Mark Lovett is a financial advisor at Tourmaline Capital Management LLC with 15 years of industry experience. He has worked at Tourmaline Capital since 2011 and previously spent 12 years at UCSF. He holds a Series 65 designation. Tourmaline Capital Management LLC provides investment advisory services primarily to individual clients, managing approximately a dozen relationships with $3.5 million in assets. The firm offers discretionary portfolio management and non-discretionary hourly advice, constructing portfolios tailored to client risk tolerance and investment goals using equities, ETFs, and money-market instruments.

Cheng Su is a financial advisor at Whiteswan Trading Corporation with six years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Hubei University of Economics and Zhongnan University of Economics and Law. Whiteswan Trading provides investment advisory services, financial planning, and hourly consultations to individual and business clients. The firm’s approach emphasizes value investing and strategic asset allocation, using fundamental, technical, and charting analysis to tailor portfolios primarily involving exchange-listed securities, ETFs, equities, and options.

Greg Deforest is the sole advisor at GD Investment Advisers LLC in San Francisco, holding a Series 65 designation with 11 years of industry experience. He has managed his independent firm since 2014. GD Investment Advisers LLC provides discretionary investment advice and portfolio management for individuals, small businesses, and institutional clients. The firm employs fundamental analysis to pursue absolute returns over a 3–5 year horizon with a concentrated portfolio primarily focused on U.S. equities and options, and it incorporates active use of derivatives, leverage, and performance-based fees in its separately managed accounts.

Jason Roth is a financial advisor at Centoic with two years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has prior work history spanning seven years at StackFlip LLC and seventeen years at LogicEase Solutions Inc. Centoic provides advisory services focused on education savings for individual investors through a technology-driven platform that offers subscription-based access to online educational materials, planning tools, and portfolio guidance, complemented by optional hourly financial-planning consultations. The firm emphasizes passive asset management using automated analysis and delivers advice without holding client assets.

Herb Meiberger is a CFA® charterholder and principal of Gator Investment Advisors, LLC, with 11 years of industry experience. Prior to founding his independent firm in 2022, he worked at Berkeley Investment Advisors for eight years and held long-term academic positions at San Francisco State University and Hult International Business School. He also served on the San Francisco Retirement Board for 25 years. Gator Investment Advisors provides discretionary asset management to individual and high-net-worth clients, tailoring investment programs to each client’s goals and risk tolerance using fundamental and cyclical analysis. The firm maintains a small client base and operates with a designated custodian, Charles Schwab.

Stephen Miles is a financial advisor at Sutro Advisors with 24 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and previously worked at Charles Schwab Bank and Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. for 13 years before joining Sutro Advisors in 2018. Sutro Advisors provides tailored investment management and financial planning to individuals, high-net-worth clients, and businesses. The firm primarily uses passive portfolios with index mutual funds and ETFs, complemented by fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis, and also offers portfolio management for corporate and institutional clients.

Much like you don't wait to join a gym until you're healthy, you shouldn't wait to work with a financial planner until you're wealthy. Unfortunately, the financial industry historically only wants to work with clients who have -insert any seven-digit-minimum amount of assets-. The good news is there are now plenty of financial planners who will gladly work with clients regardless of how much they have already saved. I am one of those planners. ;) I've been a financial planner for over a decade now, and I've worked lots of different clients from all walks of life. I've come to learn that sticking to the basics and keeping things simple is the best approach when helping clients develop a financial plan. My role is to help guide you on your path to financial freedom. New clients start with a financial plan. This is where we talk about your goals, time horizon, and all the numbers. We’ll review different scenarios so you can see what’s possible. By the end of the initial plan, you should be up and running, moving in the general direction of your goals. From there, we move to ongoing financial planning in which we meet semi-annually to monitor your plan and make adjustments when needed.

Bruce Ritter is the sole advisor at Ritter Wealth Counsel, an independent fee-only wealth management firm based in San Rafael, CA. He holds a Series 65 designation and has over 36 years of experience in the industry. Ritter Wealth Counsel serves primarily high-net-worth individuals and families, as well as trusts, estates, pension, and charitable organizations. The firm offers customized investment programs implemented mainly with passive index funds or ETFs, maintaining predominantly non-discretionary client relationships and a small, concentrated client roster.

John Dowling is a CFA® charterholder and principal advisor at JFD Capital, LLC, with nine years of industry experience. He previously worked at Fairview Capital and the Golub Group (now Summitry) before founding his current independent advisory firm. JFD Capital is a small independent registered investment adviser that provides ongoing, tailored portfolio management primarily to high-net-worth individuals. The firm employs a bottom-up, fundamental research approach focusing on undervalued equities and fixed-income securities, offering discretionary management and performance-based fee arrangements to qualified clients.

Donald Wong is the sole advisor at AVEC LLC, an independent firm based in San Francisco. He holds a Series 65 designation and has five years of experience as a financial advisor, following over two decades in consulting and three years at Pacific Gas and Electric Company. AVEC LLC provides fee-only wealth management services to individuals, high-net-worth families, trusts, donor-advised funds, and business entities. The firm employs a customized, unconstrained investment approach with a focus on long-term, risk-aware portfolios implemented through a variety of investment vehicles, and offers comprehensive financial planning and family-office services under a single asset-based advisory fee.

