Essential Planning, LLC (Portsmouth)


Essential Planning, LLC is a large advisory firm based in Portsmouth. It manages $178.68 million of regulatory assets for 1,338 client accounts. It has been registered with the SEC as an adviser since 2003 and has operated in the jurisdictions of Florida, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Texas.

Essential Planning provides financial planning services and portfolio management for individuals and small businesses. It prepares financial plans for more than 250 clients. On top of advisory services, the firm doesn't engage in other business activities.

Essential Planning: assets under management

The assets under management (AUM) of Essential Planning, LLC is $178.68 million. The firm's AUM has grown by 24% since the beginning of its operation, and the company doesn't manage any assets belonging to foreign clients.

The firm manages $134.97 million in discretionary accounts and $43.72 million in non-discretionary accounts. On average, the discretionary accounts where all decisions are made on behalf of the client hold $133.1 thousand each. Non-discretionary accounts, where clients actively manage their portfolios, generally hold around $134.93 thousand.

Investments

The firm invests in other assets the most. They account for 79% of the total AUM. The second-largest asset type is exchange traded securities, which make up 9% of the firm’s portfolio. Investments in cash and cash equivalents form 6% of the total invested assets.

Fees & Commissions

The advisory firm has several streams of revenue. Clients pay Essential Planning, LLC for their services and products based on a percentage of assets under management, hourly charges, and fixed fees. Flat-fee based compensation is the most transparent and the one you can safely predict in advance. These fees don’t include brokerage commissions, interest, taxes, and other account expenses.

What kind of clients Essential Planning serves?

The firm provides services to individuals and high net worth individuals. The largest group of clients of Essential Planning is high net worth individuals with 334 clients and $157.97 million of assets under management. Among the 8 most similar advisory firms, Essential Planning has the 3rd highest percentage of high net worth individuals out of all clients.

The amount of regulatory assets under management is $178.68 million for 375 clients that can include trusts, estates, and 401(k) plans and IRAs of individuals and their family members. None of the firm’s clients are foreign persons or businesses.

Essential Planning doesn't advise any private funds.

Careers at Essential Planning, LLC

The company employs 8 people that are either part- or full-time employees. 38 percent of the employees work as investment advisers or researchers. 3 employees are registered as investment adviser representatives with the state securities authorities.

There are 2 people with the role of looking for and bringing in new clients on behalf of the firm. The firm doesn’t compensate employees in addition to the salary for bringing in new clients. Employees don’t receive compensation from other entities for client referrals.

Direct owners and executive officers


Name Entity Date acquired Ownership Employer ID
Andrew Charles Lord Member, chief compliance officer 1 Jan 1984 75% - 100% 1289303

Based in Portsmouth

The principal office where Essential Planning, LLC performs its advisory services is located at 500 Market Street, Unit 1 D, Portsmouth, NH 03801, which is also the mailing address of the firm. An additional office of the firm is in Wolfeboro Falls, NH. It doesn’t run an office outside of the United States.

You can reach the main office by calling the phone number 603-427-5164 or by fax 603-427-5170. The normal business hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 on Monday - Friday. You can find more information about the New York firm at essential-planning.com.