Top Financial Advisor Firms in Ohio

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Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc. is a fee-based investment advisor based in Cincinnati. With more than $54.54 billion in assets under management, it is by far the largest advisor on this list. The firm has 89 advisors managing money for clients, with all individual clients being high-net-worth. Despite having only high-net-worth accounts, the minimum account size is actually only $500,000, lower than some other firms on this list. Fort Washington also manages money for institutional clients including investment companies, pooled investment vehicles, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, state or municipal government entities, insurance companies and other corporations. 

The private client team includes six certified financial planners (CFPs), four chartered financial analysts (CFAs), two chartered alternative investment analysts (CAIAs) and one certified wealth strategist (CWS).

Fees for investment management are based on a percentage of assets under management. Some employees of Fort Washington are also employed at insurance companies and may make commissions from selling insurance products to clients. This is a conflict of interest, but advisors are bound by fiduciary duty to act in the best interest of the client.

Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc. Background

Fort Washington was founded in 1990. The principal shareholders in the firm are: Western & Southern Mutual Holding Company, Western & Southern Financial Group, The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company and Western & Southern Investment Holdings, LLC.

Services offered at the firm include:

• Institutional advisory services
• Wealth management
• Investment advisory services

Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc. Investing Strategy

A number of investment strategies and securities may be used by advisors at Fort Washington. These include: 

• Long-term purchases
• Short-term purchases
• Short sales
• Options
• Domestic and international equities
• Derivatives
• Private equity investments

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Bahl & Gaynor Investment Counsel is a fee-only firm based in Cincinnati. It manages more than $11.65 billion. All of the firm's individual clients are high-net-worth. The firm also advises institutional clients including investment companies, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, state or municipal government entities and other corporations. Bahl & Gaynor requires a minimum account size of at least $750,000, and it charges a minimum annual fee of $7,000. Fees are based on a percentage of assets under management and advisors do not make commissions for selling securities or financial products to clients. 

There are 21 advisors on staff at Bahl & Gaynor. That includes 10 chartered financial analysts (CFAs), nine chartered investment counselors (CICs), three certified financial planners (CFPs), one chartered wealth manager (CWM) and one certified public accountant (CPA).

Bahl & Gaynor Investment Counsel Background

Bahl & Gaynor Investment Counsel was founded in 1990. The principal shareholders of the firm are all senior officers at the firm, including presidents William F. Bahl and Vere W. Gaynor.

Services offered at the firm include:

• Portfolio management
• Financial planning services
• Cash flow planning
• Estate planning
• Tax strategies
• Retirement planning
• Education funding

Bahl & Gaynor Investment Counsel Investment Strategies

The following investment management model portfolios are available for Bahl & Gaynor clients:

• Quality Growth
• Income Growth
• Mid Cap Growth
• Small Growth
• Smig (Small/Mid Cap Income Growth) 
• Total Return Bond Strategy

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With nearly $10.7 billion in assets under management (AUM), Johnson Investment Counsel, Inc. is nearly twice as large as the next firm on this list, Stratos Wealth Partners Ltd. The fee-only firm is based in Cincinnati. It also currently ranks on SmartAsset’s top Cincinnati financial advisors list.

There are 68 members on the advisory staff at Johnson Investment Counsel. Across this group, you’ll find 27 chartered financial analysts (CFAs), 20 certified financial planners (CFPs), two certified trust and financial advisors (CTFAs), two chartered alternative investment analysts (CAIAs), one certified public accountant (CPA), one accredited investment fiduciary (AIF), one chartered life underwriter (CLU), one chartered financial consultant (ChFC)and one certified investment management analyst (CIMA).

More than 2,700 of the firm’s roughly 3,400 individual clients do not have high net worths. Aside from individuals, the firm also works with trusts, estates, investment companies, businesses, government entities, pension and profit-sharing plans and charitable organizations. The firm calls for a minimum account size of $1,000,000. 

Johnson Investment Counsel, Inc. Background

Johnson Investment Counsel, Inc. was founded in 1965. Its ownership is split between all of its 32 employees.

To manage client assets as comprehensively as possible, this firm employs six different pillars of financial management. These pillars include goal-based financial planning, investment management, retirement planning, insurance analysis, income tax planning and estate planning.

