MagnifyMoney 
Kansas, known to many as the Sunflower State, has no shortage of financial advisors, which can mean analysis by paralysis trying to find the best financial advisor in Kansas for you and your family. Finding the right advisor is a lot about matching your financial needs and goals (and how much you’re willing to spend) with available firms and seeing if the services offered are a good match for you.
That being said, we understand it can be difficult to compare firms and data points, so we compiled the most important information to help guide your decision. To determine the best advisors in Kansas, we only considered firms that manage individual accounts and offer financial planning services. We then ranked these firms based on assets under management (AUM), which serves as a general metric for a firm’s size. Although not formally part of our ranking, we encourage readers to take note of each firm’s client-to-advisor ratio, as this indicates how much attention you may get as a client. All data used in our methodology is taken from each firm’s most recent Form ADV filing with the SEC so as to ensure the accuracy and reliability of our rankings.
Our ranking is not going to be able to predict which firm may be the right one for you, but it can help make your search easier. Take a look at our list below for the top firms in Kansas and what to know about them:
| Firm | Headquarters | Minimum assets required | Fee structure |
|---|---|---|---|
| FCI Advisors | Overland Park | Varies by account type |
|
| Meritage Portfolio Management, Inc. | Overland Park | $2 million |
|
| 6 Meridian LLC | Wichita | No minimum |
|
| Two West Capital Advisors LLC | Overland Park | $500,000 |
|
| Rocky Mountain Advisers, LLC | Salina | Not specified |
|
| Financial Advisory Service Inc | Leawood | Not specified, but minimum quarterly fee of up to $1,250 |
|
| The Retirement Planning Group, Inc. | Leawood | Not specified |
|
| Prism Financial Group, L.L.C. | Overland Park | $500,000 |
|
| Kavar Capital Partners | Leawood | Not specified |
|
| Triune Financial Partners, LLC | Overland Park | No minimum |
|
For our search, we looked at firms across the state of Kansas. All of the firms considered are bound by fiduciary duty, registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and offer individual account management and financial planning services. Information used for our methodology criteria is taken directly from each firm’s most recent Form ADV filing and brochure, found on the IAPD database.
To localize our results for this list, we exclusively looked at firms that met the above criteria and had their headquarters in Kansas, as per the address provided in the Form ADV. Of those firms, we only considered those that offer financial planning services and portfolio management to individual investors. To be considered for this list, firms also could have no more than one disciplinary disclosure in the past 10 years. From there, the remaining firms that met all of the above stipulations were ranked in order of highest to lowest AUM, as this is an indication of a firm’s size and how many assets it has been entrusted to manage.
In our reviews, we have also listed several other key features that will help you determine which financial advisor may be most fitting for your investing style and financial needs. While our ranking system and methodology is designed to help you compare firms, it does not indicate which firm may be best for you. All information here is accurate as of June 24, 2021, but we urge you to also evaluate these firms on https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/.
FCI Advisors was founded in 1966. The firm is owned by FCI Holding Corporation, which is owned by another holding company: MTC Holding Corporation. MTC Holding Corporation is part-owned by Bradley Bergman, who is president, director and chairman of the firm’s board.
FCI Advisors serves individuals, investment companies, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations and other business entities. The firm’s offerings include asset management, and it also provides financial planning services through its affiliated trust companies. The firm’s recommended account minimums range from $100,000 to $250,000 depending on the type of portfolio or account.
The firm is headquartered in the greater Kansas City area, with offices in Overland Park and Kansas City, Mo. FCI Advisors has additional offices in Clayton, Mo.; Greenwood Village Colo.; Shelton, Conn.; Reston, Va.; and Vancouver, Wash.
Like most investment advisory firms, FCI Advisors aims to provide clients with maximum long-term returns while minimizing risk. The firm focuses on active asset allocation management to accomplish this goal.
When creating portfolios, advisors take into account capital market conditions, economic trends, client risk tolerance and historical risk and return data. The firm offers separately managed accounts, mutual fund portfolios and exchange-traded fund (ETF) portfolios to its clients.
FCI Advisors has no disclosures to report. For reference, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires registered investment advisors to disclose any civil, regulatory or criminal actions against the firm, its advisors or its affiliates from the last 10 years in their Form ADV, a public document that is available for current and prospective clients.
You can learn more about FCI Advisors by visiting its Investment Adviser Public Disclosure (IAPD) page.
Founded in 1991, Meritage Portfolio Management, Inc. is a fee-only firm that offers personalized investment management. The firm can also provide advice on areas such as investment planning, income taxes and trust and custody services.
