A. Pollock Planning Associates, Inc. (“Pollock Planning”) is a corporation formed in October
1985 under the law of the State of New Jersey. Pollock Planning became registered as an
investment adviser registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 30,
1986. Pollock Planning is solely owned by Steven Leonard Pollock and he is also the firm’s
President.
B. As discussed below, Pollock Planning offers to its clients (primarily high net worth
individuals) investment advisory services on a discretionary basis and financial planning
services.
INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT SERVICES
Pollock Planning provides discretionary investment management services on a fee-only
basis as discussed at Item 5 below. We also offer to provide all clients with financial
planning services. Pollock Planning’s services include investment management services,
and, to the extent specifically requested by the client, financial planning and consulting
services. In the event that the client requires extraordinary planning or consultation services
(to be determined in the sole discretion of Pollock Planning), the firm may determine to
charge for those additional services, the dollar amount of which will be agreed to between
Pollock Planning and the client. Clients and prospective clients should review the
disclosure under the heading “Limitations of Financial Planning and Non-Investment
Consulting/Implementation Services” for more information about our planning and
consulting services. To commence the investment advisory process, Pollock Planning will
ascertain each client’s investment objective(s) and then allocate the client’s assets
consistent with the client’s designated investment objective(s). Once allocated, Pollock
Planning provides ongoing supervision of the account(s).
FINANCIAL PLANNING AND CONSULTING SERVICES (STAND-ALONE)
Pollock Planning may also provide financial planning and related consulting services
regarding matters such as tax and estate planning, insurance, etc. on a stand-alone basis per
the terms and conditions of a separate written agreement and fee, the fee for which shall
generally be based upon the individual providing the service and the scope of the services
to be provided. Prior to engaging Pollock Planning to provide planning or consulting
services, clients are generally required to enter into a Financial Planning and Consulting
Agreement with Pollock Planning 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 Pollock Planning commencing services.
If requested by the client, Pollock Planning may recommend the services of other
professionals for implementation purposes (i.e. attorneys, accountants, insurance agents).
The client is under no obligation to engage the services of any recommended professional.
The client retains absolute discretion over all implementation decisions and is free to accept
or reject any recommendation from Pollock Planning. If the client engages any
recommended professional, and a dispute arises, the client agrees to seek recourse
exclusively from the engaged professional. It remains the client’s responsibility to
promptly notify Pollock Planning if there is ever any change in their financial situation or
investment objectives so that Pollock Planning can review, and if necessary, revise its
previous recommendations.
MISCELLANEOUS
Limitations of Financial Planning and Non-Investment Consulting/Implementation
Services. To the extent requested and engaged by a client to do so, Pollock Planning may
provide financial planning and related consulting services regarding non-investment
related matters, such as estate, tax, retirement, investments and insurance planning per the
terms and conditions of the engagement. Pollock Planning will not assist in the
implementation of any elements of a financial plan, unless it agrees to do so in writing, and
even then its services are typically limited to investing a client’s assets. With the exception
of a client’s investments managed by Pollock Planning, Pollock Planning does not monitor
its financial planning recommendations, and clients are responsible for reviewing any
financial plan with Pollock Planning.
Pollock Planning does not serve as a law firm, accounting firm, or insurance agency, and
no portion of Pollock Planning’s services should be construed as legal or accounting
services. Accordingly, Pollock Planning does not prepare estate planning documents, tax
returns or sell insurance products. To the extent requested by a client, Pollock Planning
may recommend the services of other professionals for certain non-investment
implementation purposes (i.e. attorneys, accountants, insurance agents). Clients are
reminded that they are under no obligation to engage the services of any recommended
professional. The client retains absolute discretion over all implementation decisions and
is free to accept or reject any recommendation made by Pollock Planning. If the client
engages any unaffiliated recommended professional, and a dispute arises, the client agrees
to seek recourse exclusively from the engaged professional.