Johnson Investment Counsel, Inc. Investing Strategy

Rather than bank on a single advisor to form each client’s portfolio and investment plan, Johnson Investment Counsel, Inc. prefers to work as a group. The firm believes this plays to its collective experience and allows clients to benefit from the entire team’s knowledge.

The firm’s portfolios are primarily made up of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), stocks, bonds and mutual funds. However, this could change, as the firm thinks that the risk tolerance and time horizon of each client should ultimately shape how things are done.

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Stratos Wealth Partners, Ltd. manages nearly $5.44 billion for its clients. The fee-based firm advises mostly individuals, though it does have a good number of high-net-worth clients. The firm also manages money for institutions including bank or thrift companies, pension or profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations and other corporations. 

Stratos does not have a minimum fee or account size requirement for its financial planning services. Its investment advising is done by third-party investment advisors, and each advisor may have their own account minimum. Stratos has 274 advisors across the country. The team of advisors in Ohio includes one accredited investment fiduciary (AIF), one chartered retirement plan specialist (CRPS), one certified financial planner (CFP), and one chartered financial consultant (ChFC).

The firm charges a flat or hourly fee for financial planning and consulting services. Fees for third-party investment advisory services are based on a percentage of assets under management. Some advisors do work for a broker-dealer or insurance company. This is a conflict of interest, but fiduciary duty requires advisors to act in the best interest of the client.

Stratos Wealth Partners, Ltd. Background

Stratos Wealth Partners has been a registered investment advisor since 2016. It is 100%-owned by its parent company, Stratos Wealth Holdings LLC, which also owns two other SEC-registered advisors: Fundamentum, which primarily acts as a subadvisor, and Stratos Wealth Advisors, LLC.

Services offered by Stratos Wealth Partners include:

• Financial planning services
• Hourly consulting services
• Financial wellness program
• Third-party investment advisor account management
• Retirement planning
• Estate planning

Stratos Wealth Partners, Ltd. Investing Strategy

The investing strategy for clients of Stratos depends largely on the subadvisor used. 

There are a variety of investments that may be used for clients, including: alternative strategy mutual funds, closed-end funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), exchange-traded notes (ETNs), leveraged and inverse funds, options, structured products, high-yield debt, hedge funds and variable annuities. 

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As SmartAsset’s top financial advisor firm in Cleveland, MAI Capital Management, LLC has more than $4.72 billion in assets under management (AUM). The fee-only firm’s client base is primarily comprised of high-net-worth individuals, but it also includes pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, foundations, endowments and S corporations. The firm says it specializes in working with senior business executives and sports professionals.

New clients need at least $500,000 in investable assets to open an account with this firm. Its team includes 17 certified financial planners (CFPs), 14 certified public accountants (CPAs), 10 chartered financial analysts (CFAs), two certified private wealth advisors (CPWAs), two chartered retirement planning counselors (CRPCs), one chartered life underwriter (CLU) and one chartered market technician (CMT).

MAI Capital Management is the only firm on this list that charges performance-based fees. These fees will only be charged if your portfolio outperforms its original projections. The firm is a fiduciary, though, meaning it’s required to act in your best interest.

MAI Capital Management, LLC Background

MAI Capital Management, LLC was originally established as Investment Advisors International, Inc. in 1973. After a number of separations and mergers, the firm was renamed as MAI Capital Management in 2014. The firm's primary owner is Richard Buoncore, a managing partner at the firm.

MAI offers general investment management for investors who don’t have a specific objective in mind. For those that do, the following goals-based services are available:

• Estate planning
• Retirement planning
• Insurance review and analysis
• Tax planning and minimization
• Financial accounting
• Philanthropic gift planning

MAI Capital Management, LLC Investing Strategy

At MAI Capital Management, LLC your risk tolerance, time horizon and liquidity needs will collectively determine your portfolio’s composition. However, the tax implications of an investment will also strongly influence the firm’s decisions.

Similarly, market timing also comes into consideration, though the firm primarily takes a long-term approach. MAI isn’t totally against using short-term strategies because these can potentially garner quick returns, albeit with a higher level of risk.

