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Is Areté Wealth Strategists Australia
the right firm for you?

We bring strategy, structure, clarity, confidence and compliance to our client's global financial lives and keep it that way.

Schedule a Fit Call

How Do I Know
If I’m a Good Fit?

We believe we offer the greatest value to clients with complex financial situations.
Our typical clients are:

Professionals and business owners over the age of 30 with assets and financial concerns in the United States and/or Australia.
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Diligent savers who have accumulated investment and retirement assets of at least $750K with an annual income of at least $300K.
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People who want to partner on their planning and delegate their investment management to an expert so they can spend more time on the things that matter most to them.

Our Step by Step

Prospective Client Process

Introductory Phone Call: 15 - 20  mins

The first step is an introductory phone call to confirm your situation matches our expertise. In the call, we'll be seeking a basic understanding of your financial situation and what it is prompting you to seek advice. Needless to say, everything we talk about is confidential.

If there's a fit, we'll talk about what the next steps look like or if there isn't, we’ll gladly introduce you to a firm or resource who is better suited to your needs. Assuming there is a fit, we'll invite you to schedule a Fit Meeting, where we can get into much greater detail.

Initial Financial Questionnaire: 15 - 20 mins

Following our introductory phone call, the first step in preparing for our Fit Meeting will be completing a questionnaire to get a more accurate sense of your financial life, priorities, challenges, and circumstances.

Document Upload: 15-20 minutes

We'll also provide a secure link to upload your account statements and tax return. This will assist us with the analysis we shall present in our Fit Meeting.

Assessment and Preparation

Your answers to our intake questions, along with the documents we have requested, will help guide our analysis, which will result in plain-English answers to a number of critical questions.​

We will apply over a decade of experience, thousands of hours of training, studying, and mentoring by the profession’s top experts, and expertise as a Global Financial Planner (GFP) Professional, CFP® Professional and Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF®) to answer the financial questions and concerns you identified.

Wealth Management:
90 - 120 mins

U.S. Based Clients

This is a 90 - 120 minute meeting to confirm our understanding of your situation and ask any clarifying questions. There is a $500 fee for this meeting.

Following this we shall share with you more detail about the firm, our mission and who we do our best work with. We shall set expectations for when we can expect to meet throughout the year and introduce the tools and technologies we use to support you, including the Wealth Summit Pathway, our proprietary wealth management project system.

Lastly, we shall review the details of the recommended service package we believe best fits your needs and give you a quote.​

At the conclusion of this meeting you'll have an excellent idea of what to expect in working with us and we'll invite you to consider becoming a client.

Investment Management:
60 mins

Australian Based Clients

This is a 60 minute meeting to confirm our understanding of your situation and ask any clarifying questions. There is a $200 fee for this meeting.​

We shall review our investment presentation, portfolio implementation process, fees and historical performance.​

Following the investment presentation, we shall share with you more detail about the firm, our mission and who we do our best work with. We shall set expectations for when we can expect to meet throughout the year and introduce the tools and technologies we use to support you.

Lastly, we shall provide you with a quote and answer any other questions you have about working with us.​

At the conclusion of this meeting you'll have an excellent idea of what to expect in working with us and we'll invite you to consider becoming a client.

Sleep On It

Respectful of The Pillow Factor

We only want to work with clients who see long term value in a partnership.

​Prior to deciding if we should work together, ask yourself the following:

  • Do I like/trust/respect the team at AWSA?
  • Will the benefits they provide exceed the fee I’ll pay?
  • Do their recommendations make sense to me?

​If a smile comes across your face, we call that having a high pillow factor—meaning you can sleep comfortably knowing you have someone who’s genuinely and authentically committed to serving you, and your best interests.

Schedule Your
15-minute Fit Call

This phone call will give us both a chance to make sure your situation matches our expertise.

Areté Wealth Strategists - Prospective Client
15 min
Phone Call

Select a Date and Time

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Note: We DO NOT offer hourly consultations or project based engagements
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Unfortunately, the growth we've experienced means that we don't have the capacity to serve every prospective client that seeks our services. However, we've partnered with two financial advisors who are taking on new clients and have expertise in the issues affecting Australian/American expatriates.

Ryan and Kim are both fee-only Global Financial Planner charter holders. Both are fee-only fiduciaries.