Retirement Rollovers. A client or prospective client leaving an employer typically has
four options regarding an existing retirement plan (and may engage in a combination of
these options): (i) leave the money in the former employer’s plan, if permitted, (ii) roll over
the assets to the new employer’s plan, if one is available and rollovers are permitted, (iii)
roll over to an Individual Retirement Account (“IRA”), or (iv) cash out the account value
(which could, depending upon the client’s age, result in adverse tax consequences). If
Pollock Planning recommends that a client roll over their retirement plan assets into an
account to be managed by Pollock Planning, such a recommendation creates a conflict of
interest if Pollock Planning will earn a new (or increase its current) compensation as a
result of the rollover. If Pollock Planning provides a recommendation as to whether a client
should engage in a rollover or not, Pollock Planning is acting as a fiduciary within the
meaning of Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and/or the Internal
Revenue Code, as applicable, which are laws governing retirement accounts. No client is
under any obligation to roll over retirement plan assets to an account managed by Pollock
Planning. Pollock Planning’s Chief Compliance Officer, Steven Pollock, remains available
to address any questions that a client or prospective client may have regarding the conflict
of interest presented by such rollover recommendation.
Use of Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds. Pollock Planning utilizes mutual
funds and exchange traded funds for its client portfolios. In addition to Pollock Planning’s
investment advisory fee described below, and transaction and/or custodial fees discussed
below, clients will also incur, relative to all mutual fund and exchange traded fund
purchases, charges imposed at the fund level (e.g. management fees and other fund
expenses).
Please Note-Use of DFA Mutual Funds: Pollock Planning utilizes the mutual
funds issued by Dimensional Fund Advisors (“DFA”). DFA funds are generally
only available through registered investment advisers approved by DFA. Thus, if
the client was to terminate Pollock Planning’s services, and transition to another
adviser who has not been approved by DFA to utilize DFA funds, restrictions
regarding additional purchases of, or reallocation among other DFA funds, will
generally apply. ANY QUESTIONS: Pollock Planning’s Chief Compliance
Officer, Steven Pollock, remains available to address any questions that a client or
prospective client may have regarding the above.
Custodian Charges-Additional Fees. As discussed below at Item 12 below, when
requested to recommend a broker-dealer/custodian for client accounts, Pollock Planning
generally recommends that Schwab serve as the broker-dealer/custodian for client
investment management assets. Broker-dealers such as Schwab charge brokerage
commissions, transaction, and/or other type fees for effecting certain types of securities
transactions (i.e., including transaction fees for certain mutual funds, and mark-ups and
mark-downs charged for fixed income transactions, etc.). The types of securities for which
transaction fees, commissions, and/or other type fees (as well as the amount of those fees)
shall differ depending upon the broker-dealer/custodian. While certain custodians,
including Schwab, generally (with the potential exception for large orders) do not currently
charge fees on individual equity transactions (including ETFs), others do. Please Note:
there can be no assurance that Schwab will not change their transaction fee pricing in the
future. The above fees/charges are in addition to Pollock Planning’s investment advisory
fee at Item 5 below. Pollock Planning does not receive any portion of these fees/charges.
ANY QUESTIONS: Registrant’s Chief Compliance Officer, Steven Pollock, remains
available to address any questions that a client or prospective client may have regarding
the above.
Cash Positions. Pollock Planning continues to treat cash as an asset class. As such, unless
determined to the contrary by Pollock Planning, all cash positions (money markets, etc.)
shall continue to be included as part of assets under management for purposes of
calculating Pollock Planning’s advisory fee. At any specific point in time, depending upon
perceived or anticipated market conditions/events (there being no guarantee that such
anticipated market conditions/events will occur), Pollock Planning may maintain cash
positions for defensive purposes. In addition, while assets are maintained in cash, such
amounts could miss market advances. Depending upon current yields, at any point in time,
Pollock Planning’s advisory fee could exceed the interest paid by the client’s money market
fund. ANY QUESTIONS: Pollock Planning’s Chief Compliance Officer, Steven Pollock,
remains available to address any questions that a client or prospective client may have
regarding the above fee billing practice.
Cash Sweep Accounts. Account custodians generally require that cash proceeds from
account transactions or cash deposits be swept into and/or initially maintained in the
custodian’s sweep account. The yield on the sweep account is generally lower than those
available in money market accounts. To help mitigate this issue, Pollock Planning shall
generally purchase a higher yielding money market fund available on the custodian’s
platform with cash proceeds or deposits, unless Pollock Planning reasonably anticipates
that it will utilize the cash proceeds during the subsequent 30-day period to purchase
additional investments for the client’s account. Exceptions and/or modifications can and
will occur with respect to all or a portion of the cash balances for various reasons, including,
but not limited to, the amount of dispersion between the sweep account and a money market
fund, an indication from the client of an imminent need for such cash, or the client has a
demonstrated history of writing checks from the account. ANY QUESTIONS: Pollock
Planning’s Chief Compliance Officer, Steven Pollock, remains available to address any
questions that a client or prospective client may have regarding the above.
