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Better known for the Great Salt Lake, Utah is also home to a number of financial advisors from which to choose. Finding the right advisor is a lot about figuring out the proper fit, which requires understanding your financial needs and goals as well as how much you can afford to spend for an advisor’s guidance.
Comparing firms and data points can be taxing, so we compiled the most pertinent information to help guide your decision. To determine the best advisors in the Beehive State, 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.
While our ranking can’t predict which advisor will be the right fit for your unique needs, it can hopefully make the shopping experience less salty. Take a look at our list below for the top firms in Utah, and what you need to know about them:
| Firm | City | Minimum assets required | Fee structure |
|---|---|---|---|
| TownSquare Capital, LLC | Provo | None |
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| Soltis Investment Advisors, LLC | St. George | $750,000 |
|
| UMA Financial Services Inc | Salt Lake City | None |
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| Albion Financial Group | Salt Lake City | Not specified |
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| Olympus Wealth Management, LLC | Cottonwood Heights | None, but $14,000 minimum annual fee |
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| Crewe Advisors` | Salt Lake City | $2 million |
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| Drive Wealth Advisers | Lehi | None |
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| Foresight Wealth Management, LLC | Draper | $100,000 |
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| DFPG Investments, LLC | Sandy | Not specified |
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| Capita Financial Network, LLC | Sandy | Not specified |
|
For our search, we looked at firms across the state of Utah. 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 Utah, 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 March 31, 2021, but we urge you to also evaluate these firms on https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/.
TownSquare Capital, LLC is made up of a network of registered investment advisors, typically using their own firm name and branding. These advisors offer investment management and financial planning, either as a comprehensive written plan or on a specific topic. The firm’s investment platform provides these advisors with manager research, portfolio construction, trading and other services.
The team at TownSquare Capital serves a broad mix of clients, including individual investors and families with a high net worth, but mostly individuals without. On the institutional side, the firm serves charitable organizations, government entities, businesses and other investment advisors. The team also provides pension consulting services for employee benefit plans.
The firm is owned by asset management company Foundry Partners LLC, and has been a registered investment advisor since 2017. Based in Provo, the firm has a network of more than 20 offices with a heavy presence in Utah and additional locations in Idaho, Colorado and Illinois.
Advisors at TownSquare Capital invest client money based on a client’s objectives, risk tolerance, time horizon, liquidity needs and other financial factors. Rather than research individual stocks, advisors primarily use model portfolios and strategies developed by third parties.
Typical investments used by the firm include equities, debt, certificates of deposit (CDs), money market funds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), variable annuities, options, real estate and real estate investment trusts (REITs), limited partnerships and others. Client money may also be invested through models developed by the firm.
TownSquare Capital typically uses discretionary management, meaning clients hand over control to their advisors to make the daily trading decisions in their account without requiring client preapproval.
TownSquare Capital has a clean record. The SEC requires all registered investment advisors to disclose any disciplinary and legal actions against the firm — including any criminal, civil or regulatory actions in the prior 10 years — that a client would find material when evaluating the firm or the integrity of its management team.
That said, some of the professionals who work under their own brands may have disciplinary events. Be sure to check the record of those professionals at investor.gov/CRS.
To learn more about TownSquare Capital, visit the firm’s IAPD page.
Based in St. George, Utah, Soltis Investment Advisors has additional offices in Salt Lake City, Bellevue, Wash., and Southlake, Texas. The firm was founded in 1993 after Hyrum Smith, the founder of global consulting company FranklinCovey, asked his friend Lon Henderson to manage the family’s wealth. Henderson decided to create a firm that served more than one family, and Soltis was born. Today, Soltis Investment Advisors is owned by Soltis Holdings, Inc.
The firm’s client list is broad. With a minimum investment requirement of $750,000, the team serves many high net worth investors, defined by the SEC as those with at least $750,000 to invest or a net worth of a minimum of $1.5 million. Yet the firm has even more clients with smaller pockets, which may be due in part to the fact that the firm’s automated portfolio management service requires only $5,000 to invest. Rounding out the firm’s client list are institutions such as pension and 401(k) plans, charitable organizations and businesses.