Typical clients of Meritage Portfolio Management have upwards of $2 million in assets. The firm works with individuals and their family members, as well as institutional investors including trust companies, pension and profit-sharing plans, Taft-Hartley plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations and foundations, businesses and investment companies.
Five employees own the company, which has one office located in Overland Park.
As a client of Meritage Portfolio Management, your portfolio will be based on a variety of personalized factors. This includes your overall investment objectives, risk tolerance, cash flow needs, income expectations, growth objectives, time horizon and adaptability.
The firm has five equity management strategies that it uses to manage client accounts. They are value, growth, yield-focus, small cap value and small cap growth, with each strategy’s goal apparent in the name. Additionally, the firm manages taxable and tax-exempt fixed income strategies.
Advisors at Meritage Portfolio Management emphasize optimal diversification when building portfolios, which entails having enough concentration to generate excess returns, yet enough diversification to mitigate risk. Its investment philosophy is also value-based, meaning it aims to invest in securities that are currently selling for less than what they’re really worth.
Meritage Portfolio Management, Inc. has no disciplinary disclosures on its record. All registered investment advisors must disclose any civil, regulatory or criminal actions against the firm, its advisors or its affiliates on public-facing documents filed with the SEC.
For more information on Meritage Portfolio Management, visit the firm’s IAPD page.
6 Meridian LLC, an employee-owned firm, registered as an investment advisor in 2016. Margaret Dechant serves as CEO and is one of the six founders of the company. The company’s services include investment management, financial planning and consulting (which includes business planning, retirement planning, education planning and more) and family wealth preservation.
6 Meridian does not have a minimum account fee or a minimum investment requirement. The firm works with individuals, including those who are high net worth (the SEC defines high net worth individuals as those with at least $750,000 under management or a net worth of at least $1.5 million). Its clients also include pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, unregistered pooled investment vehicles, investment companies, corporations and other business entities.
6 Meridian is headquartered in Wichita and has one additional office in Chicago.
Clients of 6 Meridian will first have their goals and risk tolerance evaluated by an advisor at the firm before portfolio construction begins. Investment options available to clients include portfolios that are managed by the firm directly, portfolios that have outside managers and passive portfolios that use ETFs and/or mutual funds.
The firm outlines 11 different investment portfolios that are available for separately managed accounts. They are as follows, listed in order of lowest risk to highest:
In general, portfolios may contain individual equity securities, individual bonds, ETFs, derivatives, illiquid alternatives, closed-end funds and open-end mutual funds.
6 Meridian has no disciplinary disclosures on its record. For reference, SEC-registered investment advisors have to disclose any civil, regulatory or criminal actions against the firm, its advisors or its affiliates to current and prospective clients. You can learn more by visiting 6 Meridian’s IAPD page.
In business since 2010, Two West Capital Advisors LLC is a registered investment advisor that offers investment management services and financial planning and consulting to clients. In particular, it works with individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations and business entities, generally requiring a minimum investment of at least $500,000. It can also work with corporate pension and profit-sharing plans and business entities, though these relationships require a higher minimum of $2 million.
The firm was co-founded by Marko Ungashick, its current CEO, and Ryan Rink, who serves as president. The firm is owned by Ram Ventures, LLC which is owned by Ungashick, Rink and John Vernon Cushenbery, who is the firm’s chief investment officer and chief compliance officer.
Two West Capital Advisors, which also operates under the name Two West Advisors, is headquartered in Overland Park. It has one additional location in Elmira, N.Y.
Two West Capital Advisors follows the tenets of Modern Portfolio Theory, which emphasizes broad diversification and asset allocation to achieve growth as well as to mitigate risk.
The firm generally takes a long-term strategic approach to investing, though it may occasionally use shorter term tactical techniques when appropriate. Client accounts are managed internally as well as through sub-advisory agreements with a third-party investment firm. For certain accounts, Two West Capital Advisors may use a robo-advisor, such as Betterment.
Two West Capital Advisors has a clean disciplinary record, meaning the firm reports no civil, regulatory or criminal actions against the firm, its advisors or its affiliates from within the last decade. You can learn more about the firm by visiting its IAPD page.
Headquartered in Salina, Rocky Mountain Advisers, LLC is an Alaska limited liability company based in Kansas. The firm has been in operation since 2010 and is wholly owned by the Susan L. Ciciora Trust. The firm has no additional offices outside of its Salina headquarters.
Rocky Mountain Advisers offers investment supervisory services, financial planning and mutual fund portfolio management. It provides these services to individuals, trusts and family offices, investment companies, separately managed accounts, pension and profit-sharing plans, pooled investment vehicles, charitable organizations and business entities. Though the firm does not directly require a minimum investment amount, its investment advisory representatives may impose a minimum at their discretion.