Matthew Stebnicki is a CFP® professional with six years of experience at Stebnicki Financial Planning, an independent firm he founded in 2020. Prior to that, he worked in software and consulting roles and spent time in full-time education. Based in San Francisco, he provides financial planning and investment management services. Stebnicki Financial Planning offers fee-only financial planning and discretionary investment management tailored to individuals and small businesses. The firm emphasizes customized investment plans considering client goals, risk tolerance, and macroeconomic trends, serving a very small client base to maintain concentrated advisor-to-client relationships.

Edi Alvarez is a CFP® with 19 years of industry experience, currently serving as the sole advisor at AIKAPA since 2014. He is also the CEO of Dual Enterprises, a publishing business he founded in 1990 that produces niche books for smaller audiences. AIKAPA provides comprehensive wealth and financial planning services to individuals, families, trusts, and small businesses, with a client base that includes executives and business owners. The firm emphasizes financial plans as the foundation of its investment advice and offers both managed and guided planning models, incorporating diversified portfolios and ongoing education through seminars and a published blog.

Robert Harden is a financial advisor with Silicon Valley Capital Management in San Francisco, CA, holding a Series 63 designation and over 30 years of industry experience. He has been with Silicon Valley Capital Management since 1995. Silicon Valley Capital Management provides comprehensive securities investment management for individuals, families, trusts, and small companies. The firm employs a top-down, macro-driven investment approach focused on secular trends and offers services including portfolio management, tax and financial planning coordination, and specialized programs such as 10b5 plan administration and 529 college funding.

Claudia Fitch is the principal of Fitch Financial Advisors LLC in San Francisco, where she has provided financial advisory services for 23 years. She holds the CFP® designation and Series 63 license. In addition to her advisory work, she manages a tax preparation and representation business. Fitch Financial Advisors LLC offers financial planning, investment planning, and portfolio management services alongside tax preparation and representation for individuals and related entities. The firm provides both finite financial planning projects and ongoing engagements, employing an active, medium-to-long-term investment approach primarily using managed vehicles such as mutual funds and ETFs.

Jeffrey Milewski is a financial advisor with Moat Capital and holds a Series 65 designation. He has one year of industry experience and has held prior roles including CEO of Stable Coin Inc. and instructor at Creighton University’s Heider College of Business. He currently teaches online courses and leads operations at a financial technology company focused on stablecoin development. Moat Capital is a state-registered investment adviser providing discretionary investment management and advisory services to individuals, high-net-worth clients, trusts, estates, and businesses. The firm uses fundamental analysis with a long-term investment approach, primarily employing exchange-traded funds alongside individual securities, options, and cash positions to align portfolios with client objectives and risk tolerances.

Randall Huyser is a financial advisor with Full Compass Investment Advisors in Novato, CA, holding a Series 63 designation and 21 years of industry experience. He has been with Full Compass Investment Advisors since 2012. Full Compass Investment Advisors provides personalized investment management and advisory services to individuals, families, trusts, retirement plans, and charitable organizations, typically through separately managed discretionary accounts. The firm uses a multi-disciplinary investment process combining fundamental research with quantitative and qualitative analysis to construct tailored portfolios across various strategies.

Kimun Lee is the sole advisor at Lee, Kimun with six years of industry experience. He has extensive prior experience dating back to 1980 under the business name Resources Consolidated. Lee serves as a director or trustee on multiple investment fund boards, including Firsthand Technology Value Fund and FundX Investment Trust. Lee, Kimun is an independent firm providing discretionary portfolio management to approximately 55 clients with about $38 million in assets under management. The firm employs a fundamental analysis investment process with discretionary authority over trading and broker selection, offering a broad range of investment instruments and accommodating a variety of client types.

Laura Chernov is a CFP® professional with 19 years of industry experience. She is the founder of Balanced Financial Advisors and has previously worked at WealthSource Partners, Goldman Sachs PFM, and United Capital. She also serves as a Managing Director and investment adviser representative at Wealth Source. Balanced Financial Advisors provides portfolio management and financial planning for individual and high-net-worth clients, using model allocations based on Modern Portfolio Theory. The firm typically manages accounts on a discretionary basis and advises clients on a range of investment types, including ETFs, REITs, annuities, and private placements.

Joseph Gallagher is a financial advisor at Pacific Crest Asset Management LLC with 31 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Dorsey Capital Management and Kimun Lee. Pacific Crest Asset Management LLC provides discretionary portfolio management and prepares Investment Policy Statements tailored to clients’ goals, tax considerations, and risk tolerances. The firm employs a mix of analytic techniques and implements long-term purchase strategies across equities, fixed income, and ETFs, managing client assets internally without third-party managers.

Kathleen Hentges is the principal and managing member of Applied Advisor, an independent firm based in San Francisco. She holds the CFP® designation and Series 65 license, with 22 years of industry experience. Since 2009, she has operated Applied Advisor, providing financial planning and tax preparation services. In addition to advisory work, Ms. Hentges offers tax preparation services as a registered tax preparer. Applied Advisor provides fee-only, project-based financial planning and tax preparation to individuals and families with invested assets up to $5 million. The firm serves primarily pre-retired, salaried professionals and employs a buy-and-hold investment approach using no-load mutual funds and ETFs, delivering advice on an hourly or project basis without ongoing portfolio management or AUM fees.