A. Description of the Advisory Firm
Weiss Financial Group LLC is a Limited Liability Company organized in the state of New York.
This firm has been in business since October of 2011, and the principal owners are
Keith D.
Weiss and Scott G. Weiss.
B. Types of Advisory Services
Weiss Financial Group LLC (hereinafte
r “WFG”) offers the following services to advisory
clients:
Investment Supervisory Services
WFG offers ongoing portfolio management services based on the individual goals, objectives,
time horizon, and risk tolerance of each client.
WFG creates an Investment Policy Statement for
each client, which outlines the client’s current situation (income, tax levels, and risk tolerance
levels) and then constructs a plan (the Investment Policy Statement) to aid in the selection of a
portfolio that matches each client’s specific situation. Investment Supervisory Services include,
but are not limited to, the following:
• Investment strategy • Personal investment policy
• Asset allocation • Asset selection
• Risk tolerance • Regular portfolio monitoring
WFG evaluates the current investments of each client with respect to their risk tolerance levels
and time horizon. WFG will request discretionary authority from clients in order to select
securities and execute transactions without permission from the client prior to each transaction.
Risk tolerance levels are documented in the Investment Policy Statement, which is given to each
client.
Financial Planning
Financial plans and financial planning may include, but are not limited to: investment planning,
life insurance; tax concerns; retirement planning; college planning; and debt/credit planning.
These services are based on hourly and fixed fees. The final fee structure is documented in
Exhibit II of the Financial Planning Agreement.
Services Limited to Specific Types of Investments
WFG generally limits its investment advice and/or money management to mutual funds,
equities, bonds, fixed income, debt securities, ETFs, REITs, insurance products including
annuities, private placements, leveraged ETFs, cryptocurrency and government securities.
WFG may use other securities as well to help diversify a portfolio when applicable. WFG may
use options as a protective investment strategy when appropriate.
Consulting Services
WFG offers consulting services to clients based on the client’s needs at a rate of $150 to $350 per
hour.
Selection of Other Advisers
WFG may direct clients to third-party investment advisers. Before selecting other advisers for
clients,
WFG will always ensure those other advisers are properly licensed or registered as
investment adviser. Currently, WFG may direct clients to Betterment, LLC.
We provide portfolio management services through Institutional Intelligent Portfolios™, an
automated, online investment management platform for use by independent investment
advisors and sponsored by Schwab Wealth Investment Advisory, Inc. (the “Program” and
“SWIA,” respectively). Through the Program, we offer clients a range of investment strategies
we have constructed and manage, each consisting of a portfolio of exchange traded funds
(“ETFs”) and a cash allocation. The client may instruct us to exclude up to three ETFs from their
portfolio. The client’s portfolio is held in a brokerage account opened by the client at SWIA’s
affiliate, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“CS&Co”). We are independent of and not owned by,
affiliated with, or sponsored or supervised by SWIA, CS&Co or their affiliates (together,
“Schwab”). The Program is described in the Schwab Wealth Investment Advisory, Inc.
Institutional Intelligent Portfolios™ Disclosure Brochure (the “Program Disclosure Brochure”),
which is delivered to clients by SWIA during the online enrollment process. We, and not
Schwab, are the client’s investment advisor and primary point of contact with respect to the
Program. We are 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. SWIA’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.
We have contracted with SWIA to provide us with the technology platform and related trading
and account management services for the Program. This platform enables us to make the
Program available to clients online and includes a system that automates certain key parts of
our investment process (the “System”). The System includes an online questionnaire that helps
us determine the client’s investment objectives and risk tolerance and select an appropriate
investment strategy and portfolio. Clients should note that w e w ill 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 we then make the final decision and select a portfolio based on
all the information we have about the client. The System also includes an automated investment
engine through which we manage the client’s portfolio on an ongoing basis through automatic
rebalancing and tax-loss harvesting (if the client is eligible and elects). We do not receive a
portion of a w rap fee for our services to clients through the Program. Clients do not pay fees to
SWIA in connection with the Program, [but we charge clients a fee for our services as described
below under Item 5 Fees and Compensation. Our 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. We do not pay SWIA fees for its services in the Program so long
as we maintain $100 million in client assets in accounts at CS&Co that are not enrolled in the
Program. If we do not meet this condition, then we pay SWIA an annual fee of 0.10% (10 basis
points) on the value of our 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.
Pension Consulting Services
WFG offers consulting services to pension or other employee benefit plans (including but not
limited to 401(k) plans). Pension consulting may include, but is not limited to:
o identifying investment objectives and restrictions
o providing guidance on various assets classes and investment options
o recommending money managers to manage plan assets in ways designed to achieve
objectives
o monitoring performance of money managers and investment options and making
recommendations for changes
o recommending other service providers, such as custodians, administrators and broker-
dealers
o creating a written pension consulting plan
These services are based on the goals, objectives, demographics, time horizon, and/or risk
tolerance of the plan and its participants. The plans offered are listed here and described below
in Item 5; Simple IRA & Simple 401k, 401k, SEP-IRA, Solo 401k, and Defined Benefit Plans.
C. Client Tailored Services and Client Imposed Restrictions
WFG offers the same suite of services to all of its clients. However, specific client financial plans
and their implementation are dependent upon the client Investment Policy Statement which
outlines each client’s current situation (income, tax levels, and risk tolerance levels) and is used
to construct a client specific plan to aid in the selection of a portfolio that matches restrictions,
needs, and targets.
Clients may impose restrictions in investing in certain securities or types of securities in
accordance with their values or beliefs. However, if the restrictions prevent
WFG from properly
servicing the client account, or if the restrictions would require
WFG to deviate from its
standard suite of services,
WFG reserves the right to end the relationship.
D. Wrap Fee Programs
A wrap fee program is an investment program where the investor pays one stated fee that
includes management fees, transaction costs, fund expenses, and any other administrative fees.
WFG does not participate in any wrap fee programs.
E. Amounts Under Management
WFG has the following assets under management:
Discretionary Amounts: Non-discretionary Amounts: Date Calculated:
$64,677,582 $3,026,850 December 2023