Berkshire Money Management, Inc., a Massachusetts corporation, is an SEC registered
Investment Adviser, initially registered in January 2003. Berkshire Money Management, Inc.
(“BMM”) offers a combination of advisory services, broadly described as Portfolio
Management Services and Financial Planning Services, as more fully described below.
Allen P. Harris is the principal and sole owner of Berkshire Money Management, Inc., a
Massachusetts corporation formed in April 2001.
BMM offers a combination of advisory services including the following:
Portfolio Management Services
BMM provides continuous advice to you regarding the investment of your funds based on
your individual needs.
Through personal discussions with you, we establish your goals and objectives based on
your unique circumstances. We help you develop your personal investment strategy and
manage your portfolio on the basis of the agreed upon strategy.
When we select the investments for your portfolio, we are guided by your specifications
which may include maximum capital appreciation, growth, income, growth and income, or
some other variation.
You may impose reasonable restrictions on investing in certain securities or types of
securities. BMM requires that such restrictions be included in a written authority
statement (generally as part of your Investment Management Contract with us and as
amended from time to time in writing). You may change/amend these restrictions as
desired with such amendments submitted in writing.
BMM also provides portfolio management services through Institutional Intelligent
Portfolios™, an automated, online investment management platform for use by
independent investment advisers and sponsored by Schwab Performance Technologies
(the “Program” and “SPT,” respectively). BMM has branded the Program as WealthE
Portfolios. Through the Program, BMM offers clients a range of investment strategies we
and SPT have constructed and manage, each consisting of a portfolio of exchange traded
funds (“ETFs”), mutual funds, and a cash allocation. The client may instruct BMM to exclude
up to three funds from their portfolio. The client’s portfolio is held in a brokerage account
opened by the client at SPT’s affiliate, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“CS&Co.”). BMM is
independent of and not owned by, affiliated with, or sponsored or supervised by SPT,
CS&Co. or their affiliates (together, “Schwab”). The Program is described in the Schwab
Performance Technologies Institutional Intelligent Portfolios™ Disclosure Brochure (the
“Program Disclosure Brochure”), which is delivered to clients by SPT during the online
enrollment process.
BMM, and not Schwab, is the client’s investment adviser and primary point of contact with
respect to the Program. BMM is solely responsible, and Schwab is not responsible, for
determining the appropriateness of the Program for the client, choosing a suitable
investment strategy and portfolio for the client’s investment needs and goals, and
managing that portfolio on an ongoing basis. SPT’s role is limited to delivering the Program
Disclosure Brochure to clients and administering the Program so that it operates as
described in the Program Disclosure Brochure.
BMM has contracted with SPT to provide it with the technology platform and related
trading and account management services for the Program. This platform enables BMM to
make the Program available to clients online and includes a system that automates certain
key parts of the BMM investment process (the “System”). The System includes an online
questionnaire that helps BMM determine the client’s investment objectives and risk
tolerance and select an appropriate investment strategy and portfolio. Clients should note
that BMM will recommend a portfolio via the System in response to the client’s answers to
the online questionnaire. The client may then indicate an interest in a portfolio that is one
level less or more conservative or aggressive than the recommended portfolio, but BMM
then makes the final decision and selects a portfolio based on all the information BMM has
about the client. The System also includes an automated investment engine through which
BMM manages the client’s portfolio on an ongoing basis through automatic rebalancing
and tax-loss harvesting (if the client is eligible and elects). BMM does not receive a portion
of a wrap fee for our services to clients through the Program. Clients do not pay fees to SPT
in connection with the Program, but BMM does charge clients a fee for its services as
described below under Item 5 - Fees and Compensation. BMM’s fees are not set or
supervised by Schwab. Clients do not pay brokerage commissions or any other fees to
CS&Co. as part of the Program. Schwab does receive other revenues in connection with the
Program, as described in the Program Disclosure Brochure. BMM does not pay SPT fees for
its services in the Program so long as BMM maintains
$100 million in client assets in
accounts at CS&Co. that are not enrolled in the Program. BMM currently meets this
condition. If BMM does not meet this condition, then BMM must pay SPT an annual fee of
0.10% (10 basis points) on the value of BMM’s clients’ assets in the Program. This fee
arrangement gives us an incentive to recommend or require that our clients with accounts
not enrolled in the Program be maintained with CS&Co.
