Stepp & Rothwell, Inc. is a fee-only financial planning and investment advisory firm.
Headquartered in the Kansas City area, our team of financial professionals provides unbiased, results-oriented advice, which seeks to offer our clients the knowledge that they need to help make informed decisions about their future. Because we believe issues like financial independence, estate planning, tax planning, cash flow management, risk management, education planning, wealth accumulation and preservation, and charitable giving are completely interrelated, we develop client-specific strategies that encompass them all, concurrently.
How are we different from other firms?
We’re Fee-Only
We’re Objective
We’re Transparent
We’re Focused on Your Happiness
*At Stepp & Rothwell Inc., we strive to provide families with advice that helps them avoid conflicts regarding money and family finances. We do so by working intimately with families on a regular basis to address these issues. We are a fee-only investment adviser registered with the SEC. We provide ongoing advice for a fully-disclosed fee. We sell no investment or insurance products for a commission. We are a fiduciary under law, and must provide services that are always in the best interests of our clients. A copy of our most current written disclosure Brochure discussing our advisory services, fees, and conflicts is available upon request.
We’re fee-only. Really.
There are several ways you can pay a financial planning firm. Stepp & Rothwell, Inc. is “fee-only,” which means we are compensated only by our clients. Always. We don’t sell financial products, nor do we receive sales commissions on any financial product or service.
Over the years, other firms have co-opted the term “fee-only” to mean “fee plus commission,” or “fee-based.” This happens with financial planning firms who charge a fee but also sell insurance or investments for a commission. If you’re confused, that’s by design.
Stepp & Rothwell, Inc. is different. We offer all of our services, including investment advising and investment management, as part of our comprehensive fee-only financial planning service. We manage your investments, but we don’t charge commissions. The annual retainer fee is the amount the client pays us, regardless of how actively their account is traded, or how much time we spend on tax planning, cash flow planning, estate planning, college funding planning, insurance planning, or any other planning issues.
We’re conflict-free.*
Because we’re fee-only, we decide what to recommend to you based solely on what is the best fit for you and your specific needs. We don’t have a conflict between what’s best for you and what will make us money.
We also use a conflict-free* approach to how we help our clients. Money can often be a source of stress and conflict, especially in families and between parents and children. We help shape conversations and facilitate decision-making so that they are neutral events. We often work with extended families, which can remove conflict about financial matters from the family dynamic and further improves our clients’ lives.
*At Stepp & Rothwell, Inc., we strive to provide families with advice that helps them avoid conflicts regarding money and family finances. We do so by working intimately with families on a regular basis to address these issues. We are a fee-only investment adviser registered with the SEC. We provide ongoing advice for a fully-disclosed fee. We sell no investment or insurance products for a commission. We are a fiduciary under law, and must provide services that are always in the best interests of our clients. A copy of our most current written disclosure Brochure discussing our advisory services, fees, and conflicts is available upon request.
We’re objective.
Because we’re fee-only, we don’t have any incentive to persuade you to invest in particular funds or products. Our only aim is to help you reach your goals. This objectivity sets us apart from people who call themselves “wealth managers” or “money managers” but whose primary goal is getting you to buy their financial products.
We’re transparent.
We disclose all fees up front and review them with you each year. We provide detailed, plain-language explanations of our recommendations, and we are available at any time to answer questions about how we work.
We’re focused on your happiness.
You’ve worked hard to build your assets, and our job is to help you to preserve and grow those assets so that you can live the kind of life you want. For some people, this means retiring early. For others, it means being able to travel all over the world, to pay for their children’s or grandchildren’s education, or to start a new business.
Whatever your dream life looks like, we want to help make it a reality.
Please Note: The scope of any financial planning and consulting services to be provided depends upon the specific requests and needs of the client. Stepp & Rothwell does not serve as an attorney, accountant, or insurance agent. Stepp & Rothwell does not prepare legal documents or tax returns, nor does it sell insurance products.