MSR is an SEC-registered investment adviser with its principal place of business located in
Sausalito, California, and branch offices in New York, Greenwich and Salisbury, Connecticut.
MSR has been registered as an investment adviser since 1993. James E. Demmert is the firm’s
Founder, Managing Partner, Chief Investment Officer and majority owner.
MSR offers the following services to advisory clients:
- Wealth Management; and
- Consulting.
As of 12/31/2022, we were actively managing $1,674,891,277 of clients' assets on a discretionary
basis and no assets on a non-discretionary basis. See additional information regarding our
services in this Item below.
WEALTH MANAGEMENT
Our Wealth Management for families and individuals consists of two components: (i) Financial
Planning and (ii) Investment Management. For foundations or institutions, we offer the
additional component of providing outside chief investment officer services as needed.
IRA ROLLOVERS
When appropriate, we will recommend that you roll over assets in a current retirement plan
account (such as a 401(k) account or an individual retirement account) to another retirement
plan account that we will manage on your behalf. In certain such circumstances, a conflict of
interest exists as we have an incentive to recommend the retirement plan account rollover
because we can earn more compensation as a result of the rollover recommendation.
Nonetheless, we follow a process designed to ensure that such retirement plan rollover is in
your best interest, including comparing your current retirement plan account (where
information is available to us) to the retirement plan account being recommended to you.
FINANCIAL PLANNING:
Financial planning is a comprehensive evaluation of a client’s current and future financial state
by using currently known variables to predict future cash flows, asset values, and withdrawal
plans. Through the financial planning process, all questions, information, and analysis are
considered as they impact and are impacted by the client's entire financial and life situation.
Clients who elect to receive this service receive a written report that provides the client with a
tailored and detailed financial plan designed to help achieve or their financial goals and
objectives.
In general, the financial plan can address any of the following areas:
- Personal. We review family records, budgeting, personal liability, estate information,
and financial goals.
- Tax & Cash Flow. We analyze the client’s income tax and spending and planning for past,
current, and future years and illustrate the impact of various investments on the client's
current income tax and future tax liability. In addition, we provide tax guidance but
always recommend the client consult with their CPA and/or a tax attorney and work
closely with those consultants on the clients’ individual tax matters.
- Investments. We analyze investment alternatives and their effect on the client's portfolio.
- Insurance. We review existing policies, if applicable, to evaluate life, health, disability,
long-term care, liability, home, and automobile coverage.
- Retirement. We analyze current strategies and investment plans to help the client achieve
their retirement goals.
- Death & Disability. We review the client’s cash needs at death, income needs of
surviving dependents, and disability income.
Estate. We assist the client in assessing and developing long-term estate planning strategies,
including the appropriateness of living trusts, wills, powers of attorney, beneficiary
designations, gifts, and asset protection plans.
- LifeCase. We provide clients with an easy manner to organize and store important
documents (i.e., wills, trust, health
proxies/advanced directives, birth certificates,
social security cards, financial account statements, tax returns, etc.) digitally on
MSR’s secure server for easy “on the go” access.
Next Generation Planning. Our service offering also includes next-generation
planning where we assist your children or heirs with a comprehensive no-cost,
wealth management analysis. It involves a broad overview of wealth
management, individual analysis of their family assets, and a seasoned "second
opinion” of their current wealth and investment management situation.
We gather relevant information through in-depth personal interviews. Information gathered
typically includes a client's current financial status, tax status, future goals, return objectives, and
attitudes towards risk. We carefully review any documents supplied by the client and prepare a
written report. Should the client choose to implement the recommendations contained in the
plan, we suggest the client work closely with their attorney, accountant, and other advisers.
These services are updated annually with the client or sooner if life circumstances change and
provided to the clients at no additional costs.
Implementation of financial plan recommendations is entirely at the client's discretion.
Financial Planning recommendations are not limited to any specific product or service offered
by a broker-dealer or insurance company.
INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT:
We provide continuous advice regarding the investment of client funds tailored to the specific
needs of each client. We will create and manage a portfolio based on a client’s goals and objectives
as determined through the investment policy statement and the financial planning process
described above, if applicable. During this data-gathering process, we determine the client’s
individual objectives, time horizons, risk tolerance, and liquidity needs. We may also review and
discuss a client’s prior investment history, as well as family composition and background.
We currently offer our Wealth Management services on a discretionary basis only. Account
supervision is guided by the client's stated objectives (e.g., growth, income, or a balance between
growth and income), as well as tax considerations. Clients may impose reasonable restrictions on
investing in certain securities, types of securities, or industry sectors.
Our investment recommendations are not limited to any specific product or service offered by a
broker-dealer. Our client portfolios primarily consist of individual securities: including domestic
and foreign stocks, bonds, exchange-listed real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), Master Limited
Partnerships (MLPs), and preferred stock. Exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) are employed for a
portion of a portfolio for strategic purposes such as accessing investments that are relatively
illiquid (like foreign stocks and small capitalized stocks). Additionally, ETFs are used to provide
greater diversification for clients with small investable asset bases. We typically do not include
mutual funds in a client’s portfolio unless the client already owns them.
For clients that have expressed an interest in environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”)
investing, we employ a model portfolio based on factor scoring from unaffiliated third-party
research partners. Factor scoring rates companies based on how well they are performing in ESG
criteria compared to industry peers. This model strives to invest in stocks that have ESG scores of
at least 50/100.
CONSULTING
We could provide personal administrative or other special services to clients in addition to our
other services. Consulting recommendations are not limited to any specific product or service offered
by a broker-dealer or insurance company.