I've spoken with Edoardo Bassi about Thompson Investment Associates. He really knows the markets…read moreand is driven to succeed and produce results for his clients. Though I'm not yet a client, due to our financial situation at this time, I learned a lot by talking with him and expect to become a client in the future when the time is right for us.

Main Street Research has been our investment advisors since 1999. They have done a wonderful job…read moremanaging our investments, through thick and thin! They truly get to know each client and tailor their strategy for solid growth over time. I can't say enough good things about James Demmert and his team of experts.

I am not a fan. I gave MSR a bunch of money in December 2021, when I saw troubled waters ahead. I…read morefigured (wrongly as it turned out) that professionals were needed to navigate the market pressures of inflation and Putin's ominous presence on the Ukrainian border. All MSR did was lose a lot of my money. MSR lost no time buying AAPL at 173.98 on 12-27-2021. More mistakes followed, including AMZN at $3,412 on 12-30-21 and MSFT at 341.96 on 12-29-21. I was surprised and worried but didn't complain; they were the experts, I (wrongly) reasoned. Buying continued as the market dropped: COST at $564 on 12-30-21 and more COST at $520 on Jan 11 '22 -- down $44 in 10 days! Rather than sense the fear in the market, they piled in with more of my money! More MSFT at $318 on 1-5-22...more AAPL at $163 on 1-21-22. (NOTE: I am not cherry-picking examples --these are random samples of a large purchase spree.) On Jan 26, 2022, I wrote an email questioning a partial sale of SHOP at $898 (purchased at $1,033 on 1-20-22). Portfolio Manager Jacob responded saying they were "... likely to move soon on buying again since we see the market as highly oversold, providing us with good value opportunities in the market." I replied "... I am less enthusiastic than you that the market is oversold." That is when I should have closed my account. But, they were the experts. Throughout this time, communication from MSR was lacking. Oh sure, they always said, "Let us know if you have any questions." But there was little communication of their take on the latest market threats or their investment committee's leanings. High-buying and low-selling continued. When I complained on Apr 25, 2022 that this fiduciary arrangement was not working for me, James responded that "...we never suggested that we are clairvoyant about predicting short term market movements." and that I had "...checked the box that you could withstand market swings of up to 20%". James was correct. MSR was not down as much as the S&P 500 and I had checked the 20% loss box. Were these the assurances I needed to hear from my professional investment firm? There was no mention of MSR strategy being wrong and there was no apology for losing lots and lots of my money. I heard arrogance and I have no need for an arrogant money manager. Yes, he wasn't down as much as the S&P 500 but I didn't hire a bunch of blind monkeys (referring to the S&P 500) to grow my wealth. I hired MSR. I closed my account at the end of May, 13% lower than when I started. 30%+ of the account was still in cash and cash equivalents, so MSR's professional, fiduciary investment decisions on the other 60%+ resulted in a LOSS north of 18%. I find that incredible (not in a good way). I am not a fan and I do not recommend Main Street Research.

Frank Ivica has been my CPA for many years now. He is very professional and honest. He is…read moreextremely knowledgeable about complicated tax laws and the many changes that occur from one year to the next. I would highly recommend him.

Marcus is fantastic! I met him through a networking event, but what struck me was his sincerity…read more I set up a meeting with him and found him to be a great listener, really hearing and understanding where you are financially and what your goals are, as well as being really knowledgeable and patient with explaining everything. He's also really creative with figuring out what kinds of investments best suit your needs. I introduced him to my entire work team and they were all really impressed with him as well. Of all the financial advisors I've had over the years, Marcus is definitely the best. Really explaining all of the pros and cons of every choice. He's also very detailed, which is great for someone like me. I really like to get into the fine points of things, to help me feel better about my decisions, and he's great with that. Going over things several times if necessary to make sure I really understands. He also had a really warm and friendly personality, which help makes the whole experience less intimidating. I highly recommend Marcus to anyone.

I can't say enough good things about my new financial planner, Ora Citron, who works with…read moreStahlschmidt. I recently moved my retirement funds from a large brokerage firm to various companies recommended by and managed by her. The diversified investments she recommended to me are doing great already, compared to my significant other's accounts, which are still with my previous broker. But what I love is the information. Each time there's a news item about anything financial related, I get a letter of explanation/analysis from Ora. She e-mails me with the most recent performance if it's anything out of the ordinary, positive or negative. Before I transferred my funds, we met for approximately 10 hours over the space of several months so that I could get educated about her recommendations - and we're not talking about a lot of money here, either. The personalized service is SO refreshing after dealing with a faceless company all these years. And it's reasonable!! I paid a one-time fee and I get counseling for LIFE. Highly recommended. Check them out - and I recommend Ora specifically - if you're looking for a trusted planner.

