The first meeting
Once we have processed the paperwork that authorizes us to work as your investment advisor, and the accounts have been opened and assets have been transferred, we will contact you to share our plan regarding how we will be investing your assets. The asset allocation used in the investment plan will depend upon your investment time horizon, appetite for risk, financial ability to take risk and financial goals. Only after we receive your approval on the investment plan will we start investing your assets. There will be a follow up meeting within a few months of starting the investment plan to provide you with a status report. After that you will be put on a regular meeting schedule.
Team approach
We use a team approach to portfolio management and client service. Two portfolio managers will manage your account. In addition, there is an operational team who backs up the portfolio managers. In using the team approach, you can be sure that you have a group of professionals to support and serve you.
Working with your trusted advisors
Our wealth management philosophy involves working with your estate planning attorneys, CPAs, insurance agents and other trusted professionals to ensure that the complete financial picture is being considered when decisions are made. Many clients have given us permission to provide cost basis, realized gains and losses and other tax-related information to their CPAs to assist in the preparation of the tax returns. In addition, many clients have given us a copy of their trust document so we can have a better understanding of their financial situation. If you need a trusted advisor in these financial areas, we can recommend professionals that we work with and trust.
Role of your custodian and PacWest
Please note that we do not have custody of your assets. Your assets are held either at Schwab or Fidelity or National Advisors Trust Company. The investment advisory agreement allows PacWest to manage your securities held at your custodian. We interface with your custodian to execute trades and to process distribution requests that you have initiated. Whenever we trade on your behalf, you will receive a confirmation from the custodian showing you the transactions and the execution prices. All transactions will also be posted on the monthly reports that you will receive directly from the custodian.
Rebalancing portfolios
Our client’s investment objective drives the target allocations for stocks, bonds, and cash, for each client’s portfolio. The idea is that as any one asset class gets over-weighted or under-weighted relative to the rest of the portfolio, we will bring the asset classes back in line with the client’s target allocations. We then overlay our proprietary macroeconomic models over the target allocations to help determine which asset classes (stocks, bonds, or cash) to favor or reduce depending on where we are in the business cycle and those adjusted asset class allocations become the new target allocations. Finally, individual securities in the portfolios are bought and sold depending on market conditions and industry or company specific developments.
Please see the investment management services page to learn more about our investment process.
Tax-efficient management of your account
In January you will receive a realized gains and losses statement from us, reflecting the activities from the previous year. We manage your account as tax efficiently as possible. To the extent that it makes sense for the portfolio we will balance gains and losses or realized gains over multiple tax years or harvest losses for future years. If in any year, you need us to realize an unusual amount of gains or losses, we will do our best to accommodate your request. However, we believe that the fundamentals of the investment should be taken into consideration first and foremost before considering the tax impact of any investment decision.
How you can monitor your account
You will be able to monitor your account on-line through your custodian’s website and see how your account is performing on a real-time basis. If you have questions at any time about your account, we are available via phone, mail, or e-mail.
Quarterly statements & management fees
You will receive a monthly statement from your custodian as well as a quarterly statement from us. Along with that quarterly statement, you will also get an invoice which indicates how much you paid us in management fees for managing your account over the most recent quarter and how those fees were calculated. This investment fee will be automatically deducted from your account after the services have been performed, unless you direct otherwise.
How you can communicate with us
We are open to communicate with you in any way that you wish. You can come into our office, send us an e-mail, write us a letter, send a fax or just call. Our normal business hours are typically from 8 am to 5 pm, but many times there is someone here before 8 am and after 5 pm.
How we communicate with you
- During the course of the year, you will receive the following written communications from us:
- Grace’s quarterly update– This letter is about keeping our clients current on market insights and on new developments at PacWest.
- Quarterly Newsletter – This newsletter includes timely, relevant topics on the economy, financial planning, or investing.
- Transaction Advisories – These advisories are sent out from time to time to share with you PacWest’s rationale for certain investment decisions.
- Quarterly Statements – This statement describes your portfolio’s holdings
- Mid Month Market Cycle Monitor – This communication tells you PacWest’s current perspective on the economy and how this outlook affects our investment stance.
During the year, we will also conduct formal reviews to share with you in person how your investments are performing and check to see if your circumstances have changed since our last meeting.
Requesting a distribution out of your account
If you need money from your account, we can help facilitate that. Usually, there is a cash cushion in your account for your cash needs. However, if it is a large distribution we will raise the cash by selling securities. Everything you hold in your PacWest portfolio is liquid and is able to be converted into cash in no more than four business days.
Depositing money into your account
If you would like us to deposit money into your account, we will provide you the applicable instructions so that the funds will be credited into the correct account in a timely manner.