Investment portfolios at Rocky Mountain Advisers are tailored to each client’s individual needs. Your advisor will discuss your financial goals and objectives before creating your portfolio, along with your time horizon, risk tolerance and liquidity needs. Additionally, the firm may take into account your prior investment history as well as your background and family composition.
A portfolio’s asset allocation will be based on the aforementioned personal factors. Rather than an investment committee or group, investment advice is determined by each individual investment advisor at Rocky Mountain Advisers. In general, portfolios created by the firm may include stocks, ETFs, corporate debt securities, municipal securities, variable annuities, mutual fund shares, government securities, options contracts, interests in partnerships investing in oil and gas interests and certificates of deposit (CDs).
Rocky Mountain Advisers has no disciplinary disclosures to report. As a registered investment advisory firm, the SEC requires it to disclose any such events involving either the firm or its employees or affiliates from within the last 10 years that would be material to prospective client evaluation of the firm’s integrity.
For further information on the firm, visit Rocky Mountain Advisers’ IAPD page.
Financial Advisory Service Inc. is an asset management firm that was originally founded in 1979. The firm is an S-corp, and no shareholder owns more than 25%.
Financial Advisory Service offers investment management and financial planning. Additionally, it offers access to an online automated investment advisory program sponsored by Schwab. The firm provides its services to individuals (including high net worth individuals), defined contribution and benefit plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, corporations and other business entities.
Financial Advisory Service is located in Leawood, Kansas, and has no additional offices.
Financial Advisory Service creates portfolios for its clients based on their financial goals and objectives, time horizon and risk tolerance. The firm has several different types of asset allocations available that are based on varying levels of risk tolerance and different time horizons. Specifically, these include:
The firm also offers investing services through its robo-advisory program under Schwab Institutional Intelligent Portfolios Asset Management. Portfolios in this program consist of ETFs and a cash allocation.
Financial Advisory Service has no disciplinary disclosures to report on its Form ADV. This includes any material disciplinary actions — including civil, criminal and regulatory events — over the last decade that involve either the firm or its employees or affiliates.
Find more information about the firm by visiting its IAPD page.
The Retirement Planning Group, Inc. has been in business since 2004. The firm specializes in working with individual investors, including those who are high net worth. Many of its clients are nearing retirement or have already retired. Services it provides include asset management and supervision; income and financial planning; Social Security optimization; and advice regarding concerns someone who is nearing or has entered retirement may face.
The advisory company is majority owned by its CEO, Kevin Conard. However, a number of the firm’s other employees are also part-owners. The Retirement Planning Group is headquartered in Leawood, and has two additional offices in Missouri in Chesterfield and Springfield.
The Retirement Planning Group aims to build portfolios that are well-diversified, generally consisting of mutual funds and ETFs. These funds are typically passively managed, though in some cases, it will use actively managed funds.
Rather than basing its decisions for its clients’ portfolios solely on a risk tolerance assessment, The Retirement Planning Group also believes that it is important to build asset allocations around each client’s long-term plan. Thus, the firm will make an effort to ensure that accounts maintain optimal amounts of cash at all times. It also makes a point to account for the specific account type (i.e., an IRA versus a trust) and the types of investments the client already owns.
The Retirement Planning Group reports no material disciplinary actions involving either the firm or its employees or affiliates. This includes any civil, criminal or regulatory events from within the past 10 years. Read more about The Retirement Planning Group by visiting its IAPD page.
Prism Financial Group, L.L.C. has provided investment advisory services since 1999. Timothy Shmidl, a wealth advisor at the firm, owns the company along with MH Capital, LLC, which is in turn owned by certain shareholders of the accounting firm, Mize CPAs Inc.
Prism Financial Group offers investment management services, financial planning, retirement planning, insurance planning, life events planning and qualified retirement plan consulting. Typically, the firm works with individuals (including high net worth individuals), pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations and corporations or business entities. The firm has a $500,000 account minimum, though it may waive that requirement in certain circumstances.
Prism Financial Group is headquartered in Overland Park and does not have any additional locations.
At Prism Financial Group, your financial situation is key to how your assets are invested. You will work with an advisor at Prism Financial Group to determine your investments and allocations, which will be based on your financial objectives, risk tolerance, time horizon, liquidity needs and other factors.
The firm offers seven investment models that are based on a client’s risk tolerance:
Each of the above model portfolios uses stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds and money market accounts as the primary investment vehicles. The firm does not allow clients to restrict which securities are used in their account. It also notes that it does not necessarily prioritize tax efficiency when investing clients’ assets.
