Golden State Wealth Management, LLC (“GSWM” and/or “the firm”) is an investment adviser registered
under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. Daniel Catone, Patrick Catone, and John Nahas are the
principal owners and managing members of GSWM.
See Item 9 of this document for an additional discussion concerning the firm’s affiliates.
Our firm’s home office is located at 201 E Sandpointe Avenue, Suite 460, South Coast Metro, CA 92707.
Other investment adviser representatives of the firm are permitted to conduct their business under a “doing
business as” name, otherwise known as a “DBA.” Golden State Wealth Management also conducts
business under the following D/B/A names:
• Bur Oak Wealth Management
• Champlain Wealth Advisors
• Companion Wealth Management
• Consolidated Financial Management
• Cornerstone Financial
• Crossroads Wealth Advisors
• Curt Howard Wealth Management and
Insurance Solutions
• Fago Wealth Management
• Granite Bay Wealth Management
• Ideal Life Wealth Management
• Isaac Kim Wealth Management
• Laguna Point Wealth Advisors
• Lundqvist Wealth Strategies
• Miller Wealth Management
• Ogden Wealth Management
• Ogden Wealth Management &
Planning Services
• Peek Wealth
• Pointwealth Capital Management
• Renaissance Wealth Management
• Rohling Wealth Management
• Stellar Wealth Advisors
• Switchbacks Capital
• Westlake Investment Advisors
• Solaris Wealth Management
As discussed below, our firm is dedicated to providing individuals and other types of clients with a wide
array of investment advisory services, including asset management, comprehensive portfolio management,
and financial planning services. Our firm seeks to establish a service- oriented advisory practice with open
lines of communication for many different types of clients to help meet their financial goals while remaining
sensitive to risk tolerance and time horizons.
Working with clients to understand their investment objectives while educating them about our process and
facilitates the kind of working relationship we value.
Our firm sponsors and offers a wrap fee program. Our wrap fee program allows clients to pay a single fee
for investment advisory services and associated custodial transaction costs. Because our firm absorbs
client transaction fees, an incentive exists to limit trading activities in client accounts. Custodial transaction
costs, however, are not included in the advisory fee charged by our firm for non-wrap services and are to
be paid by the client to their chosen custodian.
A. GOLDEN STATE WEALTH MANAGEMENT, LLC
B. TYPES OF ADVISORY SERVICES
5 GSWM Wrap Firm Brochure 3.2024
Depending on the client’s account or portfolio trading activity, clients may pay more for using our wrap fee
services than they would for using our non-wrap services.
1. Wrap Asset
As part of our Wrap Asset Management service, a portfolio is created, consisting of individual stocks,
bonds, exchange traded funds (“ETFs”), options, mutual funds and other public and private securities or
investments. The client’s individual investment strategy is tailored to their specific needs and may include
some or all of the previously mentioned securities. Portfolios will be designed to meet a particular
investment goal, determined to be suitable to the client’s circumstances. Once the appropriate portfolio has
been determined, portfolios are continuously and regularly monitored, and if necessary, rebalanced based
upon the client’s individual needs, stated goals and objectives.
The maximum annual fee charged for this service will not exceed 2.50%. Fees to be assessed will be
outlined in the advisory agreement to be signed by the Client. Annualized fees are billed on a pro-rata basis
quarterly in advance based on the value of the account(s) on the last day of the previous quarter. Fees are
negotiable and will be deducted from client account(s). In rare cases, our firm will agree to directly invoice.
As part of this process, Clients understand the following:
a. The client’s independent custodian sends statements at least quarterly showing the market values
for each security included in the Assets and all account disbursements, including the amount of the
advisory fees paid to our firm;
b. Clients will provide authorization permitting our firm to be directly paid by these terms. Our firm will
send an invoice directly to the custodian; and
c. If our firm sends a copy of our invoice to the client, legend urging the comparison of information
provided in our statement with those from the qualified custodian will be included.
2. Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management
As part of our Wrap Comprehensive Portfolio Management service clients will be provided asset
management and financial planning or consulting services. This service is designed to assist clients in
meeting their financial goals through the use of a financial plan or consultation. Our firm conducts client
meetings to understand their current financial situation, existing resources, financial goals, and tolerance
for risk. Based on what is learned, an investment approach is presented to the client, consisting of
individual stocks, bonds, ETFs, options, mutual funds and other public and private securities or
investments. Once the appropriate portfolio has been determined, portfolios are continuously and regularly
monitored, and if necessary, rebalanced based upon the client’s individual needs, stated goals and
objectives. Upon client request, our firm provides a summary of observations and recommendations for the
planning or consulting aspects of this service.
