How do I begin?
What does the first call look like?
A thirty-minute conversation. We listen first. You describe what's on your mind, what triggered the search for an advisor, what's working and what isn't. We tell you honestly whether your situation is in scope of what we do, and if it isn't, we tell you who we'd recommend instead. Nobody signs anything on call one.
What happens between the first call and signing on as a client?
Usually two more conversations. The second call is deeper. We walk through the structural picture (accounts, balance sheet, planning gaps) and outline what coordinated planning would actually look like for your situation. The third is a "fit check": you've had time to think, we've outlined a real engagement, and either we move forward or we don't. No high-pressure follow-ups in between.
Do you work with clients outside Rochester?
Yes. We're based in Webster, NY (Rochester area), but most client meetings happen by video. We serve clients in all 50 states, plus select US citizens living abroad. The work is identical regardless of geography: coordination, documentation, written planning, ongoing stewardship.
What does this cost?
What is your minimum?
We don't publish a hard minimum. Most ongoing-advisory clients have at least $250,000 in investable assets, and many have considerably more. The planning fit matters more to us than the asset number. Households building toward that level, or in a transition year (sale, inheritance, large equity vest, retirement) where the assets are about to land, are absolutely on the table.
Project-based engagements (flat-fee, scope-defined) start at $1,000 and have no asset minimum at all. That's the right starting point for a lot of households.
My situation feels relatively simple. Should I still talk to you?
Yes. And the answer might be a one-time flat-fee consultation rather than ongoing advisory.
If you have a specific decision in front of you (Roth conversion timing, an inherited IRA, an upcoming retirement, equity-comp questions, an estate-plan refresh) but don't need year-round coordination, a project engagement gives you a written plan, a strategy session, and clear next steps, without committing to a long-term relationship.
If after we talk it's clear that even a project doesn't make sense for you, we'll tell you that directly. Sometimes the simplest situations really are best served by a self-directed approach or a different advisor model. Honest fit assessment is part of the first call.
How are advisory fees structured?
Tiered, declining as assets grow. Each band applies only to assets within that band, blended to a single rate.
- First $1M — 1.50%
- $1M to $3M — 1.00%
- $3M to $5M — 0.85%
- Over $5M — Negotiated
Billed quarterly in arrears, deducted from the advisory account. Full schedule on the Fees section of the homepage.
Our first-million rate is higher than a bare-minimum portfolio-manager AUM fee. The work is broader. Strategic tax coordination, estate alignment, retirement income planning, ongoing stewardship. Not just managing a model portfolio. The fee compresses quickly above $1M as the relationship grows.
Are there any fees I might not see?
No soft dollars. No markups on trades. No revenue-sharing arrangements with funds. The fee shown above is the fee. The custodian (Schwab) charges normal trading commissions and account-level fees that pass through directly. Those aren't ours.
Where insurance, annuities, or disability coverage are recommended and you proceed with a product, those products pay a commission to the licensed agent (Dave) through Silver Oak Securities. We disclose the commission, the alternative, and why we're recommending it. You're always free to purchase elsewhere.
Are you actually a fiduciary?
Are you a fiduciary?
Yes, on advisory work. Investment advisory services are offered as a fiduciary through Bright Futures Wealth Management (BFWM), a Registered Investment Adviser. That means we're legally required to act in your best interest, disclose conflicts, and document why each recommendation is appropriate for your specific situation.
Brokerage, insurance, and annuity work is conducted separately. Where commission-based products (life insurance, disability, annuities) are appropriate and you choose to proceed, those products are sold through Silver Oak Securities, an unaffiliated broker-dealer, under a "best interest" standard rather than a fiduciary one. We disclose the commission, the alternatives, and why we're recommending the product. You're always free to purchase elsewhere.
Most clients never have a commission product in their plan. Some do, with full transparency. The two roles are kept structurally separate, and we tell you which hat we're wearing on every recommendation.
Are you owned by a private equity firm or a bank?
No. The practice is 100% owned by David Perrotto. No outside investors, no parent company pressure to push particular products, no quarterly revenue targets handed down from a holding company. Family-owned, independent, and built to stay that way.
