Advisory Firms (Reviews)

Review of Independence Advisors – Pennsylvania Wealth Manager

by AdvisoryHQ
2020-06-16T17:36:19-04:00

Independence Advisors – Overview 

Independence Advisors operates from its base office in Wayne, Pennsylvania.

The firm mainly caters to high-net-worth clients but has a substantial retail client base. It provides “investment advisory services” to about 300 clients, holding around 1,300 accounts with a market value of close to three quarters of a billion dollars.

The firm is registered with the Securities & Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

History – How Did Independence Advisors Start?

Independence Advisors was co-founded by Charles P. Boinske, CFA, in 1993. His objective was to level a playing field that he felt favored Wall Street firms. His investment philosophy embraced the three principles of cost management as well as broad diversification and disciplined portfolio re-balancing.

Pennsylvania Wealth Manager

Image source: Pixabay

Mr. Boinske’s expertise covers income planning, retirement planning, asset allocation, portfolio construction, financial forecasting, and investment analysis.

He has been a featured speaker at many national industry conferences including the J.P. Morgan Wealth Management Conference, the Financial Planning Association, and the DFA Advisors College. He is a member of the New York Society of Security Analysts (NYSSA). 

Mr. Boinske’s investment management career began in 1985, at Kidder Peabody & Co., now part of the Swiss bank UBS AG, where he worked his way up to assistant vice president.

He worked at Valley Forge Asset Management from 1989 to 1993 and then launched Independence Advisors in June 1993.

Independence Advisors Review – Team Members

  • Chas Boinske, CFA, oversees the firm’s strategic direction and portfolio management process.
  • Mark A. Rioboli, CFP, CFS, has over 27 years in the wealth management arena. He is the director of wealth management at Independence Advisors. Previously, Mark was the vice president at PNC Advisors, president and CEO of Bryn Mawr Asset Management, and manager of the Personal Financial Services at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
  • Patrick D. Runyen, CPA/PFS, CFP, is a wealth manager with over 7 years of experience. He worked in both the Assurance and Tax Practices at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
  • Barbara H. Richardson, RP, is the director of Client Services and the chief compliance officer. She has spent over 25 years in financial services and was awarded the RP designation from the College of Financial Planning.
  • Elizabeth L. Gavin, RP, is the vice president of Client Relations. She has over 22 years of experience in financial services and holds an MBA in finance from New York University.
  • Tina McCullough, RP, is the senior portfolio administrator, with over 14 years accumulated in financial services.

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Independence Advisors Review – Services

Independence Advisors offers a comprehensive array of services that includes investment counseling, portfolio management, financial planning, tax planning, estate planning, retirement services, business succession, pension and other consulting services, and advice on insurance issues and charitable giving.

The firm’s investment philosophy is based on a Nobel Prize-winning approach to optimize your investment portfolio. It is implemented in a structure that the firm refers to as the “5 Keys to Wealth Management Success” (presented below):

  • Diversify to reduce risk – an application of the old saw: don’t put all your eggs in one basket
  • Lower volatility means a higher compound return
  • Global diversification enhances returns & reduces risk
  • Employ asset class investing
  • Design efficient portfolios

These 5 Keys to Wealth Management Success draw on the seminal insights of Harry Markowitz, who won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1990. He theorized that assets in a portfolio should not be considered in isolation but in relation to each other, and that adding risky assets to a portfolio can actually reduce risk while, at the same time, increasing returns.

Markowitz showed that expected return can always be increased by increasing risk.

The firm’s primary security analysis methodology is the three-factor model designed by Eugene Fama and Kenneth French. Unlike the widely employed capital asset pricing model (CAPM), which only relies on the relationship between a stock’s value and the overall market value, referred to as beta, the three-factor model relies on beta, a size premium, and a value premium. Eugene Fama went on to win the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2013.

Mr. Fama is best known for the efficient market hypothesis.

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What We Like About Independence Advisors

1. Independence Advisors is fee-only: The name of the firm was chosen to emphasize its autonomy, its self-determinate investment decision-making, and its determination to avoid conflicts of interest.

Fees are assessed on a number of bases that include: (i) a percentage of assets under management, (ii) hourly charges, and (iii) fixed fees (other than subscription fees).

To minimize conflicts of interest, the firm and its employees do not receive commissions under any circumstances.

Their only compensation comes from management fees paid by clients. These fees are mostly based on assets under management and are charged on a quarterly basis.

The firm does not charge redemption or surrender fees.

Parts of the firm’s fee schedule are reproduced later in this article.

2. Independence Advisors is under a legal fiduciary duty to place its client’s interests before its own.

As a fiduciary, the firm must avoid conflicts of interest and is prohibited from profiting at its clients’ expenses. 

3. Independence Advisors delivers both breadth of experience and depth of experience: With over 100 years of combined know-how, the firm offers both an across-the-board range of services and an academic level of expertise. 

4. Independence Advisors offers account protection: Charles Schwab & Co., an independent custodian, provides statements and online account access for all Independence Advisor client accounts.

In addition, Schwab provides SIPC insurance for up to $500,000 and additional “excess SIPC” coverage through Lloyd’s and other London insurers.

Fee Schedule

The firm’s maximum advisory fee is 1% of total assets under management (AUM).

AUM                                                               Fee

First $2 million                                                1.00%

Next $3 million                                               0.75%

Next $5 million                                               0.50%

Above $10 million                                          0.30$

Independence Advisors Address Information:

620 Lee Road, Suite 100, Wayne, Pennsylvania 19087-5636

To contact Independence Advisors

Tel: 610-695-8070

Fax: 610-695-8073

Contact Page: http://www.independenceadvisors.com/get-in-touch/contact.aspx

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