FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Who are you and what services do you offer?
We are a small family-run firm offering investment management and financial planning services. Bill has 40+ years in the investment business and actively manages client portfolios (read more about his investing strategy here). Anastasia joined TABER Asset Management in 2021 and is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®. She specializes in serving women who run their own households and has also crafted comprehensive financial plans for individuals looking to retire early and couples in need of financial guidance.
Where are you located? Are meetings in person or on Zoom?
Our principal office resides in Des Moines, IA, which is supervised by Bill. Our satellite office resides in Alexandria, VA, which is staffed by Anastasia. We offer in-person investment management meetings in Des Moines, IA and in-person financial planning meetings in Alexandria, VA. We conduct most of our business through Zoom meetings and phone calls. We are willing to contact you in whatever capacity you prefer, whether your preference is to meet on Zoom or in-person, and whether you prefer follow-ups via phone or email. We can work with individuals and families in all 50 states.
What is investment management?
Investment management is a service offered for self-directed IRAs or taxable investment accounts. We also offer advice on 401(k)s or other employer sponsored retirement plan investments for ongoing investment management clients or on a flat fee basis. You can read about the benefits of working with a fiduciary advisor here.
We find investment management services are best suited for individuals and families that do not have either the 1. Time; 2. Talent; or 3. Temperament to do their own investing. Our investment strategy is well-suited for those who are interested in an active, more concentrated investing approach. Read more about our investment strategy here.
What tangible benefits have you seen for clients?
Through wise investment decision-making, we have seen clients not only meet, but exceed their financial goals, living with abundance and passing on wealth to children, other loved ones, and/or charities of their choosing. Having a dedicated investment manager saves our clients time and worry over whether they are making the right investment decisions. This has become even more critical in today’s overabundance of breaking news alerts and financial hot-takes from commentators and influencers alike. Hiring the right investment manager can make a meaningful difference in a family’s ability to meet financial milestones and can provide peace of mind during periods of higher market volatility.
What is financial planning?
Financial planning arose from a need and desire from the public to receive comprehensive financial advice with recommendations tailored to their personal situations. There is an abundance of personal finance information to be found online, but virtually none of it will be tailored to your personal situation, with your closely-held values and personal goals in mind.
Financial planning is different from investment management in that it takes a holistic approach to your personal finances. Through the financial planning process, you will gain a whole understanding of how various areas work in concert with each other—investments, taxes, insurance, financial statements, college planning, retirement planning, etc—and will receive specific recommendations on how to best alter your current course of action to meet your goals. We break down our financial planning process and what to expect from working with us here.
What tangible benefits have you seen for clients?
As a result of our financial planning process, we’ve seen clients retire early or on time with confidence, change to more fulfilling careers, buy their first home, start families, and send their children or grandchildren to college. The biggest benefit we’ve found to comprehensive financial planning is intangible—peace of mind. You will receive clarity and confidence that you are doing what you need to do to get to where you want to go.
Who do you work with?
For investment management, we currently work with over 100 households located in 22 different U.S. states. These clients seek an active approach to investment management.
For financial planning, Anastasia works with couples focused on achieving financial milestones (e.g. buying a home, starting a family, retiring early, traveling) as well as women who run their own households. She has helped clients craft plans to retire early, buy a home, or streamline their finances.
What will it look like to work together?
With our investment management service, you can direct us to engage you in annual, semi-annual, or quarterly conversations, conducted through either phone, Zoom, or email depending on your preference. You will receive access to our investment advice and newsletters and are encouraged to reach out with questions on your investments or overall financial situation as they arise.
With our financial planning service, you can expect 3-4 meetings over a period of a few months. The meetings are structured to cover 1-2 areas of financial planning and conclude with the delivery of a written financial plan document with analysis of your personal financial situation and recommendations tailored to meet your goals explored throughout the financial planning process.
Once the financial planning process has concluded, we determine the need for follow-up based on the client’s personal needs and situation. Periodic monitoring and adjustments must be done to ensure the client remains on track to meet their goals.
A complete outline of our financial planning process can be found here.
How is your firm different from other firms?
We are a small, family-run business: Bill is founder and principal of TABER Asset Management with over 40 years of experience in the financial services industry. His wife, Susan, is a CPA and handles finances. Bill’s son, Alex, conducts investment research. Anastasia, Bill’s daughter, joined the firm in 2021 and earned her designation as a CFP®. Carla Albers, our Client Service Associate, has been with the company since Day One in 1998. Many of our clients are second, third, or even fourth generation clients. We take pride in offering fiduciary advice with high integrity and take the utmost care and consideration for our clients. We are focused on creating a positive difference in the financial well-being of our clients. Our company philosophy states that “We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”
We have longevity and stability as a small business: our firm has had a successful 25+ year run (since 1998).
Overall, our active investment approach, being a family-run firm with a 25+ year history, and our service offerings of either investment management, or financial planning, or both, makes us standout among other firms. Bill is an experienced active investment manager and takes a customized approach in building client portfolios.
When it comes to investment management, what is discretionary vs. non-discretionary?
Discretionary simply means that the investment manager has control to make investment decisions on the accounts that you have agreed to let them manage. Non-discretionary is when the investor maintains control, and the investment manager must clear any changes to the account with the investor before they are made.
Are you actively taking clients?
Bill is actively accepting new discretionary clients.
Anastasia is actively accepting between two to four financial planning clients per month.
What is your pricing?
For investing, we require $100,000 minimum to receive investment management on those assets. This can be cash you intend to invest, or a self-directed traditional or Roth IRA, or a rollover IRA. Clients with 401(k)s or other employer sponsored accounts have the option to rollover their funds into an IRA once they have terminated employment with that employer.
We charge an investment management fee on assets ranging from 1.25% and declining to 0.50% based on the amount and type of assets (see our fee breakdown in our Form ADV).
For financial planning, we charge a flat fee of $3,500 minimum for a comprehensive financial plan, or $300 hourly for smaller projects. It is a minimum subject to increase based on complexity of the plan.
How do I get in contact with you?
You can schedule an initial meeting with either Bill or Anastasia, at no charge to you, on our Calendly here.
Let’s Work Together
Get in touch so we can start working together.