Where can I see your regulatory background?
Three places, all linked from the disclosures page:
- FINRA BrokerCheck — broker registrations, employment history, any disclosure events
- Form ADV Part 2A (firm brochure) — services, fees, conflicts
- Form ADV Part 2B (advisor brochure supplement) — Dave's specific background
If you want to see anything specific that isn't in those documents, ask. We'll tell you.
What's included?
What's actually in scope of an ongoing advisory engagement?
Written investment policy + ongoing portfolio management. Annual strategic review. Quarterly check-ins. Tax-coordination work with your CPA. Estate coordination with your attorney. Roth conversion planning. RMD management. IRMAA planning. Beneficiary & titling audits. On-demand access for real life events.
What's NOT included by default: tax return preparation (we coordinate, your CPA prepares), legal document drafting (we coordinate, your attorney drafts), insurance product purchases (separate engagement and disclosure), and active stock-picking (we don't day-trade or run concentrated stock-picking strategies on your behalf).
Do I keep my CPA and attorney?
Yes. We work with the professionals you already trust. If you don't have one and need one, we'll recommend several. We don't take referral fees from CPAs or attorneys, and they don't pay to be on our recommendation list.
Do you actively pick stocks?
No. The portfolio approach is structured: a written investment policy, broad diversification using funds and ETFs, deliberate factor or income tilts where appropriate, tax-aware rebalancing, and concentration limits. The biggest source of long-term return for most clients isn't stock-picking. It's structure, behavior, and tax-aware execution. That's where our work earns its keep.
For clients with concentrated single-stock positions (RSUs, founder stock, inherited holdings), we coordinate the diversification work directly. That's structural reduction, not stock-picking.
What technology do I see?
Where are my assets actually held?
At Charles Schwab, the custodian. We never hold your money. Schwab holds the assets, issues your statements, processes trades, and provides the 1099 at year-end. The advisory firm (BFWM) has trading authority on your account but no withdrawal authority outside of pre-authorized fee billing.
You can log into your Schwab account directly at any time to see balances, transactions, and statements. Login link in the nav under "Client Login."
What's RightCapital?
The financial planning platform. It pulls together accounts (investments, retirement, real estate, debt) into one picture, runs cash-flow and retirement projections, models Roth conversion scenarios, and lets you see your plan in one place. You get a login. You can see what we see. The plan isn't a black box. You can play with the inputs and see the math change.
Login link in the nav under "Client Login."
How do I sign documents?
DocuSign for most things. Account opening, transfer authorizations, advisory agreements: all electronic. Where physical signatures or notarization are required (rare), we walk through the logistics in advance.
How does the relationship actually run?
How often do we meet?
Annual strategic review (in-depth, ~90 minutes) plus quarterly check-ins (~30 minutes each). Most check-ins happen by video. Plus on-demand access: call or email when something happens that affects the plan, and we respond same day during business hours.
Who do I actually talk to?
Dave handles all client relationships and planning work. Christina handles client services: onboarding, paperwork, scheduling, and account-level questions. The advisor on the phone is the advisor whose name is on the door.
What happens if I need something urgent and Dave is on vacation?
Routine things wait. Quarterly check-ins move; reviews reschedule. For genuine emergencies (death, large unexpected liquidity event, market dislocation that requires immediate action), there's coverage in place. Schwab can execute trades you authorize directly. For complex planning calls, urgent items get triaged and either resolved by phone within 24 hours or scheduled at the front of the week.
Honest answer: this is a small practice. The tradeoff is that you always get the senior advisor, never a junior staffer. The other side of that tradeoff is that pre-planned coverage is the rule, not 24/7 availability.
What if I want to leave?
Easy. You can terminate the advisory agreement at any time. Assets at Schwab are yours; they don't move with us. We'll coordinate the transition to your next advisor or to self-management, return any prorated unearned fees, and provide whatever historical documents are useful for continuity.
We've never made it hard to leave. Hopefully we earn the relationship by being worth keeping.