As a fiduciary financial advisor in Davidson, Holland Capital helps you manage taxable investments, retirement accounts and cash as one portfolio, built around a written plan and the tax cost of every change. We work with clients in Davidson by video and phone, and meet in person by appointment at the Regus center on South Main Street.
Your retirement accounts may no longer be the biggest part of what you own.
Over the years, money has gathered in other places. A brokerage account that began with a bonus or an inheritance. Shares bought long ago that are now worth far more than you paid. Cash that keeps collecting in checking because nobody has decided where it should go.
It may all be in fine shape. But it was put together one decision at a time, and some of those decisions would cost real money in tax to undo.
What you want now is one person to manage all of it against a plan, with your interests first.
A Purpose Before an Allocation
Before deciding how to invest the money, we need to know what it is for. How much will you spend each year, and from which accounts? When might work stop, or slow down? What would you like to give to family, or to causes you care about, and when?
Those answers help decide how much risk the money needs to take. They also decide how much should stay close at hand and how much can be invested for decades.
North Carolina taxes investment gains and retirement withdrawals at the same flat rate as wages. It has no estate tax or inheritance tax. So the state tax question to plan around is income tax each year, not a tax at death. Our retirement planning page shows how the planning decisions connect, and our estate and wealth transfer planning page covers what you intend to pass on.
What It Costs to Change What You Own
The hardest part of managing a taxable portfolio is often deciding what to do with investments you already own.
Selling a position with a large gain means paying tax on the gain. Keeping it may mean holding more risk in one place than the plan calls for. Neither choice is free. The question is which cost is worth paying, and when.
Change does not have to happen all at once. Gains can be paired with losses elsewhere in the portfolio. Sales can be spread across several tax years. Appreciated shares can go to a charity in place of cash. The account that holds an investment also affects how much you keep.
We look at each position on its own and then as part of the whole. Our guides on capital gains tax planning and tax-loss harvesting go into more depth.
RETIREMENT ENGINEERING™
The Order Matters
Five retirement decisions and why timing matters.
One Portfolio, in Writing
We put the plan on paper as an investment policy statement. It states what the money is for, when each part may be needed, how much the plan can stand to lose in a bad year and how every account is taxed.
We manage the portfolio to that statement across taxable, retirement and cash accounts. When markets move, we rebalance toward the plan while considering the tax cost. Often that means using new cash or withdrawals instead of selling. Our asset location guide explains why the same fund can leave you with a different result depending on which account holds it.
For a household like this, investment management is less about picking funds and more about deciding whether each change is worth its tax cost.
How We Work with Clients in Davidson
Holland Capital Management is an independent registered investment adviser and a fiduciary. M. Chad Holland, CFA, CFP® works directly with clients and is responsible for the planning and advice.
Before a first meeting, a recent statement from each account is enough. If you have a list of what you paid for older positions, bring that too. It tells us what a sale would cost.
We will tell you what we see, what we would change first and what we would leave alone.
The first conversation is free. If there is work worth doing after that, we will define the scope and cost before you decide whether to move forward.
Holland Capital is based in Charlotte. If you are looking for a fiduciary financial advisor in Davidson, we meet by appointment at the Regus center at 127 South Main Street in Davidson, and handle shorter check-ins by video or phone. Holland Capital does not maintain a branch office in Davidson.
We work with clients throughout North Carolina. You can see the other North Carolina communities we serve here.
Our what we do page explains how a planning engagement works.
RETIREMENT ENGINEERING™
The Order Matters
Five retirement decisions and why timing matters.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Does It Mean to Have a Fiduciary Manage My Investments in Davidson?
It means the advice has to serve you, including when the advice is to change very little. Holland Capital acts as a fiduciary when providing financial planning and investment advice. For a taxable portfolio, that includes considering what a sale would cost you in tax before we recommend it.
Moving more of your money into accounts we manage would raise what we are paid. When a recommendation would do that, we tell you first so you can consider that before you decide.
Should I Sell Investments with Large Gains Before Hiring a New Manager?
Usually not. Selling first can create a tax bill that a plan might have reduced or spread across several years.
It is better to start with the portfolio as it is. Once the plan is clear, each position can be kept, trimmed over time or given away. The decision depends on what it costs to change and what the investment adds to the portfolio.
Can We Meet in Davidson?
Yes. We meet by appointment at the Regus center at 127 South Main Street.
Portfolio reviews and tax planning between meetings can also be done by video or phone.
Photo: P. Hughes / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 4.0, cropped.