Other
Assets. A client may:
• hold securities that were purchased at the request of the client or acquired prior
to the client’s engagement of Pollock Planning. Generally, with potential
exceptions, Pollock Planning does not/would not recommend nor follow such
securities, and absent mitigating tax consequences or client direction to the
contrary, would prefer to liquidate such securities. Please Note: If/when
liquidated, it should not be assumed that the replacement securities purchased by
Pollock Planning will outperform the liquidated positions. To the contrary,
different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and there can be
no assurance that future performance of any specific investment or investment
strategy (including the investments and/or investment strategies recommended or
undertaken by Pollock Planning) will be profitable or equal any specific
performance level(s)In addition, there may be other securities and/or accounts
owned by the client for which Pollock Planning does not maintain custodian
access and/or trading authority; and,
• hold other securities and/or own accounts for which Pollock Planning does not
maintain custodian access and/or trading authority.
Corresponding Services/Fees: When agreed to by Pollock Planning, Pollock
Planning shall: (1) remain available to discuss these securities/accounts on an ongoing
basis at the request of the client; (2) monitor these securities/accounts on a regular
basis, including, where applicable, rebalancing with client consent;(3) shall generally
consider these securities as part of the client’s overall asset allocation; and, (4) report on
such securities/accounts as part of regular reports that may be provided by Pollock
Planning; and, (5) include the market value of all such securities for purposes of
calculating advisory fee.
ESG: We don’t have or recommend a strategy:
Please Note: Socially Responsible (ESG) Investing Limitations. Socially Responsible
Investing involves the incorporation of Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”)
considerations into the investment due diligence process. ESG investing incorporates a set
of criteria/factors used in evaluating potential investments: Environmental (i.e., considers
how a company safeguards the environment); Social (i.e., the manner in which a company
manages relationships with its employees, customers, and the communities in which it
operates); and Governance (i.e., company management considerations). The number of
companies that meet an acceptable ESG mandate can be limited when compared to those
that do not, and could underperform broad market indices. Investors must accept these
limitations, including potential for underperformance. As with any type of investment
(including any investment and/or investment strategies recommended and/or undertaken
by Pollock Planning), there can be no assurance that investment in ESG securities or funds
will be profitable, or prove successful. Pollock Planning does not maintain or advocate an
ESG investment strategy, but will seek to employ ESG if directed by a client to do so. If
implemented, Pollock Planning shall rely upon the assessments undertaken by the
unaffiliated mutual fund, exchange traded fund or separate account manager to determine
that the fund’s or portfolio’s underlying company securities meet a socially responsible
mandate.
WE DON’T RECOMMEND Cryptocurrency: For clients who want exposure to
cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Pollock Planning, will advise the client to consider a
potential investment in corresponding exchange traded securities, or an allocation to
separate account managers and/or private funds that provide cryptocurrency
exposure. Crypto is a digital currency that can be used to buy goods and services, but uses
an online ledger with strong cryptography (i.e., a method of protecting information and
communications through the use of codes) to secure online transactions. Unlike
conventional currencies issued by a monetary authority, cryptocurrencies are generally not
controlled or regulated and their price is determined by the supply and demand of their
market. Because cryptocurrency is currently considered to be a speculative investment,
the Registrant will not exercise discretionary authority to purchase a cryptocurrency
investment for client accounts. Rather, a client must expressly authorize the purchase of
the cryptocurrency investment. Please Note: Pollock Planning does not recommend or
advocate the purchase of, or investment in, cryptocurrencies. Pollock Planning considers
such an investment to be speculative. Please Also Note: Clients who authorize the
purchase of a cryptocurrency investment must be prepared for the potential for liquidity
constraints, extreme price volatility and complete loss of principal.
Portfolio Activity. Pollock Planning has a fiduciary duty to provide services consistent
with the client’s best interest. Registrant will review client portfolios on an ongoing basis
to determine if any changes are necessary based upon various factors, including, but not
limited to, investment performance, market conditions, fund manager tenure, style drift,
account additions/withdrawals, and/or a change in the client’s investment objective. Based
upon these factors, there may be extended periods of time when Pollock Planning
determines that changes to a client’s portfolio are unnecessary. Clients remain subject to
the fees described in Item 5 below during periods of portfolio inactivity. Of course, as
indicated below, there can be no assurance that investment decisions made by the Pollock
Planning will be profitable or equal any specific performance level(s).