The maximum annual fee charged for this service will not exceed 2.50%. Fees to be assessed will be outlined
in the advisory agreement to be signed by the Client. Annualized fees are billed on a pro-rata basis quarterly
in advance based on the value of the account(s) on the last day of the previous quarter. Fees are negotiable
and will be deducted from client account(s). In rare cases, our firm will agree to directly invoice.
As part of this process, Clients understand the following:
a. The client’s independent custodian sends statements at least quarterly showing the market values
for each security included in the Assets and all account disbursements, including the amount of the
advisory fees paid to our firm;
b. Clients will provide authorization permitting our firm to be directly paid by these terms. Our firm will
send an invoice directly to the custodian; and
6 GSWM Wrap Firm Brochure 3.2024
c. If our firm sends a copy of our invoice to the client, legend urging the comparison of information
provided in our statement with those from the qualified custodian will be included.
3. Non-Exempt Accounts
A non-exempt account must have revenue equal or greater than the respective advisor’s Golden State
override. For accounts which do not meet the minimum, Golden State will directly debit advisor revenue to
cover the requirement by means of Asset Based Pricing. The Asset Based Pricing calculation is based on a
basis point schedule and not a percentage of revenue override. For instance, if the standard override is
10%, a 10bps fee will be assessed to advisor. This minimum management fee may be passed directly to
client, in whole or in part, with appropriate documentation, or simply absorbed by advisor without change to
client account.
a. Accounts exempt from a firm imposed minimum annual fee:
i. The account holder is considered:
1. Self/Advisor personal accounts
2. Spouse/domestic partner and/or
3. Minor Child
ii. To abide by United States Internal Revenue Service limitations, and defined by FINRA
(Immediate Family) familial qualified accounts subject to the annual fee cap will not
have a firm-imposed management fee greater than the nominal administrative fee of
0.035% regardless of advisors’ previously mentioned pay-out percentage
iii. Client/Account qualifies through “flex billing”
1. Flex billing – this is the term designating a particular account may not be billed
an annual fee as said account has the annual fee debited from another
account’s prior approved billing arrangement. Prior approval is required
iv. Account does
not hold advisory assets (for example assets used for consolidated
reporting purposes only wherein firm/IAR does not have fiduciary or custodial
responsibilities) or is an SMA billed direct by the custodian
v. Client is a current branch employee or advisor/affiliate of the RIA
4. Tailoring of Advisory Services
Our firm offers individualized investment advice to our Wrap Asset Management and Wrap Comprehensive
Portfolio Management clients. Each Asset Management and Comprehensive Portfolio Management client
has the opportunity to place reasonable restrictions on the types of investments to be held in the portfolio.
Restrictions on investments in certain securities or types of securities may not be possible due to the level
of difficulty this would entail in managing the account.
5. Additional Fees & Expenses
Clients in wrap accounts will not incur separate transaction costs for trades by their custodian. However,
you may expect other miscellaneous fees to be charged. In addition to the charges imposed by mutual
funds described below, you may also incur fees for trades executed away from the custodian, mark-ups
and mark-downs, spreads paid to market makers, wire transfer fees and other fees and taxes on brokerage
accounts and securities transactions.
With respect to the charges imposed by mutual funds all ongoing management fees paid to GSWM for
investment advisory services are separate and distinct from the fees and expenses charged by mutual
funds and/or exchange traded funds (“ETFs”) in which we may invest your assets. These fees and
expenses are described in each fund's prospectus. These fees will generally include a management fee,
other fund expenses, and a possible distribution fee. Our fees pay for our services in advising you as to the
investment of your assets including, among other things, our assistance in deciding which mutual fund or
funds may be most appropriate to your financial condition and objectives. The mutual fund fees and
expenses, on the other hand, pay for the costs of managing and investing the fund’s portfolio of
investments. A client could invest in a mutual fund directly, without our services, but the client would not
7 GSWM Wrap Firm Brochure 3.2024
receive the benefit of our services. Clients should review both the fees charged by the funds and our fees
to fully understand the total amount of fees to be paid by the client and to thereby evaluate the advisory
services being provided. Clients should also understand that mutual funds offer a variety of share classes,
some including fees that are more expensive than others and some with no fees.
