Top Financial Advisors in Delaware

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Affinity Wealth Management in Wilmington leads off our Delaware list. This large fee-based firm works mainly with non-high-net-worth individuals. It also works with high-net-worth individuals, pensions, profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations and government entities. There is no set account minimum.

Some advisors at Affinity may receive commissions from the sale of insurance or securities to clients. This is what makes the firm fee-based. As a result, it is subject to a potential conflict of interest. The firm, however, is bound by fiduciary duty and is obligated to always act in the best interests of clients.

Affinity Wealth Management Background

Affinity Wealth Management was founded in 2017. It is owned by CEO Michael Sicuranza, an advisor who holds the certified financial planner (CFP) designation. 

Affinity provides investment management services, financial planning services and retirement plan advisory services. It provides a wrap fee program and the vast majority of its assets are managed on a discretionary basis.

Affinity Wealth Management Investment Strategy

Investment strategies at Affinity Wealth Management are tailored to the needs of clients. This process includes creating an investment program or placing clients into a model portfolio. When it comes to creating an investment plan, advisors take into account investment goals, desired investment strategies, risk tolerance and more.

Investment portfolios typically consist of mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), bonds, stocks, options contracts, certificates of deposit (CDs), foreign securities, real estate investment trusts (REITs) and other alternative investments. Advisors use fundamental, technical, cyclical and charting analysis methods to evaluate potential investments, and typically take a long-term approach to investing. 

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A Wilmington-based financial advisor firm, Clariti Wealth Advisors is next on our list. While it does not technically have a minimum investment requirement, its clients generally have at least $1 million in assets or will be reaching that level soon. Clariti advises mostly high-net-worth individuals, though it does also work with individual investors who don't have a high net worth. The firm also serves charities and businesses.

The advisor has a small team of advisors on staff. The advisors at the firm have amassed a number of certifications, including certified financial planner (CFP), certified public accountant (CPA), certified divorce financial analyst (CDFA) and more. 

Clariti Wealth Advisors is a fee-only firm, with fees based on a client's amount of assets under management.

Clariti Wealth Advisors Background

Clariti Wealth Advisors was founded by Vincent A. Schiavi in 1983. Ravi Dattani joined in 1998 and is the firm's sole owner today.

The following services are offered by Clariti:

• Financial planning
• Estate tax planning
• Portfolio monitoring
• Investment management

Clariti Wealth Advisors Investment Strategy

Diversification is the most important part of Clariti Wealth Advisors' investment strategy. The firm invests in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, ETFs, alternatives and other appropriate investments. It looks to establish cash flow for clients in retirement. 

With regards to mutual funds and ETFs, both passively and actively managed funds are considered. Within actively managed funds, the firm uses a number of styles, market caps and investing methodologies.

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Veery Capital’s individual clients primarily do not have a high net worth. This fee-based firm also works with a number of high-net-worth investors. Investment accounts are managed mostly on a non-discretionary basis. There is no minimum investment requirement, though some investments may require a minimum in order to be effective.

As a fee-based firm, certain on-staff advisors at Veery may be able to earn commissions from the sale of specific securities or insurance products. While this is a potential conflict of interest, the firm is legally required to act in clients' best interests.

Located in Wilmington, Veery's team includes accredited investment fiduciaries (AIFs) and certified financial planners (CFPs), among other credentialed advisors.

Veery Capital Background

Established in 2018, Veery Capital is owned by partners D. Christopher Benfer, Matthew MacNeal, Kathleen Simolike and Cortney Milner. 

The firm offers investment management, financial planning and retirement plan advisory services. It offers a wrap-fee program for certain clients, which means that it bundles security transaction fees together with its investment advisory fee for a single asset-based fee. 

Veery Capital Investment Strategy

Veery Capital generally uses a long-term investment strategy, depending on clients’ financial goals. This usually involves holding securities for more than a year, but may hold for shorter periods to rebalance or meet a client’s cash needs. The firm may also take short-term positions.

The firm's investment strategy is largely driven by fundamental analysis, which seeks to identify the intrinsic value of an asset by analyzing the financial profile of a company and broader economic data.

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With a $500,000 client account minimum requirement, Daniels + Tansey primarily works with individuals, both above and below the high-net-worth threshold, as well as pension and profit-sharing plans, estates, trusts and businesses.

Certified public accountants (CPAs), chartered financial analysts (CFAs) and certified financial planners (CFPs) are employed by Daniels + Tansey. This financial advisor firm is located in Wilmington.

Daniels + Tansey is fee-based, specifically because some of its advisors sell insurance policies that may result in additional commissions. While this creates a potential conflict of interest, the firm is registered with the SEC, which binds it to act in clients' best interests.

