The flywheel is a miraculous piece of engineering where outside friction is reduced to create seemingly perpetual momentum. At Flywheel Private Wealth, we strive to minimize financial friction (taxes, fees, short-term thinking, etc.) to create perpetual economic momentum (the compounding effect of a snowball rolling downhill).
No, we are fee-only.
No, we work only for clients. We are independent, fee-only. Our loyalty is to clients, not shareholders or senior management of a large institution.
We believe that there is no such thing as a short-term investment. That is known as gambling in our book. We leave that work to Las Vegas and focus instead on long-term, low-cost, evidence-based investments that have the potential to compound wealth over time. However, we do assist clients with short-term cash management strategies.
We are terrible market timers. We believe it’s not about timing the market, but rather time in the market. You should never hire us to be a fortune teller. While it’s fun to discuss and prognosticate, we believe that those who know don’t predict, and those who predict don’t know.
No, but we work with clients and their CPAs to coordinate tax-efficient outcomes. A client’s tax return can be a treasure trove of clues in helping us build strategies for tax minimization.
No, we do not practice law and are not attorneys. But we work with the client and their estate planning attorney to help build a plan with goals of efficiently passing on wealth to beneficiaries, reducing the friction of estate taxes, and keeping the flywheel of wealth spinning. We enjoy reviewing estate planning documents and doing beneficiary reviews to help clients understand what they have in place. We can also provide clients with estate planning attorney referrals.
One of our favorite topics! This ties back to tax and estate planning, and we’re big fans of tax-efficiency, both during and after life. We encourage clients to investigate donor-advised funds (DAFs) where appropriate, among other strategies like Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs).
We do not accept commissions for the sale of insurance products. However, we are happy to discuss the role of insurance in a client’s financial life. We also periodically review client insurance policies to ensure they are adequately covered and not being over-charged.
Our advisory fee is based on assets under management and ranges from 0.25% to 1.50% per year (charged quarterly). Please see our full Form ADV Part 2A for complete fee information.
All over the country, but many live in Los Altos, CA (where we live and work).
Yes, but not because we only like working with wealthy people. At this practice stage, there are only so many seats on the bus. As such, the bus door opens with a minimum of $3 million. At our discretion and as a courtesy to some long-standing clients and family members, we have accepted less than $3 million and reserve the right to do so in the future. We also do pro-bono work by educating youth in financial literacy (one of Brandon’s passions).
Family dynamics and legacy work. He derives immense pleasure in working with families to help ensure wealth is not wasted, has meaning, and that those values are conveyed to G2 and G3 (generations of children and grandchildren).
We also love educating the children and grandchildren of clients as they graduate from high school and college. When it comes to money, we have found that they listen more closely to professional advisors than well-meaning family members.
Yes, your choice is in person, over the phone or via videoconference.
Idaho work ethic mixed with California high-energy (Brandon’s Dad is from Idaho, and his mom is from California).
That’s a long story, but suffice it to say he loves his wife very much. In all seriousness, family is his #1 priority in life.
Glad you asked! Brandon loves to donate to the Los Altos Rotary Endowment Fund and the Reach Foundation, among others. He has a soft spot for charities that focus on families and children.
He was a missionary in Argentina for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints from 2000-2002. He will happily tell you about that experience if you ask him.
We are Northern California natives and have been cheering for the Giants, 49ers, and Warriors since infancy (though Brandon has a picture of when his mother dressed him in Raiders gear as a baby).
Ability to listen and understand. Brandon makes it a point to be a focused listener and to know that we have two ears and one mouth for a good reason. We enjoy talking, but we love listening.
Handwriting and drawing—it’s terrible and barely legible. Brandon’s handwriting makes the typical doctor look like John Hancock. His artwork and drawings are often confused with those of his six-year-old daughter.
“The chief cause of failure and unhappiness is trading what you want most for what you want at the moment” -- Zig Ziglar.