Independent, social Security optimization financial advisors in Costa Mesa, CA

The right financial advisor for you depends on how you weigh location, expertise, experience, the clients they typically serve, and how they work with you.

You might seek Social Security optimization advice if you're nearing retirement and want to maximize your monthly benefits without triggering penalties or reducing spousal benefits. A common mistake is claiming benefits too early or in the wrong sequence, which can permanently lower your lifetime income. Independent advisors here operate without ties to specific financial firms, aiming to provide advice aligned with your unique situation.

  • Claiming strategy nuances. Ask how they tailor your claiming age and sequence to your work history and spouse's benefits.
  • Tax impact awareness. Confirm they consider how Social Security income interacts with your other taxable income, especially in California's high tax environment.
  • Coordination with retirement income. See if they integrate Social Security timing with your broader retirement cash flow plan.
  • Property tax considerations. Since Proposition 13 limits property tax increases, ask how they factor this into your overall retirement budget.

Here are top matches to get you started. Review each profile to compare experience, credentials, and approach.

Want help finding the right advisor?

Answer a few questions to see advisors matched to you.

user avatar

Bettina Marie B

Series 66

Costa Mesa, CA

Citigroup Global Markets

Bettina Marie Banzon is a financial advisor with Citigroup Global Markets who holds a Series 66 designation and has one year of industry experience. Her prior work includes a brief tenure at Morgan Stanley and involvement with Bomber Eyewear. Citigroup Global Markets serves individual and institutional clients across a range of wealth segments, offering multi-asset, multi-manager investment programs and broker-dealer execution and custody services. The firm integrates internal standards and oversight committees to select and monitor investment managers and provides solutions that include discretionary and non-discretionary accounts, mutual funds, ETFs, alternative funds, and digital asset exposure.

Tax-loss harvesting ESG / Sustainable investing Executive Founder/Business Owner Attorney Consultant Technology Professional
user avatar

Michael B

Series 63, Series 65

Costa Mesa, CA

Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC

Michael Budd is a financial advisor with Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC based in Costa Mesa, CA. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has 28 years of industry experience. Prior to joining Integrated Wealth Concepts in 2023, he worked at Laurel Wealth Advisors, Inc. since 2013. Integrated Wealth Concepts serves individuals, high-net-worth clients, families, trusts, estates, businesses, and retirement plans through a network of independent advisors. The firm offers discretionary investment management, financial planning, consulting, family office, and retirement plan advisory services, employing a long-term investment approach with customized portfolios primarily composed of mutual funds, ETFs, individual equities, and fixed income.

Retirement income strategy Active portfolio management Wealth management Founder/Business Owner Executive
user avatar

Patrick W

Series 63, Series 66

Costa Mesa, CA

Legacy Wealth Management, LLC

Patrick Wilson is a financial advisor with Legacy Wealth Management, LLC in Costa Mesa, CA. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has 23 years of industry experience, including 19 years at Crown Capital Securities prior to joining Legacy Wealth Management in 2021. Legacy Wealth Management is a multi-advisor investment advisory firm serving individuals, charitable organizations, and business entities. The firm offers discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management, financial consulting, and third-party manager selection across a platform of 35 advisors, emphasizing tailored strategies and continuous account monitoring.

Private / alternative investments Options & derivatives strategies Concentrated stock management Annuities
user avatar

Austin D

Series 66

Costa Mesa, CA

UBS Financial Services

Austin Delve is a financial advisor at UBS Financial Services in Costa Mesa, CA, with 13 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has been with UBS since 2012. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved with Channel Islands Social Services as a respite caregiver. UBS Financial Services serves individual, corporate, and institutional clients by offering brokerage and investment advisory services, including fee-based financial planning and portfolio management. The firm combines institutional trading capabilities with wealth management services, utilizing proprietary research and model-based asset allocations to tailor client strategies.

General retirement planning Cash flow / budgeting Equity compensation tax strategy Executive Founder/Business Owner Mid-Career Professionals Approaching retirement

Regina Q

Series 63, Series 66

Costa Mesa, CA

Fidelity

Regina Quigley is a Wealth Management Senior Relationship Manager at Fidelity Investments. She is dedicated to helping clients navigate the complexities of self-directed investing by gaining a clear and complete understanding of their experience, situation, and mindset. Regina emphasizes the importance of establishing and maintaining relationships that best serve clients' evolving needs and interests, leveraging Fidelity's educational resources to support their goals. Regina has been with Fidelity Investments since 2020, holding various roles including Planning Consultant and Investment Solutions Representative I before her current position. Prior to joining Fidelity, she worked at TD Ameritrade as a Client Service Specialist and Relationship Manager II at TD Ameritrade Institutional. She holds a California Insurance License. Outside of her professional work, Regina enjoys movies, museums, music, reading, theater, and volunteering.