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Bartlett Wealth Management calls for a minimum investment of $500,000 to begin a client relationship. It’s a fee-only firm that manages assets for more than 1,100 high-net-worth individuals. The firm doesn’t currently have any non-high-net-worth individual accounts to its name. It also works with foundations, endowments, corporate and non-profit retirement plans, public funds and Taft-Hartley plans.

Cincinnati is home for this firm that was ranked fourth on SmartAsset’s list of the top financial advisor firms in the city. Bartlett’s 19-person advisory team boasts a total of 18 advisor certifications, including 11 chartered financial analysts (CFAs), four certified financial planners (CFPs), one certified public accountant (CPA), one chartered alternative investment analyst (CAIA) and one accredited domestic partnership advisor (ADPA). 

Bartlett Wealth Management Background

Bartlett Wealth Management has been in business since 1898, making it one of the oldest financial advisor firms in the U.S. Every employee of the firm has a stake in its ownership.

The firm’s services are divided into two major areas: investment management and financial planning. Its investment management services encompass different styles of investing, such as equity management, fixed income, alternative investments and environmental and social investing. Its financial planning services each focus on more specific needs and include:

• Retirement planning
• Financial impact of divorce
• Managing an inheritance
• Stock option exercise
• Birth of a child/grandchild
• Coping with an elderly parent
• Coping with the death of a spouse
• Charitable gift planning
• Early retirement package planning
• Large stock position management

Bartlett Wealth Management Investing Strategy

Diversification is important to most firms in today’s financial advising world, and Bartlett Wealth Management is no exception. The firm invests in completely unrelated asset classes across stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds and some international investments.

The firm is also an active investment manager, which sets it apart from many similar firms. Through this ideology, Bartlett strives to maximize the possibility of high returns while minimizing risk by consistently moving assets to try to take advantage of changing opportunities in the market.

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This fee-only firm works with four times as many high-net-worth individuals as non-high-net-worth individuals. Rounding out its typical clientele are retirement funds, endowments, foundations and operating funds for both nonprofit and for-profit organizations, insurance companies and healthcare institutions.

Clearstead employs 13 chartered financial analysts (CFAs), 10 certified public accountants (CPAs), nine certified financial planners (CFPs), two accredited investment fiduciaries (AIFs), two certified investment management analysts (CIMAs), three chartered alternative investment analysts (CAIAs) and one accredited tax preparer (ATP). Clearstead is also engaged in an accounting firm business.

SmartAsset ranked it second on its list of the top financial advisor firms in Cleveland. The firm does not list a set account minimum.

Clearstead Advisors Background

Until 2018, Clearstead Advisors was known as Hartland & Co. The firm is owned by three different companies: Hartland Holdings, Inc., Hartland Management Investors, LLC and Rosemont Partners III, L.P. The two Hartland groups are made up of employees of the firm, which was originally formed in 1989.

This firm builds unique investment and financial plans for each of its clients as opposed to pairing clients with previously created services. The firm’s stated areas of expertise are retirement and healthcare management for institutions and family financial management for private clients.

Clearstead Advisors Investing Strategy

Clearstead Advisors believes it can build successful portfolios by working to control risk. While this isn’t necessarily a novel idea, it’s a strong first step towards reducing the amount of market volatility that a portfolio will encounter, making it more stable over the long term. 

The firm combines both active and passive investment strategies. This marriage of two approaches allows the firm to take advantage of broad opportunities in the market.

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Fee-only financial advisor firm CM Wealth Advisors, LLC has more than $2.6 billion in assets under management (AUM). Nearly all of its individual clients are high-net-worth, and it also advises institutions, including pooled investment vehicles and charitable organizations. There are six advisors on staff with a range of qualifications, including the certified public accountant (CPA), accredited estate planner (AEP), chartered financial analyst (CFA) and certified financial planner (CFP) designations.

Clients must have at least $5 million in assets under management. Participants in the wealth management advisory services program need at least $10 million. 

Fees are based on a percentage of assets under management. Advisors do not earn commissions for selling insurance or financial products to clients.  

CM Wealth Advisors, LLC Background

CM Wealth Advisors, LLC was founded as a single family office in 1983. It was originally known as Clancom. The name changed to CM Wealth Advisors Inc. in 2010 and to the current name, CM Wealth Advisors LLC, in 2019. The firm is owned by a holding company, CMWA, LLC. The holding company is owned and managed by its members, all of whom are employees and officers of CMWA. James W. Wert, the CEO of the company, is the only person to own 25% or more of the holding company.