The Program Disclosure Brochure includes a discussion of various risks associated with
the Program, including the risks of investing in ETFs and mutual funds, as well as risks
related to the underlying securities in which ETFs and mutual funds invest. In addition, the
Program Disclosure Brochure also discusses market/systemic risks, asset
allocation/strategy/diversification risks, investment strategy risks, trading/liquidity risks,
and large investment risks.
WealthE Portfolios are typically appropriate for clients with portfolios not exceeding
$250,000 and who do not desire/require ongoing communications with BMM regarding
their investment portfolios and are comfortable with the technological aspects of the
Program. Additional consultations and comprehensive financial planning services are
available to WealthE Portfolio clients for additional compensation, as outlined in Item 5 -
Fees and Compensation.
Financial Planning Services
BMM also provides Financial Planning advice. BMM gathers required information through
in-depth personal interviews. BMM inquires about your current financial status, future
goals, and attitudes towards risk. BMM carefully reviews any appropriate documentation
that you provide.
In general, financial planning discussions will address any or all of the following areas that
may be of concern to you:
Personal: Family records, budgeting, personal liability, estate information, and financial
goals.
Education: Education IRAs, financial aid, state savings plans, grants and general
assistance in preparing to meet your dependents’ continuing educational needs through
development of an education plan.
Tax & Cash Flow: Income tax planning and spending analysis. For example, we may
illustrate the impact of various investments on your current income tax and future tax
liability.
Death & Disability: Cash needs at death, income needs of surviving dependents, estate
planning and disability income analysis.
Retirement: Analysis of current strategies and investment plans to help you achieve your
retirement goals. At its sole discretion, BMM may and does compensate unaffiliated third
parties for various professional services rendered to BMM clients, including, but not
limited to, estate planning, social security planning and Medicare planning.
Investments: Analysis of investment alternatives and their effect on your portfolio.
If you choose to implement the recommendations discussed in the financial planning
consultation, BMM suggests that you work closely with your attorney, accountant,
insurance agent and/or stockbroker. Implementation of financial planning
recommendations is entirely at your discretion.
BMM’s financial planning recommendations are not limited to any specific product or
service offered by a specific broker dealer or insurance company, but rather are generic in
nature.
BMM may also refer clients to unaffiliated third-party investment advisers for financial
planning services and, at its own discretion, pay these third-party managers for services
rendered to clients. As such, certain existing or prospective portfolio management clients
would not incur additional costs for financial planning services provided by third-party
managers.
Consulting Services
BMM also advises clients with respect to investments held in their accounts without
implementing the recommended transactions. Under such an arrangement, the client may,
at his/her own discretion choose to implement any of BMM’s recommendations.
Depending on the nature of the specific consulting agreement, BMM may have ongoing
monitoring obligations over a client account or may be consulted by the client on an ad hoc
basis.
College Planning Services
This fixed fee service will generally include the following:
• Analysis of expected cost for college, and current projections for funding
• Strategies available to potentially increase financial aid
• A list of available scholarships at desired school
• A printed (or electronic) College Planning Report
• Access to advice for the duration of the engagement
• Supplemental reports, if applicable
The entire college planning fee or a portion of the fee charged to a client will be paid to the
individual(s) at BMM who provide the service.
Total Client Assets under Management
As of December 31, 2023, the calculated amount of client assets managed by BMM was
approximately $903,610,630 on a discretionary basis and $139,561 on a non-discretionary
basis.