Wealth management Passive / index investing Active portfolio management Financial Professional
user avatar

Willie M

Series 63, Series 66

Cary, NC

Equitable Advisors

Willie Myles is a financial advisor with Equitable Advisors in Cary, NC, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and bringing 16 years of industry experience. He has worked at Equitable Advisors since 2016 and previously at AXA Advisors, LLC. Outside of his advisory work, he serves as co-chairman of a fundraising campaign for the nonprofit Alpha Light Fund Inc., focused on renovating the House of Alpha. Equitable Advisors serves a diverse client base including individual, high-net-worth, retirement plan, corporate, charitable, and institutional clients, offering financial planning, broker-dealer services, insurance distribution, and access to third-party asset management programs. The firm operates as both an SEC-registered investment adviser and broker-dealer, leveraging LPL-sponsored programs and endorsed TAMPs to deliver advisory and brokerage solutions.

Retirement income strategy Social Security optimization Founder/Business Owner Retired Executive Approaching retirement Baby Boomers (Born 1946-1964)
user avatar

Stavroula K

Series 63, Series 65

Linwood, NJ

Ameriprise

Stavroula Koutsfetsoulis is a financial advisor at Ameriprise with 25 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been with Ameriprise and its affiliated entities since 2011. In addition to her advisory role, she is involved in fiduciary activities as an attorney-in-fact (power of attorney). Ameriprise is a large institutional firm that provides retirement-income planning services primarily to individuals with substantial investable assets. The firm combines research, modeling, and tax-efficiency analysis to deliver written recommendation reports through a centralized consulting team, focusing on tailored retirement income strategies.

Retirement income strategy Income planning Social Security optimization Retirement withdrawal strategies Approaching retirement
user avatar

Cassandra S

Series 63, Series 65

Plano, TX

Financial & Tax Architects, LLC

Cassandra Sanchez is a financial advisor at Financial & Tax Architects, LLC with seven years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has previously worked at Fisher Investments, TIAA, US Health Advisors, and various other firms. Sanchez also had involvement with Drunken Donkey, reflecting experience outside the financial sector. Financial & Tax Architects provides discretionary portfolio management and financial planning primarily for individual and high-net-worth clients, focusing on those nearing or in retirement. The firm offers proprietary “Private Wealth Strategies” that use ETFs, individual securities, and trend-aware rebalancing, with accounts reviewed monthly and customizable strategies to meet client needs.

Retirement income strategy Social Security optimization Annuities Income planning General tax planning Retired
user avatar

Keith E

CFP®

Pittsburgh, PA

Keith L. Eliou, CFP

Keith Eliou is the principal of Keith L. Eliou, CFP, an investment management firm based in Pittsburgh, PA. He holds the CFP® designation and has one year of experience as a financial advisor. In addition to his advisory role, he practices law focusing on elder law and real estate and is involved in insurance, mortgage lending, and real estate brokerage businesses. The firm primarily serves pooled vehicles and institutional accounts, offering portfolio management, retirement plan services, and financial planning. It utilizes an open-architecture investment approach with third-party money managers and employs multiple analytical methods and strategies, conducting annual account reviews.

Social Security optimization Retirement income strategy Cash flow / budgeting Charitable giving tax strategies Business exit / sale strategy Founder/Business Owner
user avatar

Charles P

CFP®, Series 63, Series 65

San Rafael, CA

WealthSpire Advisors

Charles Pyfer III is a CFP® professional with 19 years of industry experience, currently serving at Wealthspire Advisors since 2024. Prior to this, he spent 15 years at Private Ocean. Wealthspire Advisors provides wealth management, investment advisory, financial planning, and family office support to a diverse client base including individuals, corporations, retirement plans, and nonprofit organizations. The firm employs a relationship-driven, customized investment approach that emphasizes diversified, institutional-style asset allocation and utilizes a range of investment vehicles and third-party platforms for comprehensive portfolio management.

Retirement income strategy Social Security optimization Roth conversion strategy Tax-loss harvesting Private / alternative investments Founder/Business Owner Retired Mid-Career Professionals Established Professionals
user avatar

Jared F

Series 65

Huntington Beach, CA

Northwest Asset Management

Jared Fruth is a financial advisor at Northwest Asset Management with four years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Securities America, Inc., KMS Financial Services, Inc., Oppenheimer Funds, and John Paul Mitchell Systems. Northwest Asset Management is a registered investment adviser managing approximately $3.6 billion for nearly 3,000 clients, including individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, charities, and corporations. The firm employs a customized, fiduciary approach using Modern Portfolio Theory and strategic asset allocation, combining fundamental and technical analysis to build diversified portfolios with periodic rebalancing.