Services offered by CM Wealth Advisors include:

• Wealth management
• Investment advising
• Financial planning
• Estate planning
• Portfolio management services

CM Wealth Advisors, LLC Investment Strategies

CM Wealth Advisors believes that every client is different and needs their own plan to make the best of their own financial situation. There are a few rules, though, that the firm and its advisors tend to abide by:

• Diversification is good.
• Top managers can outperform passive investments.
• Take advantage of less-efficient markets.
• Pooling assets is powerful.
• Look further ahead than just the next quarter.

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Though Truepoint, Inc. has just 23 advisors on staff, its team holds a total of nearly 50 certifications. The firm has 24 certified financial planners (CFPs), 13 certified public accountants (CPAs), seven chartered financial analysts (CFAs), two certified trust and financial advisors (CTFAs), one chartered alternative investment analyst (CAIA) and one certified estate planner (CEP) on staff. The Cincinnati-based operation ranks fifth on SmartAsset’s list of the top financial advisor firms in Cincinnati.

Truepoint does not have a minimum amount of investable assets required to open an account. However, the fee-only firm’s client base is made up of mostly ultra-high-net-worth and high-net-worth individuals. It also works with families, trusts, businesses, qualified plans and foundations.

Truepoint, Inc. Background

Truepoint, Inc. was founded in 1990 by Michael Chasnoff, the firm’s CEO. The firm is currently employee-owned. Its team of financial planners, investment managers and wealth advisors has a wide range of experience levels, from newbies to industry veterans.

Based on your future financial desires, goals and other factors, your advisor will determine which services are appropriate. The firm offers the following services:

• Investment planning
• Tax planning and preparation
• Trust services
• Estate planning
• Risk and insurance planning
• Budget creation
• Cash flow planning
• Coordinated personal action plans

Truepoint, Inc. Investing Strategy

Rather than attempting to beat the market, Truepoint, Inc. looks to build diversified portfolios, as it believes that market-timing is too risky for your financial future. The firm also largely prefers passive investing, as it thinks that the elimination of expensive manager costs will only benefit portfolios.

As you can likely infer from what’s above, this firm targets long-term investments that are goal-focused and low-fee. The firm also relies on a “buy-hold-rebalance” strategy, as it believes that rebalancing is an important tool for achieving long-term financial success.

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Fee-only financial advisor firm Budros, Ruhlin & Roe, Inc. ranks first on SmartAsset’s list of the top financial advisor firms in Columbus. The firm’s team of 25 advisors has just seven advisor certifications in total, including five certified financial planners (CFPs), one certified public accountant (CPA) and one chartered financial analyst (CFA).

Budros, Ruhlin & Roe calls for a minimum of $500,000 in investable assets to open an account. This likely explains the fact that the firm serves nearly three times as many high-net-worth individuals as individuals. Its client base also includes pension and profit-sharing plans, estates, trusts, foundations, businesses and endowments.

Budros, Ruhlin & Roe, Inc. Background

Budros, Ruhlin & Roe, Inc. is an independently owned firm that was established in 1979. Chairman James Budros created the firm and is still its primary owner. CEO Peggy Ruhlin and CIO Daniel Roe also share ownership.

Budros, Ruhlin & Roe claims to have several specialties. The firm breaks its services down into four verticals: wealth management, investment management, retirement plan services and specialized services. Wealth management is centered around general financial planning needs such as tax, estate and financial independence planning. On the other hand, investment management is less goals-driven and more generalized. Retirement planning is meant to help you build a level of comfort in your post-retirement income, while specialized services focus explicitly on financial advising for divorcees.

Budros, Ruhlin & Roe, Inc. Investing Strategy

Budros, Ruhlin & Roe, Inc. will build your portfolio based on your input. Through initial interactions with your advisor(s), you will determine your risk profile, time horizon and specific financial objectives.

This firm uses a fairly wide range of investment types to flesh out its client accounts. These could be any blend of domestic and international equities, global fixed income, alternative investments, commodities, real estate, individual securities, open-end mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), exchange-traded notes (ETNs), separately managed accounts and limited partnerships.