Prism Financial Group has not had any material disciplinary actions against the firm or an employee or affiliate within the last 10 years. The SEC requires all registered investment advisors to disclose such information in their Form ADV paperwork. You can view these public disclosure documents on the firm’s IAPD page.
Based in Leawood, Kansas, Kavar Capital Partners began operations in 2011. The firm is a wholly owned subsidiary of Focus Operating LLC, ultimately managed by the publicly traded company Focus Financial Partners, which owns a number of other investment advisors and broker-dealers, among other types of financial companies. Douglas Ciocca is Kavar Capital Partners’ CEO, and he is often available to the public via Bloomberg Radio and also occasionally quoted in the financial press.
Kavar Capital Partners offers wealth management and investment services to its clients, in addition to financial planning and retirement plan advisory services. The firm works with individuals, including those who are high net worth, in addition to retirement plan assets, charitable organizations and corporations.
Kavar Capital Partners believes that asset allocation is defined by both balance and bias.
To determine an appropriate balance for each client, the firm takes into account their need for income, their time horizon and their tolerance for fluctuation. It then continually evaluates the investments within three broad asset classes — equity, fixed income and alternative assets — to determine which support its biases in order to balance risk and return.
Client risk tolerance is generally what guides account construction and supervision at Kavar Capital Partners. The firm typically divides clients into the following investment strategies based on their tolerance for risk: aggressive growth, capital preservation, growth and income, growth and income.
Kavar Capital Partners has a clean record. The firm discloses no material disciplinary actions over the last 10 years against the firm or its employees or affiliates on its Form ADV paperwork filed with the SEC. You can learn more about the firm by visiting its IAPD page.
Jeff Jaworski and Jim Mullinix founded Triune Financial Partners, LLC in 2010. Today, Jaworski serves as the firm’s managing partner and also owns the company. Mullinix is a partner at the firm.
Triune Financial Partners offers individual portfolio management, model portfolio management, financial planning, consulting services and retirement plan consulting and management. Typical clients of the firm include individuals, high net worth individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, corporations or other businesses, endowments and scholarship funds. The firm does not impose a minimum account size requirement.
Triune Financial Partners is headquartered in Overland Park. It does not have any additional office locations.
Triune Financial Partners provides both individual portfolio management and model portfolio management. The former includes investment advice on a wider variety of securities tailored to an individual client’s needs. The latter seeks to match clients’ financial objectives with asset allocation models, such as maximum capital appreciation, growth, income or growth and income.
Overall, Triune Financial Partners aims to achieve diversified asset class exposure and is a proponent of passive investing. Advisors will likely recommend passive, asset-class mutual funds and ETFs. Triune Financial Partners typically does not recommend individual stocks or bonds, or actively managed mutual funds.
Triune Financial Partners reports no disciplinary disclosures in its Form ADV paperwork filed with the SEC. For reference, the SEC requires all registered investment advisors to disclose any civil, criminal or regulatory events from within the last 10 years involving the company or its employees or affiliates.
To learn more about Triune Financial Partners, visit the firm’s IAPD page.
When seeking a financial advisor that fits your needs, the first step is to clarify what you want from the relationship. Do you have particular concerns or interests in how your money is managed? Are you seeking certain services? You may want to consider whether the firm has experience serving clients like you or has an investment minimum requirement and whether you can meet it. You should also look at a firm’s fees, as well as its disciplinary track record. Initial conversations with a few firms where you ask questions of advisors related to your financial needs can help you decide on the best financial advisor for you.
For starters, this list will help you get started finding financial advisors in Kansas. Because all of the above financial advisors are registered with the SEC, they are bound by fiduciary duty.
You can also use the SEC’s IAPD database to search for all registered advisories in certain locations in Kansas. Another way to find a fiduciary financial advisor is to search based on certain designations — for instance, all certified financial planners (CFPs) are held to strict ethical guidelines. You can search for a CFP near you using the CFP Board’s search tool.
Kansas is one of the 33 states that does not levy an estate tax or an inheritance tax. However, Kansas does have a state individual income tax, with rates ranging from 3.10% to 5.70%. Additionally, residents of the state could be subject to federal estate taxes for larger estates.
Many financial advisories specialize in retirement planning and actively seek out retirees or those in the later years of their careers. However, some firms are more focused on active asset management or other offerings, such as family office services, and do not have a heavy emphasis on retirement services. If getting assistance with retirement planning is a priority for you, make sure to ask potential advisors if they offer this service and have experience getting their clients ready to retire.
Nina SemczukNina Semczuk is a Certified Educator in Personal Finance® (CEPF®), a member of the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, and an Army veteran with five years of active service.
Read More
