Services
Asset Allocation
Your portfolio probably has one line item that matters more than all the others combined. Let us build the plan for what comes after it.
Ask most tech employees what their asset allocation is and they will describe their 401(k). Ask what their net worth is made of and the honest answer is often one company's stock, accumulated through years of RSU vesting, ESPP purchases and option exercises. That concentration built the wealth. It also means a single earnings call, reorganization or sector rotation can move your family's finances more than every other decision you make in a year.
Asset allocation is how we take that concentration and turn it into a portfolio designed around your goals rather than your employer's share price. We define a target mix across stocks, bonds and cash that fits your real risk tolerance and your capacity to absorb losses, build a tax-aware schedule for reducing employer stock, decide which assets belong in taxable, pre-tax and Roth accounts, and set rebalancing rules you can follow without checking the ticker every morning. The building blocks are usually low-cost, broadly diversified index funds. The discipline is the part that matters.
What this covers
- Concentration risk assessment: how much of your net worth depends on your employer, including unvested grants
- Diversification plan with a tax-aware selling schedule, using pre-set rules in the spirit of a 10b5-1 plan
- Target allocation across stocks, bonds, international markets and cash, sized to your goals and timeline
- Risk tolerance versus risk capacity: what you can stomach and what your plan can actually afford
- Asset location: placing tax-inefficient holdings in tax-advantaged accounts and long-term growth where it is treated best
- Cash reserves sized for both emergencies and known tax bills from vesting and exercises
- Rebalancing rules, tax-loss harvesting and charitable gifts of appreciated shares as tools for trimming positions
- Low-cost, index-based building blocks and a review of what you already hold
How we work together
- 01
Discovery
We gather every account, including vested and unvested equity, ESPP shares and cash, and talk through how you have felt in past downturns and what the money is for.
- 02
Analysis
We measure your true concentration, estimate the embedded tax in each lot, and assess the gap between the risk you are carrying and the risk your goals require.
- 03
Allocation and transition plan
You receive a target allocation, a location map for each account, and a written schedule for reducing employer stock over time, with the tax cost of each step laid out.
- 04
Implementation and review
We help you put the plan into place in your own accounts, then revisit it at each vesting date, after major market moves and at least annually.
Why work with an independent advisor
Because we manage no proprietary funds and earn no commissions, we have no reason to favor one product over another or to trade more than your plan requires. We can recommend the low-cost index funds already available in your 401(k) or brokerage account and help you use them well. Our fee is transparent and unrelated to what you buy, so the advice is shaped only by your goals and your tax situation.
Frequently asked questions
How much employer stock is too much?
There is no single number, but many planners grow uncomfortable when one stock represents more than a modest share of a family's investable assets, and tech employees routinely hold several times that. The right level for you depends on your goals, your timeline, your unvested grants and how much of your future income also depends on the same company. We help you choose a target you can live with and a path to reach it.
Selling my shares would trigger a large capital gains bill. Should I wait?
Taxes are a real cost, but so is the risk of holding. We look at each lot separately, distinguish short-term from long-term gains, and build a schedule that spreads sales across tax years, uses lower-income years, offsets gains with harvested losses and considers charitable gifts of appreciated shares. Often the answer is a steady, rules-based plan rather than a single decision to sell or hold.
What is a 10b5-1 plan, and do I need one?
A 10b5-1 plan is a pre-arranged trading schedule that allows insiders to sell company stock on a fixed rule without being seen as trading on non-public information. Most employees are not formal insiders, but the principle is useful for everyone: decide the rule in advance, then let it run. We help you set that rule and, if you are an insider, coordinate with your company's legal team on the formal version.
What does asset location mean, and how is it different from allocation?
Allocation is what you own: the mix of stocks, bonds and cash. Location is where you hold each piece. Bonds and other tax-inefficient holdings often belong in a 401(k) or IRA, while long-term stock funds may sit better in a taxable account or Roth. Placing assets thoughtfully across account types can improve after-tax results without changing your overall risk. We map every account together.
How is risk tolerance different from risk capacity?
Tolerance is emotional: how much of a drop you can watch without abandoning the plan. Capacity is financial: how much loss your goals can absorb given your timeline and income. A young engineer with a stable job may have high capacity but low tolerance, while a family close to retirement may feel the reverse. A good allocation respects both, and we test your answers against past downturns rather than a questionnaire alone.
Do you manage the portfolio, or do I?
We build the plan and help you implement it in accounts you already own, typically with low-cost index funds available in your 401(k) and brokerage. You keep control of your accounts; we provide the target allocation, the transition schedule and ongoing reviews, and we explain plainly what is and is not included before you commit to anything.
Related services
- Equity Compensation StrategyOne coordinated plan for your RSUs, RSAs, ISOs and NSOs, so every vest, exercise and sale is a decision rather than a surprise.
- Worry-free Retirement & Lifetime-Income PlanningFrom 401(k) and Roth decisions to early-retirement math and cross-border questions, a plan for the life after the vesting schedule ends.
- Holistic Financial PlanningOne integrated plan that connects your cash flow, equity, taxes, insurance and family goals, on both sides of the Pacific.
Ready to turn your uncertainty into certainties?
Start with a complimentary 15-minute strategy session. We will look at your portfolio, your tax picture and your goals, and tell you plainly what we would do next.