Frequently Asked Questions

We deliberately keep our client-to-advisor ratio lower than industry norms, giving your family the time and attention comprehensive planning requires. Many DC-area firms scale to hundreds of clients per advisor, making it impossible to personalize advice or coordinate with your other professionals. By ensuring our advisors have adequate time with each client, we can engage deeply with your situation, collaborate with your CPA and attorney, and provide the holistic planning that brought you to a fiduciary advisor in the first place.

At some point, you’ll likely realize that financial decisions are too interconnected to manage alone. When investments, taxes, retirement planning, estate strategies, and cash flow all influence each other, you benefit from having someone help you see the full picture. A financial advisor helps you make coordinated decisions with clarity rather than reacting to each issue in isolation.

Fiduciary duty means your advisor must put your financial interests ahead of their own compensation or business goals. This legal standard requires full transparency about fees, conflicts, and recommendations. For you as a client, this creates clearer accountability and fewer gray areas in the advisory relationship.

A Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) is a firm regulated by the SEC or state securities authorities that provides investment advice for disclosed fees. While sometimes, RIAs can also be registered with a brokerage firm, Glassman Wealth Services is only a registered investment advisor, which you can verify through SEC public records.

Yes, we operate under the fiduciary standard, which legally and ethically requires us to always act in your best interest. Not every financial professional operates as a fiduciary advisor, which is why you should always ask this question early. This standard means your interests come before our compensation or convenience.

In today’s wealth management world, you can choose transparent fees or hidden incentives. When you work with a fee-only advisor, you won’t have to question how they are compensated or whether hidden commissions influence their recommendations. The relationship stays simple because you know exactly who pays whom, with no products paying your advisor behind the scenes.

Our fee-only structure typically ranges from 0.25% to 1% of assets under management, depending on complexity and service level. You’ll know exact costs before engagement, with no hidden fees or commissions. We believe transparent pricing is essential to fiduciary wealth management.

We typically work with clients who have investable assets of $2 million, though we evaluate each situation individually. Your financial complexity, planning needs, and long-term relationship potential matter as much as asset levels. We believe the right fit creates value regardless of specific minimums.

While like many wealth management firms, we offer asset-based pricing. Yet, a flat annual fee sometimes makes more sense for clients with complex planning needs, concentrated stock positions, or significant assets held outside managed accounts. We’ll help you evaluate which fee structure provides better value based on your specific situation and the services you need.

We measure your progress against your personal financial goals, not just market indices. Regular reviews examine portfolio performance, strategy effectiveness, and whether your plan still aligns with your evolving life. You’re going to love our online performance portal. And if you don’t, we’ll do our best to customize it for your needs.

You’ll have a dedicated advisory team that knows your situation, not a rotating cast of representatives. This team approach provides both continuity and depth of expertise while ensuring multiple professionals understand your needs. Building long-term relationships matters in wealth management.

In your first year or two, you’ll meet with us more frequently as we build your financial plan and coordinate your tax, estate, and insurance strategies. After this foundation is set, most clients prefer meeting once or twice annually for comprehensive reviews, plus whenever life changes or market events warrant discussion. You can always reach out between meetings when financial questions arise, which they inevitably do.

You’ll work with credentialed professionals holding designations such as CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®), Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA®), IRS Enrolled Agent (EA) or the CPA’s Personal Financial Specialist (PFS®). These certifications require rigorous education, comprehensive exams, and ongoing professional development.

We regularly advise executives on stock options, restricted stock units (RSUs), deferred compensation, and equity compensation strategies. The DC area’s technology, defense, and government contracting sectors create unique planning opportunities. We coordinate equity decisions with your overall tax and financial strategy.

Estate planning is central to our wealth management process, and we typically propose strategies tailored to your situation. We’ll spend time educating you on how trusts, gifting strategies, and other techniques work, so when you meet with your attorney, you’re prepared and focused, often saving substantial legal fees. After your attorney drafts the documents, we help you fund trusts, retitle assets, and ensure your plan actually gets implemented rather than sitting on a shelf.

Yes, we regularly coordinate with your tax and legal professionals as part of comprehensive wealth management. You’ll often find us proactively reaching out to your CPA or attorney to share updates and ensure everyone on your advisory team is aligned. This coordination means your professionals work as a unified team rather than in separate silos, which typically leads to fewer surprises.

We provide comprehensive wealth management that goes beyond investment management alone. Your planning includes tax-efficient investing, retirement income strategies, estate planning coordination, and ongoing financial guidance as life changes. This integrated approach connects all your financial decisions rather than treating them separately.

Many successful clients enjoy maintaining some self-directed investing alongside professional wealth management. We can manage your core, long-term portfolio while you pursue personal investment interests separately. This coordinated approach respects your involvement while providing professional oversight where you want it.

Tax-efficient investing is central to maximizing your after-tax returns, which is what actually matters to your wealth. We implement strategies like Asset Location and careful timing of gains where appropriate. Every investment decision considers both growth potential and tax consequences.

At our core, we build your portfolio with simple, low-cost, tax-efficient investments that keep more money working for you. Beyond this foundation, we can incorporate more sophisticated strategies when they make sense, whether you’re seeking additional tax benefits, broader diversification, or enhanced return potential. We customize your investment approach based on your specific goals, time horizons, and overall financial situation, not a one-size-fits-all model.

We work with individuals and families who value long-term planning relationships and comprehensive financial advice. Many clients face complexity around executive compensation, business ownership, retirement transitions, or multi-generational wealth transfer. The right fit matters more than any specific wealth level.

Yes, children and parents of our clients ARE clients, with full access to financial planning and investment advice regardless of asset minimums. Your adult children can receive the same guidance you do, whether they’re starting their careers or managing their own wealth. We maintain strict confidentiality between family members while helping each generation with their unique financial questions and goals.

In most cases, Charles Schwab serves as the independent third-party custodian for your accounts, meaning your assets are never held directly by our firm. You receive statements directly from Schwab and maintain 24/7 online access to your accounts. This separation provides an important layer of protection and transparency.

Our offices are conveniently located in Tysons Corner, Virginia and North Bethesda, Maryland, serving the Washington DC metro area including Arlington, Alexandria, McLean, Great Falls, Bethesda, and Potomac. Both locations are easily accessible by Metro with free parking available for clients. We offer in-person meetings at either office or virtual meetings for your convenience.