Presper Financial Architects, LLC (“PFA”) has been in business as an independently registered
investment adviser since August 2018, however, the Firm’s principals have been in business operating
under Presper Financial Architects since 2017. Thomas Presper and Sonya Presper are the firm’s
principal owners.
PFA provides personalized financial planning and asset management services to individuals, families,
trusts, charitable organizations and foundations, pensions, and corporations. Our mission is to improve
our clients’ financial well-being and lives. We strive to know more about each client and their situation
than anyone else, so that we can make a meaningful impact on their lives.
Financial Planning
PFA’s focus is on assisting clients as they prepare for and ultimately experience the major transitions
in their lives. For many clients, the only life transition that merits preparation is retirement. However,
PFA believes that not only are there other major transitions, but preparing for those as well can assist
clients in their planning for retirement. Examples of transitions include marriage, divorce, death of a
spouse, receipt of an inheritance, career changes, sale of a business, and retirement.
The first step in working with PFA is to gather information about the client, their goals, and their
current circumstances. PFA will request clients to provide documents regarding their income, tax
status, savings, and investments, among other requests. Clients will engage with PFA in a series of
conversations and meetings where the client learns about PFA’s thought process and methods, and
PFA gathers information needed to develop a proposed plan for moving forward. After this initial
series of meetings, PFA will begin to review, research, and prepare a financial plan for the client for
an agreed upon fee. This financial plan is presented at a separate meeting, where the client reviews
the plan and considers whether to engage the Firm in other services such as management of the client’s
portfolio. Ultimately the financial plan forms the map from which both the client and PFA take
direction throughout the engagement.
Asset Management
When we perform asset management services, we will do so on a discretionary basis. This means that
while we will continue an ongoing relationship with each client, being involved in various stages of
their lives and decisions to be made, we will not seek specific approval of changes to the securities in
client accounts. Clients can always make deposits or withdrawals in their accounts at any time.
Because we take discretion when managing accounts, clients engaging us will be asked to execute a
Limited Power of Attorney (granting us the discretionary authority over the client accounts) as well as
an agreement that outlines the responsibilities of both the client and PFA. This Limited Power of
Attorney does not grant PFA the authority to make any withdrawals or transfers in or out of a client
accounts. Such transfers will only be made at the specific direction of the client. Advisory services
are tailored to the specific needs of an individual client. Clients may place reasonable restrictions on
the management of assets, including specific securities or types of securities. However, clients should
understand that significant restrictions not only decrease the ability of PFA to meet the client’s goals,
but also increase the costs associated with managing the client’s portfolio.
In very limited cases, PFA provides investment management services on a non-discretionary basis,
which means we will manage the clients’ accounts as we do for our discretionary clients, except we
will consult with the client prior to implementing any investment recommendation. Clients should be
aware that some recommendations may be time-sensitive, and, as such, their performance may or may
not be affected if PFA is unable to reach them on a timely basis.
Each client’s portfolio will be invested according to that client’s investment objectives. PFA
determines these objectives with the client through reviewing client provided documents, client
interviews and/or asking the client to put these objectives in writing. Once we ascertain your objectives
for each account, we will develop a portfolio we believe will best fit your needs. This means allocating
assets to one or more of our investment programs. The investment programs are not investment
products. Clients may have different needs than others within the same investment program.
Accordingly, not all clients in each investment program will have the exact same percentages of each
underlying investment.
The investment programs that we recommend are based on the needs of the client as compared with
the typical behavior of that security type or manager, current market conditions, the client’s current
financial situation (including assets that may be managed by another advisor), financial goals, and the
timeline to meet those goals. Because we develop an investment strategy based on your personal
situation and financial goals, your asset allocation guidelines may be similar to or different from
another client.
American Funds
PFA has an agreement to establish investment advisory accounts directly through American Funds in
their F2 advisory share class funds. These accounts are managed by PFA based on the client’s needs,
goals, and objectives. The fee for such accounts is 0.50% per annum. The fees for these accounts are
non-negotiable.
BlackRock
Investments
PFA has an agreement to establish investment advisory accounts directly through BlackRock
Investments in their 529 plans. These accounts are supervised by PFA based on the client’s needs,
goals, and objectives with regards to college savings.