I sweated for months over the dreaded tax filing. Not only because I thought I would pay dearly for…read moreprocrastination, but also because I feared the accountant would shame me. I've had other accountants, H&R Block, sweating it out online by myself, all of which required lots of calls and many more grey hairs. Then I found Wilson. He made this thing seem easy. His calm, sweet, non judgmental disposition is incredibly helpful. He was thorough, competent and honest. He assured me that everything was going to be ok, that he had plenty of time to deal with my bad habits! I did not have the easiest of tax returns to file. I was in the middle of closing my business, had some investments, and was behind two years. The best part was that he charged a fair price, filed everything that he could electronically, and at our second and final meeting, we completed the signing and filing together in under one hour. I don't need someone who is tricking the system, I just need an accountant that has my back, and is competent, fair, a good person, and easy to work with. Wilson makes the tax tango easy. I am very appreciative and he has my business and recommendation.

This has been our first year working with Wilson and we've had a great experience with him. Our…read moretaxes are not as straight forward as we have to report on personal and own business. Wilson is not only a very friendly person but also very knowledgeable and detailed oriented. Our taxes were done within a few days of uploading all the documents into their portal and he corrected and pointed out a few items that had been missed by a previous tax accountant. As a small business owner, I needed some help with my tax accounting because I went from a sole proprietor into a LLC and Wilson was able to explain the pros and cons of this conversion (from a tax accounting perspective). He even went out of his way to help me understand the payroll setup process which can be a little bit of a pain due to the various entities involved. In summary, we are very satisfied with Wilson's services and will be using his services in years to come.

Four years ago, I was living in San Francisco, and I had sold my first shares of stock that I had…read morereceived from working at a "hot" startup that everyone on Yelp would be familiar with ;) At that point in my life, I was a 20-something living in San Francisco, and I didn't know where to begin. I wanted to start saving and investing my money, but I didn't have any solid referrals for companies or individuals. After doing some digging, I found several financial planners, but I owned nowhere near the outrageous portfolio that many companies preferred to work with (sometimes, upwards of $1m)! Coincidentally, one of M&E's long-time clients worked with my mother and had passed along their information. I contacted Mosher & Ellis, and was immediately greeted by Barb, who passed my information along to my (current) advisor, William Tom. At the time that I reached out to Mosher & Ellis, I was overwhelmed and nervous. I knew that my portfolio was much smaller than the ones they were used to managing, and I was sure that I was one of their younger (less experienced) clients. I was worried that I wouldn't be taken seriously, and I didn't know if I would receive the same quality of service that their "higher net worth" clients received. From the first day I walked into their office, I have always been treated with respect, and encouraged to continue saving and planning. William is supportive, and always willing to explain things to me if I ever have any questions. Fast forward, my understanding of financial planning has transformed, completely. I've even moved across the country, and at this point, I plan on being a customer for life - regardless of where I'm living. Thanks to Mosher & Ellis, I have grown my portfolio considerably, and I am proud of my financial decisions. Financial planning and advising is a sensitive topic, so I never bring it up, but if friends or family ever ask me for referrals, I always send them directly to Mosher & Ellis.

25 years ago, a friend asked me about my retirement plans. With a quizzical look, I replied,…read more"well, I'm just going to keep working." Thankfully that friend recommended Mosher Financial Advisors which proved to be the blessing of my life. Now at 76, I'm living a comfortable retirement in Hawaii and thanking Jerry Mosher and his competent staff for their care and guidance all the past 25 years. At first, I couldn't even sit in a meeting for 15 minutes before I reached overwhelm. With each succeeding meeting over the years I have been educated and guided. And, as a new business consultant in the early 90's I had to start saving in order to catch up for all the years of "saving the world" - wonderful work, but no money. So, living in San Jose, CA, I was at the right place at the right time, and grew my business as the Valley continued to grow. Even though I was making "good money," I had to save. MFA created a plan for me, and I worked the plan. I worked and saved for 10 years. And, I did it! When my mom asked me to come home to care for her at age 94, I was able to say YES and we spent 6 wonderful years together. I wasn't worried and scared. I now can volunteer and travel, and say YES to friends requests to meet for a movie and dinner. I look forward to my annual reviews with the team and know I can always ask for help and within minutes (really), I get the response I need. Mahalo to MFA for providing me with the peace and security I have. I am forever grateful and continue laud your team to others. Patricia Johnson

Jason was able to make himself available to help me when I needed it the most and really gave me…read morevaluable advice to avoid a very costly financial decision. He's very knowledgeable and straight forward which I really appreciated given the circumstances. After talking to three other sources that gave me mixed and conflicting advice, Jason was able to get to the bottom of it. He's not a CPA but was able to provide me with financial advice related to taxes while also taking into account my personal investments. I recommend him to anyone needing a trustworthy financial advisor.

The amazing insight and advice on the tax impact on our investments helped me adjust my investment…read morestrategy. Jason was thoughtful in his approach to assessing our situation and guiding us into a more productive strategy. Innovative and knowledgeable. I can't say enough good things about them. Also I recommend checking out the tax calculator link.