Mutual funds typically offer multiple share classes available for investment based upon certain eligibility
and/or purchase requirements. For instance, in addition to the more commonly offered retail mutual fund
share classes (typically, Class A, B and C shares), mutual funds may also offer institutional or advisor
share classes ( the “lower cost share classes”) or other share classes that are designed for purchase in an
account enrolled in an investment advisory programs (typically, Class I, “institutional”, “investor” etc.).
These lower cost share classes usually have a lower expense ratio than other share classes. Furthermore,
when an account purchases Class A Shares, the firm could receive from the mutual fund 12b-1
Service/Distribution fees that are charged to you by the mutual fund. Class I Shares generally are not
subject to 12b-1 Service/Distribution fees. Because of the different expenses of the mutual fund share
classes, it is generally more expensive for you to own Class A Shares than Class I Shares, and because
some firms earn additional revenue in connection with the purchase of Class A Shares in your Account,
they have a financial incentive to recommend Class A Shares for your account even though Class I Shares
may be available in the same or a comparable mutual fund.
GSWM and its advisory representatives typically do not have a financial incentive to recommend or select
share classes that have higher expense ratios because as an investment adviser, GSWM and its
representatives do not collect those fees. The 12b-1 fees are typically retained by the custodian or broker
and do not get forwarded onto the investment adviser. As a guideline, we encourage our IARs to utilize
lower cost share classes, however, clients may still be invested in other higher cost share classes with
higher internal expenses when no lower cost share classes for a particular fund is available or the client is
not eligible for the lower cost share classes due to the inability of the client to meet the investment
minimums or any other restrictions imposed by the custodian.
6. Advisory Fees in General
You should be aware that similar advisory services may or may not be available from other registered (or
unregistered) investment advisors for similar or lower fees.
7. Conflicts of Interest Created by Our Business Structure
Although we endeavor to always act in your best interest, our firm has an inherent conflict of interest in
recommending you rollover or transfer your accounts to an account managed by us since we have an
incentive to generate compensation for the firm. Wrap programs typically have relatively higher
management fees than non-wrap managed accounts and/or brokerage accounts, and may not be suitable
for investors who expect to have low trading volume You should be aware that similar advisory services
may or may not be available from other registered (or unregistered) investment advisors for similar or lower
fees.
Schwab has eliminated commissions for online trades of equities, ETFs and options (subject to
$0.65 per contract fee). This means that, in most cases, when we buy and sell these types of securities, we
will not have to pay any commissions to Schwab. If you custody your account at Schwab, we encourage
you to review Schwab’s pricing to compare the total costs of entering into a wrap fee arrangement versus a
non-wrap fee arrangement. If you choose to enter into a wrap fee arrangement, your total cost to invest
could exceed the cost of paying for brokerage and advisory services separately. To see what you would
pay for transactions in a non-wrap account please refer to Schwab’s most recent pricing schedules
available at
schwab.com/aspricingguide. You should note that the same conflict exists at other custodians
that we may utilize, including LPL Financial.
8. Retirement Accounts
Our firm has an inherent conflict of interest in recommending you rollover or transfer your accounts to an
account managed by Golden State since we have an incentive to generate compensation for the firm.
8 GSWM Wrap Firm Brochure 3.2024
When we provide investment advice to you regarding your retirement plan account or individual retirement
account, we are fiduciaries within the meaning of Title I of the Employee Retirement
9 GSWM Wrap Firm Brochure 3.2024
Income Security Act and/or the Internal Revenue Code, as applicable, which are laws governing retirement
accounts. The way we make money creates some conflicts with your interests, so we operate under a
special rule that requires us to act in your best interest and not put our interest ahead of yours.
Under this special rule’s provisions, we must:
a. Meet a professional standard of care when making investment recommendations (give prudent
advice);
b. Never put our financial interests ahead of yours when making recommendations (give loyal advice);
c. Avoid misleading statements about conflicts of interest, fees, and investments;
d. Follow policies and procedures designed to ensure that we give advice that is in your best interest;
e. Charge no more than is reasonable for our services; and
f. Give you basic information about conflicts of interest.
9. Regulatory Assets Under Management
As of December 31, 2023, GSWM’s total regulatory assets under management is
$1,415,233,203.76, all of which is managed on a discretionary basis.