Borrowing Against Assets/Risks. A client who has a need to borrow money could
determine to do so by using:
• Margin-The account custodian or broker-dealer lends money to the client. The
custodian charges the client interest for the right to borrow money and uses the
assets in the client’s brokerage account as collateral.
These above-described collateralized loans are generally utilized because they
typically provide more favorable interest rates than standard commercial loans. These
types of collateralized loans can assist with a pending home purchase, permit the
retirement of more expensive debt, or enable borrowing in lieu of liquidating existing
account positions and incurring capital gains taxes. However, such loans are not
without potential material risk to the client’s investment assets. The lender (i.e.
custodian, bank, etc.) will have recourse against the client’s investment assets in the
event of loan default or if the assets fall below a certain level. For this reason, Pollock
Planning does not recommend such borrowing unless it is for specific short-term
purposes (i.e. to purchase a new residence). Pollock Planning does not recommend
such borrowing for investment purposes (i.e. to invest borrowed funds in the market).
Regardless, if the client was to determine to utilize margin, the following economic
benefits would inure to Pollock Planning:
• by taking the loan rather than liquidating assets in the client’s account, Pollock
Planning continues to earn a fee on such Account assets; and,
• if the client invests any portion of the loan proceeds in an account to be managed
by Pollock Planning, Pollock Planning will receive an advisory fee on the invested
amount.
Please Note: The Client must accept the above risks and potential corresponding
consequences associated with the use of margin.
ByAllAccounts. Pollock Planning may provide, via ByAllAccounts and for no additional
fee, periodic comprehensive reporting services, which can incorporate all of the client’s
investment assets including those investment assets that are not part of the assets managed
by Pollock Planning (the “Excluded Assets”). Unless agreed to otherwise, the client
and/or his/her/its other advisors that maintain trading authority, and not Pollock
Planning, shall be exclusively responsible for the investment performance of the
Excluded Assets. Unless also agreed to otherwise, Pollock Planning does not provide
investment management, monitoring or implementation services for the Excluded Assets.
If the Pollock Planning is asked to make a recommendation as to any Excluded Assets, the
client is under absolutely no obligation to accept the recommendation, and Pollock
Planning shall not be responsible for any implementation error (timing, trading, etc.)
relative to the Excluded Assets. The client can engage Pollock Planning to provide
investment management services for the Excluded Assets pursuant to the terms and
conditions of the Investment Advisory Agreement between Pollock Planning and the client.
Cybersecurity Risk. The information technology systems and networks that Pollock
Planning and its third-party service providers use to provide services to Pollock Planning’s
clients employ various controls, which are designed to prevent cybersecurity incidents
stemming from intentional or unintentional actions that could cause significant
interruptions in Pollock Planning’s operations and result in the unauthorized acquisition or
use of clients’ confidential or non-public personal information. Clients and Pollock
Planning are nonetheless subject to the risk of cybersecurity incidents that could ultimately
cause them to incur losses, including for example: financial losses, cost and reputational
damage to respond to regulatory obligations, other costs associated with corrective
measures, and loss from damage or interruption to systems. Although Pollock Planning has
established its systems to reduce the risk of cybersecurity incidents from coming to fruition,
there is no guarantee that these efforts will always be successful, especially considering
that Pollock Planning does not directly control the cybersecurity measures and policies
employed by third-party service providers. Clients could incur similar adverse
consequences resulting from cybersecurity incidents that more directly affect issuers of
securities in which those clients invest, broker-dealers, qualified custodians, governmental
and other regulatory authorities, exchange and other financial market operators, or other
financial institutions.
Client Obligations. In performing its services, Pollock Planning will not be required to
verify any information received from the client or from the client’s other designated
professionals and is expressly authorized to rely on that information. Moreover, each client
is advised that it remains their responsibility to promptly notify Pollock Planning if there
is ever any change in their financial situation or investment objectives for the purpose of
reviewing/evaluating/revising our previous recommendations and/or services.
C. Pollock Planning provides investment advisory services specific to the needs of each client.
Prior to providing investment advisory services, an investment adviser representative will
ascertain each client’s investment objectives and select an appropriate investment strategy.
Pollock Planning then invests the client’s assets consistent with the client’s designated
investment strategy. The client may, at any time, impose reasonable restrictions, in writing,
on Pollock Planning’s services.
D. Pollock Planning does not participate in a wrap fee program.
E. As of December 31, 2023 Pollock, Planning had $153,129,998in assets under management
on a discretionary basis.