Questions we hear.
Answers we stand behind.

"How are you compensated?"

Fee-only. We earn no commissions, no revenue sharing from fund recommendations, no trailing fees from asset managers. Our only financial interest is the growth of your portfolio.

"What types of institutions do you serve?"

Investment committees, foundations, endowments, retirement plan sponsors (including ERISA plans), and family offices. We work with boards that need a disciplined institutional consulting partner, not a product shelf.

"What is your investment process?"

We combine proprietary KnowRisk® research with a systematic, rules-based methodology to build and manage diversified portfolios. Every allocation is documented and defensible, because boards have a fiduciary duty to their stakeholders, and so do we.

"Do you provide ERISA plan consulting?"

Yes. We work with retirement plan sponsors to help fulfill their fiduciary obligations under ERISA, including investment policy statement development, fund selection and monitoring, and fee benchmarking. Every recommendation is documented and defensible.

"How do you handle investment policy statements?"

We draft, review, and maintain IPS documents that reflect each institution's objectives, risk tolerance, and spending policy. We then ensure that actual portfolio decisions are consistently defensible against those guidelines, which matters when your board turns over.

"How do you report performance to our board?"

Quarterly reports, benchmarked against appropriate indices and peer groups, written for board members, not just investment professionals. We can also present directly to investment committees and provide the documentation boards need for their fiduciary files.

"I'm not a finance person. Is this over my head?"

No. Most of the executive directors and board members we work with aren't investment professionals, and we don't expect them to be. Our job is to translate the complexity into decisions your board can actually understand and stand behind, not to make you feel out of your depth.

"What if our board isn't asking the right questions?"

That's more common than boards like to admit, and it's exactly what our in-person education sessions are for. We present in language every committee member understands, not just the investment professionals in the room, and we actively encourage participation so disagreement gets worked through, not glossed over.

"What if our board members don't agree with each other?"

That's a healthy sign, not a red flag: a committee where everyone agrees immediately usually means someone isn't engaged. Our job is to give members with different perspectives a common, well-documented set of facts to work from, then facilitate the discussion so disagreement turns into a decision the whole board can stand behind, not a stalemate or a rubber stamp.

"What makes Equitas different from my current advisor?"

Most wealth managers apply retail processes to family portfolios. We apply the same institutional methodology we use for boards and endowments, with 200+ years of combined experience behind it. That's a different standard entirely.

"What does 'fiduciary' actually mean for my family?"

It means we are legally required to put your interests first, always. We cannot recommend an investment because of a commission, referral fee, or any other conflict. Your family's goals are the only thing we optimize for.

"How do you think about multigenerational legacy?"

Legacy planning requires a different lens than accumulation. We focus on the full picture: portfolio construction, risk management across time horizons, and the discipline to stay the course when markets test you.

"How often do we meet and review the portfolio?"

At minimum quarterly, and more frequently when markets demand it. You will always know where you stand, not just at year-end. We believe families deserve the same reporting cadence as institutional clients.

"Do you coordinate with our attorneys and CPAs?"

Yes. Effective wealth management requires coordination with your full advisory team. We work alongside your estate attorney, CPA, and other professionals to ensure your financial picture is coherent, not siloed.

"What is the Navigator system and do I need it?"

Navigator is our proprietary rules-based investment system, designed to manage risk systematically across market cycles rather than reacting emotionally to volatility. Not every client uses it, but for families seeking a disciplined, research-driven approach to tactical equity exposure, it's central to how we invest.

"I'm a business owner. Is this too conservative for someone focused on growth?"

Not at all. For entrepreneurs navigating a liquidity event, a concentrated stock position, or the shift from building a business to managing what it built, we bring the same institutional discipline and direct access to the people managing your portfolio (not a call center), along with the tax-efficient structuring a growth-focused balance sheet requires.