Philosophy

We believe it is important that you take positive steps toward your financial future, and that means getting more than just investment advice.  We take the time to get to know you and your family, your financial situation and what matters most to you. Using an understanding of your life and priorities as a foundation, we can work with you to build a goals-based financial approach.

Approach

Our approach to investing is grounded in an understanding of you. It all begins with a conversation. We take the time to get to know you — your kids' names, how hard you worked to get where you are and how you define success. We'll work together with you to understand your investment personality, prioritize your goals and build a financial approach that reflects your needs. We believe investors can benefit from our advice, access to the investment insights offered by Merrill, trust and fiduciary services from Bank of America Private Bank and the banking convenience of Bank of America. When it comes to your success, there’s only one financial approach that really matters — yours.

Your approach to investing

Drawing upon research in the field of behavioral finance, Merrill developed the Investment Personality Assessment to help us get to know you better as an investor and potentially help you refine your own investing preferences. By gaining a deeper understanding of how you think and feel about investing through this assessment, we can customize the financial approach we develop together to help you pursue what matters most to you. Our Investment Personality Assessment is one of the ways to help us get to know you - to understand your goals and priorities. These questions will help us provide you with additional insights and resources.

Understanding your goals and priorities

Your life and goals change. We have tools to help you keep track of these changes so they can be reflected in your financial approach.

Capabilities

Using the broad investing resources of Merrill, we can also assist with potential solutions for income management, education funding, retirement income planning, and guidance for executives with concentrated stock positions, traditional and alternative investments, wealth transfer and estate planning services. And with your permission we can also work closely with your other professionals, such as attorneys, accountants and specialists, to help you pursue your goals.

DISCLOSURE: Some or all alternative investments may not be appropriate for certain investors. Certain alternative investments carry significant risk and are not subject to the same regulatory oversight as mutual funds and other appropriate investments. For these reasons, access to alternative investments may be limited to investors who are designated as sophisticated, high-net-worth investors.

Focus On High-Net-Worth Individuals and Business Owners

We  offer clients a breadth of potential solutions, premier customer service and financial tools based on their unique circumstances.

No matter what your goals may be, we begin by helping you define and prioritize your financial goals based on the following seven areas:

• Health: Managing healthcare expenses, now and in the future
• Home: Upsizing, downsizing, remodeling or buying a vacation home
• Family: Taking care of your family and other people in your life
• Leisure: Spending your free time in meaningful ways
• Giving: Volunteering, mentoring and giving to charities
• Work: Working in retirement, selling or starting a business
• Finance: Bringing it all together; defining your financial goals

• Potential risk management solutions
• Trust and estate planning services
• Potential wealth management solutions
• Access to Bank of America for your credit and banking needs