, diversification, tax impact, and fundamentals (P/E ratio, beta, div ratio, etc).

We deduct the fees directly from your account on a quarterly basis. We bill in arrears, which means that we only bill you for services at the end of the quarter.  Clients may also pay by check as well if they prefer.

Ankerstar Wealth’s philosophy is founded in historical perspective and market knowledge. History has shown that investment cycles repeat themselves, providing a range of expected performance. We believe that a portfolio that is thoughtfully structured and implemented will provide an investor with a greater likelihood of better, more stabilized performance through these market cycles.