Daniels + Tansey Background

Founded in 2004, Daniels + Tansey is an independently run financial advisor firm. Partners DeVon Daniels, Christopher F. Daniels, Susan Benson, Adele McIntosh, Christopher W. Daniels, T. Jordan Daniels and Tim DeAngelo have ownership interests in the firm.

Daniels + Tansey offers several services: wealth management, investment advisory, multi-family office, financial planning and matrimonial financial planning.

Daniels + Tansey Investment Strategy

Daniels + Tansey purposely looks to avoid risk and volatility when selecting investments for client portfolios. This is done mostly through diversification that’s specifically chosen based on your inherent risk tolerance, need for liquidity, time horizon and other factors.

This firm invests in many different styles of securities in order to achieve optimal diversification. For example, this might include exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds, equity and index options, fixed-income securities, CDs, commercial paper, warrants and foreign/domestic equities.

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This Wilmington-based firm works with a few hundred individual clients with and without a high net worth, as well as a handful of pension plans, insurance companies and businesses. The firm doesn't have a minimum investment requirement.

The advisory staff here also holds a wide range of certifications. These include certified financial planner (CFP), accredited investment fiduciary (AIF), chartered financial consultant (ChFC), chartered financial analyst (CFA), certified divorce financial analyst (CDFA), accredited portfolio management advisor (APMA) and more.

Some of the advisors at this firm can sell insurance and securities for commissions, which is a potential conflict of interest. However, the firm's fiduciary duty means it must act in clients' best interests though.

RiversEdge Advisors Background

RiversEdge Advisors was founded in 2018 by co-owners Jarrett Morris and Brian Carney. 

Generally speaking, investment management and financial planning are the two main offerings at RiversEdge. According to the firm's website, it typically services individuals like entrepreneurs, executives, retirees, pre-retirees and young professionals.

RiversEdge Advisors Investment Strategy

RiversEdge Advisors works with its clients to develop an investor profile before allocating any of their funds to various assets. This involves discussing clients' risk tolerance, time horizon, income and liquidity needs and overall financial goals. From this, a portfolio plan is built according to your needs.

According to its Form ADV, RiversEdge uses modern portfolio theory as the basis for its investment planning. This award-winning theory focuses on maximizing returns for a given risk level. The firm tends to invest in ETFs, but may also incorporate open-end mutual funds, individual stocks, and individual fixed-income securities. When investing in mutual funds, the firm typically favors passive managers and seeks institutional share classes. 

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Crowley Wealth Management is next on our firm. Individual investors who don't have a high net worth make up the majority of the firm's client base. However, high-net-worth individuals and a single pension plan round out the firm's client list.

Crowley has one of the smallest advisory staffs on this list. Their team includes certified financial planners (CFPs), as well as one chartered financial analyst (CFA). This fee-only financial advisor firm is located in Wilmington and has no account minimum.

Crowley Wealth Management Background

Principals Frederick and Robert Crowley aren’t just co-owners of Crowley Wealth Management, they’re also brothers. This duo has spent decades working in financial management, as they created the firm in 1980.

Crowley Wealth works in a multitude of financial areas, such as retirement planning, wealth management, estate planning, tax management, insurance planning and cash flow management.

Crowley Wealth Management Investment Strategy

Crowley Wealth Management primarily assumes a long-term approach to investing but may incorporate short-term strategies at certain times. When it comes to actual investment types, Crowley mostly works within individual equities, bonds and mutual funds. However, its choices are not limited to just these, as ETFs, options, government securities, warrants, CDs and commercial paper may make it into your portfolio.

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Westover Capital Advisors recommends that you have at least $1 million ready to invest prior to opening a relationship with one of its advisors. This firm’s headquarters is in Wilmington, and it is fee-only, meaning all of its compensation comes from client-paid fees.

The firm works both with high-net-worth and non-high-net-worth individual clients. Charitable organizations, pensions and profit-sharing plans are also among the clients of this firm. 

Westover Capital Advisors Background

Father and son Harold Murray Sawyer Jr. and Harold Murray Sawyer III are the president and vice president of Westover Capital Advisors. The Sawyers own the firm with the director of wealth management and chief compliance officer Matthew Beardwood. Westover Capital Advisors opened for business in 1999.

The advisory services available through this firm include:

• Financial planning
• Retirement planning
• Insurance planning
• Social Security planning
• Estate planning
• Trust planning
• Tax minimization
• Charitable gift planning

Westover Capital Advisors Investment Strategy

Many firms avoid using short-term investment strategies, as they’re generally riskier. But Westover Capital Advisors combines the principles of long-term and short-term investing to attempt to match the risk tolerance, time horizon and liquidity needs of clients.

