Menu burger Close thin Facebook Twitter Google plus Linked in Reddit Email arrow-right-sm arrow-right
Loading
Tap on the profile icon to edit
your financial details.

Douglas Lane Review

Your Details Done
by Updated

This review was produced by SmartAsset based on publicly available information. The named firm and its financial professionals have not reviewed, approved, or endorsed this review and are not responsible for its accuracy. Review content is produced by SmartAsset independently of any business relationships that might exist between SmartAsset and the named firm and its financial professionals, and firms and financial professionals having business relationships with SmartAsset receive no special treatment or consideration in SmartAsset’s reviews. This page contains links to SmartAsset’s financial advisor matching tool, which may or may not match you with the firm mentioned in this review or its financial professionals.

Douglas C. Lane & Associates (Douglas Lane) is a registered investment advisor (RIA) whose mission is to deliver investment results through proprietary fundamental research and individualized portfolio management. 

Located in New York, Douglas Lane is a fee-only firm that solely charges asset-based fees for its services.

The firm's small team of advisors holds various qualifications, including the chartered financial analyst (CFA), certified public accountant (CPA), chartered investment counselor (CIC), investment advisor certified compliance professional (IACCP) and retirement income certified professional (RICP) designations.

Douglas Lane Background

Douglas Lane has been in business since 1994. The independently operated firm specializes in a wide selection of investment offerings, and it’s part of the Focus Financial Partners, LLC partnership. 

Douglas Lane is a subsidiary of Focus Operating, LLC. Douglas C. Lane and Gay Lane are the firm’s founders. 

Douglas Lane Client Types and Minimum Account Sizes

Douglas Lane serves individuals, high-net-worth individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations and other business entities.

This firm has a $1 million minimum account size requirement.

Services Offered by Douglas Lane 

Douglas Lane specializes in custom portfolio management and financial planning services. In managing portfolios, the firm considers a client's risk tolerance, their age, the industry in which they work and their investment preferences. Douglas Lane also takes tax efficiency into account, using tactics like tax-loss harvesting to manage clients' tax liabilities. 

The firm's financial planning services may touch on a variety of topics and needs, including:

  • Retirement
  • Cash flow
  • Education savings
  • Charitable giving
  • Tax and estate matters
  • Social Security optimization
  • Mortgages
  • Insurance

Douglas Lane Investment Philosophy 

Douglas Lane’s investment philosophy aims to provide above-average returns for its clients’ capital through long-term investments in individual equity and fixed-income securities, according to its brochure. The firm also says it prefers to invest in companies with business models that can generate long-term returns.

Douglas Lane mainly uses a long-term core strategy, and it invests in exchange-traded equity securities, bonds, cash and cash equivalents. On its website, the firm states that it believes emerging and developing markets will outpace developed markets "for the foreseeable future."

"In most cases, approximately 50% of the aggregate revenue generated by the companies' in our clients' portfolios is generated outside the U.S., and we expect this portion to increase over time," the website states. 

Fees Under Douglas Lane

Douglas Lane charges offers the following fee schedule for its investment advisory services:

Douglas Lane Fee Schedule
Amount of assets Annual fees
First $5,000,000 1.00%
Next $10,000,000 0.75%
Next $15,000,000 0.60%
Next $20,000,000 0.50%
Additional assets 0.30%

 Here's how much you could pay in fees, depending on the size of your accout:

*Estimated investment management fees do not include brokerage, custodial, third-party manager or other fees, which can vary in amount.
Estimated Investment Management Fees at Douglas Lane*
Your Assets Douglas Lane Fee Amount
$500K $5,000
$1MM $10,000
$5MM $50,000
$10MM $87,500

What to Watch Out For

Douglas Lane doesn’t have any disclosures on its regulatory and legal record. The firm also has a fee-only compensation model, so advisors do not earn commissions on certain transactions. 

Opening an Account With Douglas Lane

You’ll have multiple options for setting up an account with Douglas Lane. You can fill out the firm’s contact form on its website or you can visit its office. You can also contact an advisor over the phone.

All information is accurate as of the writing of this article.

Investing Tips for Beginners

  • A financial advisor can help you get started on your investing journey by helping you select investments and building a portfolio. Finding a financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to three vetted financial advisors who serve your area, and you can have a free introductory call with your advisor matches to decide which one you feel is right for you. If you’re ready to find an advisor who can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now. 
  • Interested in learning more about how much your investments could earn you over time? Our investment calculator can help. You’ll just need to enter your initial investment amount, contributions, expected rate of return and how long you plan to keep you money invested.

How Long $1mm Lasts in Retirement

SmartAsset's interactive map highlights places where $1 million will last the longest in retirement. Zoom between states and the national map to see the top spots in each region. Also, scroll over any city to learn about the cost of living in retirement for that location.

Least
Most
Rank City Housing Expenses Food Expenses Healthcare Expenses Utilities Expenses Transportation Expenses

Methodology We analyzed data on average expenditures for seniors, cost of living and investment returns to determine how many years of retirement a $1 million nest egg would cover in cities across America.

First, we looked at data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on the average annual expenditures of seniors. We then applied cost of living data from the Council for Community and Economic Research to adjust those national average spending levels based on the costs of each expense category (housing, food, healthcare, utilities, transportation and other) in each city. Using this data, SmartAsset calculated the average cost of living for retirees in the largest U.S. cities.

We assumed the $1 million would grow at a real return (interest minus inflation) of 2%. Then, we divided $1 million by the sum of each of those annual numbers to determine how long $1 million would cover retirement expenses in each of the cities in our study. Cities where $1 million lasted the longest ranked the highest in the study.

Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Council for Community and Economic Research