Retirement income strategy Wealth management Active portfolio management Founder/Business Owner
user avatar

Edwina M

Series 65

Cincinnati, OH

Waverly Advisors, LLC

Edwina Martin is a Series 65 licensed financial advisor with two years of industry experience, currently with Waverly Advisors, LLC. She previously worked at 9258 Wealth Management for five years and was employed at Teradata Corp for eleven years. Martin also serves as assistant director of tax planning at 9258 Tax and Planning, a non-investment related business. Waverly Advisors is a multi-team registered investment adviser managing portfolios for individuals, retirement plans, and pooled investment vehicles. The firm combines traditional equity and fixed-income strategies with alternative and private-market allocations, offering a range of investment management and financial planning services.

Private / alternative investments Real estate investing Options & derivatives strategies Tax-loss harvesting Multi-generational wealth transfer Founder/Business Owner Executive
user avatar

Craig M

Series 63, Series 65

Columbia, SC

Capital Investment Advisory Services, LLC

Craig Mcdaniel Jr. is a financial advisor with Capital Investment Advisory Services, LLC in Columbia, SC. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has 13 years of industry experience. He has been with Capital Investment Group, Inc. and The McDaniel Corporation since 2012. Outside of his advisory role, he is involved in life insurance sales and serves as an independent agent for annuities and related products. Capital Investment Advisory Services, LLC provides investment advisory and supervisory services to individuals, retirement plans, corporations, trusts, estates, and charitable organizations. The firm offers customized investment management through discretionary mandates, third-party managers, and private-label model portfolios, using a blend of analytical methods with ongoing portfolio monitoring.

Active portfolio management Retirement plans for business owners (SEP, solo 401k) Annuities Options & derivatives strategies Founder/Business Owner Retired
user avatar

David H

Series 65

Irvine, CA

Martin Wealth Management, LLC

David Hart is a financial advisor with Martin Wealth Management, LLC in Irvine, CA. He holds a Series 65 credential and has 15 years of industry experience. Hart previously worked with Safeguard Investment Advisory Group and LifePro Asset Management. He is also a Certified Financial Fiduciary and volunteers as an instructor with the Foundation for Fiduciary Education, providing unbiased fiduciary financial education to the public. Martin Wealth Management offers investment advisory services primarily to individuals and high-net-worth clients by co-advising and directing accounts to a third-party money manager, Matson Money. The firm focuses on client onboarding, documentation, and ongoing review of third-party manager accounts rather than direct asset management.

Medicare planning Annuities
user avatar

Sarah C

CFP®, Series 63, Series 65

Boston, MA

Santander Securities LLC

Sarah Currier Barrella is a CFP® professional with 26 years of experience in financial advisory services. She currently works at Santander Securities LLC and Santander Bank, NA, having previously held positions at TD Bank and Citizens Securities, Inc. Barrella is based in Boston, MA. Santander Securities LLC serves a broad retail client base with approximately $3.14 billion in regulatory assets under management across 10,800 client relationships. The firm offers investment advisory services, portfolio management through wrap-fee programs, and financial planning, operating both as a registered investment adviser and a FINRA-registered broker-dealer.

ESG / Sustainable investing Tax-loss harvesting General retirement planning Income planning Founder/Business Owner
Warmer team member

Not sure where to start?

We'll help you think it through—whether you ultimately need an advisor or not. Warmer helps you compare advisors clearly, so you can choose with confidence.

Find your advisor

For advisor listings, we rely on sources including public filings and data provided by advisors, and we cannot guarantee that all information is current or accurate. Advisors are independent and may not have reviewed or updated this information. Please review an advisor's Form ADV and do your own diligence before deciding whether to work with them.

Advisor matching and referrals are provided by FinanceHQ LLC ("FHQ"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Warmer and an SEC-registered investment adviser. We may be compensated by participating advisors. You pay no fee to use our matching service, and advisor fees are not increased because of a referral. We do not supervise advisors, manage or hold assets, guarantee performance, or provide advice about specific investments.

By using our service, you agree to the Warmer Terms of Service and FHQ Advisory Agreement, and acknowledge Warmer's Privacy Policy. Please review FHQ's ADV Part 2A and Form CRS. Logos provided by Logo.dev

© 2026 Warmer Holdings Inc. ("Warmer")