Please reach out to one or both of them as you see fit:

1) Ryan Firth CPA/PFS GFP (USA)
Mercer Street
(346) 704-4690
ryan@mercerst.com
www.mercerst.com
Fee Method: Hourly, assets under management.
Offers Financial Planning and Investment Management

2) Kim Hall, PhD, CFP® GFP (USA)
Clarity Wealth Development
262 NW Polk AveCorvallis, OR 97330
(541) 753-1898
kim@claritywealthdevelopment.com
www.
claritywealthdevelopment.com
Fee Method: Project based, retainer, assets under management.
Offers Financial Planning and Investment Management

You may also consider:

Financial Planners in Australia with Expertise in US Matters
- Apt Wealth Partners John Versace in Melbourne
johnv@aptwealth.com.au

Fee-only Personal Financial Advisor Search Tools
- XY Planning Network
- National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA.org)- Garrett Planning Network (planners offering hourly services)

Online Resources
Arete Wealth Strategists Australia YouTube Channel

We hope these resources help make your search for the right financial advice, a little easier.

Best wishes,
Ashley
Unfortunately, we don't offer hourly or project based advice. However, we've partnered with two financial advisors who do provide these services and are familiar with the matters affecting Australia/American expatriates.

Ryan and Kim are both fee-only Global Financial Planner charter holders. Both are fee-only fiduciaries.

Please reach out to one or both of them as you see fit:

1) Ryan Firth CPA/PFS GFP (USA)
Mercer Street
(346) 704-4690
ryan@mercerst.com
www.mercerst.com
Fee Method: Hourly, assets under management.
Offers Financial Planning and Investment Management

2) Kim Hall, PhD, CFP® GFP (USA)
Clarity Wealth Development
262 NW Polk AveCorvallis, OR 97330
(541) 753-1898
kim@claritywealthdevelopment.com
www.
claritywealthdevelopment.com
Fee Method: Project based, retainer, assets under management.
Offers Financial Planning and Investment Management

You may also consider:

Financial Planners in Australia with Expertise in US Matters
- Apt Wealth Partners John Versace in Melbourne
johnv@aptwealth.com.au

Fee-only Personal Financial Advisor Search Tools
- XY Planning Network
- National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA.org)- Garrett Planning Network (planners offering hourly services)

Online Resources
Arete Wealth Strategists Australia YouTube Channel

We hope these resources help make your search for the right financial advice, a little easier.

Best wishes,
Ashley

Still Have Questions?
Keep Reading...

01
Do you offer an hourly or one-time project fee option?

We do our best work with people looking for a long-term relationship. If you need help locating a financial planner who offers these fee options, send us a note and we will do our best to get you in the right hands.

02
How are you different from other financial advisors?

There are three really important things about our firm that separate us from others:

  • We're the only US registered cross-border financial advisory firm specializing in the needs of Americans living in Australia and Australians living in the US.
  • We limit the number of engagements we accept and only work with clients who are in alignment with our philosophy.
  • We invest in industry-leading technology to simplify our clients’ financial lives.
03
Why should I consider hiring Arete Wealth Strategists?

Great question! But first, let us explain why you shouldn’t hire us.

If you’re looking for an advisor who will trade stocks to “beat the market,” you’re in the wrong place.

Why? Because we focus on what you can control and build robust plans for those things we can't control. Predicting if the stock market will go up or down, or guessing what interest rates will do next, are not things you, nor anyone, can control.

If you’re interested in taking advantage of opportunities available to you, lowering your tax bill, investing smarter, and creating a successful cross-border financial life, you’re in the right place.

04
How does Areté Wealth Strategists make money?

We are a fee-only (a.k.a. commission-free) cross-border financial planning firm. We offer clients a number of different service packages depending on your needs. Our fees are transparent and appear as a line item on every statement.

Some financial advisors are commission-based, which may cause fees to be hidden or create conflicts of interest.

Not Areté Wealth Strategists.​

Not Quite Ready to Schedule an Appointment? That's OK.

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Investment advisory services offered through Arete Wealth Strategists, a Securities and Exchange Registered Investment Advisor. Telephone number 888.544.3250. Arete Wealth Australia may offer investment advisory services in the State of Minnesota, California and in other jurisdictions where registered or exempted.
Click here to read our Form Client Relationship Summary