Westover will use as many investment types as necessary to flesh out its client portfolios, provided that they fit what’s needed to meet client's needs and objectives. So be prepared to see everything from individual securities and options to ETFs and mutual funds. 

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Located in Dover, Wealth Management Group typically requires a minimum investment of $400,000 in investable assets to begin an advisory relationship. Its individual client base comprises non-high-net-worth and high-net-worth individuals. The firm also serves pension and profit-sharing plans, businesses and charitable organizations.

This fee-only firm has certified public accountants (CPAs) and a certified plan fiduciary advisor (CPFA) on staff.

Wealth Management Group Background

Wealth Management Group, which has been in business since 2001, is owned by its employees. 

The firm takes a holistic approach to advising. It provides services such as employee benefit plan management, budget creation, tax management, cash flow planning, retirement planning, insurance analysis and estate planning.

Wealth Management Group Investment Strategy

Wealth Management Group builds client portfolios based on the investment principles laid out by modern portfolio theory. This ideology states that an increase in risk is warranted solely when there’s an apparent associated increase in return potential.

This also includes an inherent level of diversification to minimize risk-related issues even further. The firm says it will generally accomplish this by investing in mutual funds and fixed-income securities, and occasionally in ETFs.

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Like the majority of firms on this list, N1 Advisors (also known as Newton One Advisors) does not impose a minimum account size. As a result, its individual client base is rather mixed and is almost evenly split between clients with and without a high net worth. The firm also works with corporate retirement plans.

As a fee-only firm, advisors at N1 do not earn sales commissions on securities or insurance policies. Instead, the firm's compensation comes solely from the fees that clients pay for financial advice. The N1 Advisors office is located in Newark.

The team at N1 Advisors holds a variety of financial credentials, including the chartered financial analyst (CFA), accredited investment fiduciary (AIF) and certified financial planner (CFP) designations.

N1 Advisors Background

While N1 Advisors has existed in its current form since 2014, the firm’s predecessor was founded in 2001. Scott Snyder and Eric Pressler co-own the business. 

The services you’ll find at this firm include retirement plan analysis, personal financial planning, financial goal creation, estate planning, insurance and risk analysis and pension consulting.

N1 Advisors Investment Strategy

If you could describe N1 Advisors’ strategy for investing in one word, it would be diversification. This concept is used to allocate your assets across various unrelated areas of the market so your portfolio's success is not overly reliant on any one investment or sector.

Mutual funds and ETFs are inherently diversified because they are indexed, meaning they’re already allocated across a market. Thus, N1 primarily uses these investment types in client accounts. The firm evaluates and selects funds based on their investment objectives, performance history, fee structures, management track records and other factors. 

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BDFS Capital LLC, which markets itself as Black Diamond Financial Services, rounds out our list of the top financial advisors in Delaware. This fee-based firm does not impose a minimum account size requirement. The vast majority of BDFS Capital's client base comprises individuals without a high net worth. However, the firm also works with some high-net-worth clients, as well as a handful of charitable organizations. 

Located in Rehoboth Beach, BDFS Capital charges asset-based fees for portfolio management, and either fixed or hourly fees for standalone financial planning. Fixed fees can range from $500 to $5,000 while hourly rates are typically between $100 and $250.

Keep in mind that BDFS Capital is a fee-based firm whose advisors may earn third-party compensation when selling securities or insurance products. These sales commissions come on top of the fees you pay as an advisory client. While this extra compensation may be a conflict of interest, the firm is a fiduciary and must act in your best interests. 

The BDFS Capital team includes advisors with a range of financial credentials, including the certified financial planner (CFP), enrolled agent (EA), chartered financial consultant (ChFC), chartered retirement planning counselor (CRPC) and accredited investment fiduciary (AIF) designations. 

BDFS Capital Background

Founded in 2017, BDFS Capital is owned by Black Diamon Financial Solutions Inc. Jeffrey Puglia is the firm's president while Mark Nehra is chief compliance officer. 

While the firm offers traditional portfolio management and sponsors a wrap-fee program, it may allocate your assets to model portfolios on the Betterment platform, a robo-advisor. When it comes to specific services, the firm can help with financial planning, retirement planning, insurance planning, tax planning and estate planning.

BDFS Capital Investment Strategy 

BDFS Capital typically limits its investment advice to mutual funds, fixed-income securities, real estate funds (including REITs), equities, private equity funds, ETFs (including those that invest in gold and precious metal sectors), treasury inflation protected/inflation-linked bonds, commodities, non-U.S. securities, venture capital funds and private placements. The firm may incorporate other securities into your portfolio to increase diversification.