Wrap Program
PFA recommends that investment accounts be held in custody by Schwab Advisor Services
(“Schwab”), member FINRA/SIPC, an unaffiliated SEC-registered broker-dealer and FINRA
member. Schwab offers enhanced services to independent investment advisors. These services include
custody of securities, trade execution platforms, and access to research not available to the general
public. Schwab is wholly independent from PFA. It is expected that most, if not all, transactions in a
given client account will be cleared through the custodian of that account in its capacity as a broker-
dealer.
For some clients, PFA may include certain transactional costs in the client’s management fee. This
arrangement is referred to as a “Wrap Program”. For accounts in the Wrap Program, PFA pays a fee
to the account custodian based on the total amount of client assets enrolled in the Wrap Program, thus
taking on many of the clients’ transactions cost. Fees included in the wrap fee include transaction fees
for the purchase or sale of securities, but do not include expenses related to the use of margin, wire
transfer fees, the fees charged to shareholders of mutual funds or ETFs, mark-ups and mark-downs,
spreads, odd-lot differentials, fees charged by regulatory agencies, and any transaction fees for
securities trades executed by a broker-dealer other than the primary custodian. Expenses for the
management fees of third-party managers are also not included in the Wrap Program, and to the extent
utilized, you will be responsible for such fees. There is no difference between how PFA manages wrap
fee accounts and how PFA manages other accounts.
Because of the nature of a wrap fee program, where wrap fees are not tied to an account’s frequency
of trading and apply to generally all assets in the account, the wrap fee program client may pay more
or less than if the client had compensated PFA outside of the wrap fee program. For example, if a
client’s account is rarely traded, the transaction fees the client would have paid would be minimal,
thus limiting the benefits of “wrapping” management fees and transaction fees. Clients whose accounts
will rarely be traded should carefully consider whether the Wrap Program is appropriate. Clients are
not required to participate in the Wrap Program.
PFA is the sole portfolio manager in the wrap program, which means that PFA receives a portion of
the wrap fee for our services. Transaction fees are paid to various broker-dealers, mutual funds, and
ETFs. The remainder of the wrap fee is the management fee payable to PFA. As discussed more fully
in the wrap brochure, the transaction fees paid to the account custodian are based on a rate per trade
that is negotiated between PFA and the custodian clearing the trades. PFA will receive no additional
compensation for offering the wrap fee program.
Clients whose assets are invested through the PFA Wrap Program should please see the separate Wrap
Fee Brochure for a more complete description of the Wrap Program.
Financial Consulting
PFA may provide additional financial consulting service on an hourly basis. Clients are required to
enter into a written agreement with PFA setting forth the terms and conditions of the engagement
(including termination), describing the scope of the services to be provided, and the portion of the fee
that is due from the client prior to PFA commencing services.
Financial Institution Consulting Services
PFA may contract directly with and receive payments from broker/dealers, insurance companies,
investment companies, and other registered investment advisers to provide investment advisory
consulting services to the clients of those contracted financial institutions. Such contractual
engagements do not include assuming discretionary authority over brokerage accounts or the
monitoring of securities positions. Services offered to financial institution clients may include a
general review of client investments holdings, which may or may not result in PFA’s investment
adviser representatives making specific securities recommendations or offering general investment
advice.
Assets Under Management
As of January 26, 2024, PFA has approximately $ 288,916,100 of assets under management all of
which are managed on a discretionary basis.
Schwab’s Brokerage Services
In addition to the foregoing portfolio management and other services, the Program includes the
brokerage services of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”) a broker-dealer registered with the
Securities and Exchange Commission and a member of FINRA and SIPC. PFA is independently
owned and operated and not affiliated with Schwab. Schwab will act solely as a broker-dealer and not
as an investment advisor to you. It will have no discretion over your account and will act solely on
instructions it receives from us [or you]. Schwab has no responsibility for our services and undertakes
no duty to you to monitor our management of your account or other services we provide to you.
Schwab will hold your assets in a brokerage account and buy and sell securities and execute other
transactions when we [or you] instruct them to. If you do not wish to place your assets with Schwab,
then we cannot manage your account in the program.