Top financial advisors working with young professionals in Tacoma, WA

Aaron Palmer is a CFP® professional with 21 years of industry experience, currently serving with Equitable Advisors since 2004. He previously worked with Axa Advisors, LLC, overlapping with his tenure at Equitable Advisors. Outside of his advisory role, he owns and manages Bright Harbor Wealth Management LLC, operating under Aaron D Palmer, LLC in Tacoma, WA. Equitable Advisors provides financial planning and retirement-plan support to individual investors, corporations, and charitable organizations, utilizing a hybrid advisory and brokerage model with access to multiple third-party asset managers and LPL programs. The firm emphasizes tailored financial plans based on client goals, risk tolerance, and time horizon.

Julie Wurst is a CFP® professional with 11 years of industry experience. She has operated her independent advisory firm, Julie A. Wurst, CFP, LLC, in Tacoma, WA, since 2017. Her firm provides advisory services to individual clients, including high-net-worth individuals, as well as small businesses and trusts. The firm employs a globally diversified, low-cost investment approach primarily using index mutual funds and ETFs, and offers customized financial planning and consulting through various communication methods.

Jeffrey Huff is a financial advisor with NFSG Corporation in Tacoma, WA, holding a Series 63 designation and bringing 41 years of industry experience. His career includes roles at LPL Financial, National Planning Corporation, and Kestra Investment Services, among others. Outside of his advisory work, he is involved in marketing through Jeff Huff & Associates LLC and has experience as an insurance agent with Western United Life Insurance Company. NFSG Corporation is an SEC-registered investment adviser offering discretionary and non-discretionary asset management, third-party manager selection, and financial planning to individuals, pension plans, trusts, and businesses. The firm customizes portfolios using a combination of fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis and frequently employs third-party asset managers in its investment approach.

Baron Kuhn is a financial advisor with LPL Financial in Tacoma, WA, holding a Series 66 designation and 10 years of industry experience. He previously worked at Edward Jones before joining LPL Financial and Boeing Employee Credit Union, where he has been employed since 2021. Outside of finance, Kuhn is the owner of Washington Brewing Company LLC, a production-only brewery in Tacoma. LPL Financial is an SEC-registered investment adviser and broker-dealer serving a wide range of clients including individuals, retirement plans, banks, credit unions, corporations, and charitable organizations. The firm offers financial planning, advisory programs, retirement plan consulting, and brokerage services, utilizing both discretionary and non-discretionary management and a variety of model portfolios and research resources.

Chad Johnson is a financial advisor at Trek Financial with seven years of industry experience. He holds the Series 66 and Series 65 designations. Prior to joining Trek Financial, he worked at Clear Creek Financial Management and the First Assembly of God Life Center. Trek Financial serves individual and high-net-worth clients as well as institutional retirement plans, offering asset management, financial planning, and retirement-plan fiduciary and non-fiduciary services. The firm uses a combination of strategic and tactical portfolio approaches, incorporating rules-based and evidence-based models alongside fundamental and technical analysis, with access to a wide range of model strategies, alternative investments, and specialized hedging techniques.

Donald Harris is a financial advisor at Beaird Harris with 29 years of industry experience. He holds the Series 63 and Series 65 designations and has been with Beaird Harris Wealth Management, Inc. since 1996, as well as Beaird Harris & Co P.C. since 1989. Outside of his advisory role, he serves as a managing officer and trustee for several trusts and management companies. Beaird Harris Wealth Management, LLC is a fee-only, SEC-registered investment adviser serving individuals, high net worth clients, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, pension plans, and business entities. The firm employs Modern Portfolio Theory with diversified asset-class exposure primarily through low-cost mutual funds and ETFs, and it offers alternative investments and tax-managed strategies.

Katie Strother is a financial advisor with Curi Capital, LLC in Raleigh, NC, holding CFP® and Series 65 credentials and bringing 11 years of industry experience. Her prior experience includes roles at Park Ridge Asset Management and Curi RMB Capital LLC. Outside of her advisory work, she is involved in her community as a nursery room leader at Peace Church and serves as a varsity girls soccer coach at Wilson Christian Academy. Curi Capital is an SEC-registered investment adviser managing approximately $11.6 billion in assets and serving individuals, retirement plans, institutions, and family offices. The firm employs a long-term, fundamental investment approach using proprietary and third-party strategies across equity and fixed income, and offers a range of services including wealth management and specialized offerings for medical professionals.

Jill Raderstorf is a financial advisor at Aptus Financial, LLC with two years of industry experience. She holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Hamilton Capital, LLC and Fifth Third Bank. Outside of her advisory role, she serves as an unpaid advisor to Accelerating Angels, a venture investment firm focused on high-growth, women-owned businesses, where she assists with building due diligence processes. Aptus Financial provides flat-fee financial planning and advisory services to individuals, trusts, charitable organizations, and employer-sponsored defined-contribution plans. The firm emphasizes financial planning over discretionary portfolio management, supporting clients with passive, long-term indexing strategies, structured educational programs, and subscription-based ongoing support.

We’re built for families! We focus on bridging generations to connect families and their finances. As Baby Boomers, you created more wealth than any generation before you. Now in your retirement years, the economic expansion that aided your careers doesn’t feel as robust. You worry about your savings lasting a lengthy life expectancy. You also worry that your children and grandchildren will be the first generation to not have it better than the generation before them. Our goal is to solve both problems. Our structure allows us to provide the same great advice whether you have a lifetime of savings or you are just starting out. That means we can work with multiple generations, and where appropriate, find opportunities to coordinate across generations while maintaining privacy and independence. I am a millennial myself with over a decade of experience helping retirees with personal finances. That combination of youth and experience gives me an advantage over many of the advisors out there. My youth, to retirees, means I am likely to be around for the entirety of your retirement. All those plans you made with your advisor, will be executed by the advisor that helped you plan them. If that includes an inheritance, good news because I want to work with your heirs too! To a younger generation, you get an advisor you can relate to who doesn’t treat your problems as less significant because you don’t have the same level of assets. Just because I’m young, doesn’t mean I’m green! I was previously the Practicing Partner of a wealth management firm focused solely on retirees. As the lead portfolio manager, I oversaw almost $500 million in client portfolios. That experience means I’ve guided and advised clients through every stage of a successful retirement. It also means I know what a successful retirement looks like. As I’ve always said, best laid plans begin with the end in mind, so my experience serves just as well early in your journey to financial independence. I started my own firm because I saw an increasing need to reconnect families and their finances. Grandparents are providing child care, children are providing elderly care, and everyone is chipping in to pay for education. As much as ever families need each other, and our program is specifically designed to be prepared when they do.

Michael Grinnell is a Wealth Management Advisor at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management. Since joining the firm in 2015, he has brought a problem-solving approach influenced by his background in Mechanical Engineering, earned from Santa Clara University. Michael concentrates on business development, marketing, and engaging with the next generation of clients. His areas of expertise include education planning, family wealth management strategies, legacy planning, liquidity management, personal retirement planning, portfolio management services, and small business strategies. He holds several professional designations, including Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA), Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA), and Personal Investment Advisor (PIA). Outside of work, Michael enjoys a range of outdoor activities such as fishing, golfing, hiking, hunting, music, rock climbing, running, skiing, surfing, and tennis. He is actively involved in the community through organizations like St. Anthony Organization and The Covenant House California.