Soltis Investment Advisors offers its individual retail clients investment management and financial planning services. The latter includes many retirement-related matters, such as creating a retirement plan and running a retirement income analysis. Advisors also focus on estate preservation, charitable giving and asset protection strategies. Financial planning can be done comprehensively or on an a-la-carte, single topic consulting basis.
The team at Soltis Investment Advisors will recommend one of the firm’s model portfolio strategies, based on a client’s goals, risk tolerance, performance expectation and other factors. These portfolios are built to provide both asset class and style diversification. Portfolios generally invest in stocks, bonds, cash, ETFs, mutual funds and private funds or alternative investments. Advisors may also refer clients to other investment managers to act as sub-advisors.
To research investment options, Soltis monitors and analyzes the performance of certain securities, managers and over 31,000 mutual fund managers and ETFs. The firm also considers qualitative factors, such as manager experience and knowledge, investment process and adherence to a style and objective.
Soltis Investment Advisors reports no legal or disciplinary actions that would materially affect a client’s view of the firm or the integrity of its leaders. The SEC requires all registered investment advisors to disclose any civil, criminal or regulatory actions against the firm, its employees or its affiliates in the prior 10 years in their Form ADV paperwork filed with the SEC. Visit the firm’s IAPD page to learn more.
UMA Financial Services, Inc. serves members of the Utah Medical Association, including many physicians and their families. The association represents physician interests state-wide. In limited circumstances, it may work with some non-members. Additionally, UMA Financial Services serves corporations, foundations, endowments, pension and profit-sharing plans and charitable organizations.
The firm’s advisors provide investment management, which can include in-depth financial planning services. For non-investment management clients, the Utah Medical Association covers basic financial planning for members.
Based in Salt Lake City, UMA Financial Services began business in 1993. The president of the firm is an owner and the Utah Medical Association is also a shareholder.
Rather than focus on picking stocks, the team at UMA Financial Services aims to create the appropriate mix of investments for each client’s unique situation. Advisors build broadly diversified international portfolios. They typically recommend that client money is spread across various asset classes and, within those classes, among various issuers and types of issuers. Typical investments include stocks, bonds, real estate investment trusts (REITs) and alternative investments.
To select these investments, the team looks at qualitative and quantitative factors, such as competition and company management, as well as pricing and volume movement. The team focuses on offsetting realized gains in taxable accounts whenever possible, in an effort to increase the after-tax rate of return.
UMA Financial Services and its employees and affiliates have no disciplinary or legal actions over the prior 10 years that would be material to a client evaluating the firm or the integrity of its leaders. The firm’s IAPD page can provide more information, including access to its filings.
Based in Salt Lake City, Albion Financial Group caters to individual clients and families and high net worth individuals. Advisors offer these clients portfolio management and financial planning, as well as family office services such as bill paying. Financial planning can address diverse topics, including retirement, education, divorce, businesses, real estate, estates and taxes. Advisors can also provide clients with assistance in investing their retirement plans.
Legally known as Albion Management Group, the firm was founded in 1982 and is privately owned by a group of employees, including the founders, W. Toby Levitt and John Bird. The team also serves pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations and other business entities.
Albion Financial Group specializes in equity and debt securities, including domestic and foreign stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, corporate and municipal bonds and U.S. government securities. The firm also manages private investment funds that clients may invest in when appropriate. Additionally, the firm has an environmental, social and governance (ESG) portfolio, which screens for a variety of unacceptable social criteria such as tobacco, weapons, mining or heavy manufacturing, among others.
Albion Financial Group has its own internal research and trading group. To make its investment recommendations, the team relies on three types of analysis:
No legal or disciplinary items are disclosed by Albion Financial Group. This includes any civil, criminal or regulatory actions against the firm or its employees or affiliates in the prior decade that would materially impact a client’s opinion of the firm or the integrity of its management team. To learn more, the firm’s IAPD page.
Olympus Wealth Management, LLC targets individuals, families and high net worth offering them investment management, financial planning and family office services such as bookkeeping and coordinating family meetings and education. Advisors can address topics such as retirement, business succession, asset protection, charitable giving, taxes, wealth transfers and liquidity events. The firm also works with corporations, pension and profit-sharing plans and charitable organizations.
Headquartered just south of Salt Lake City, the firm was founded in 2013 by three partners from J.P. Morgan’s Private Bank, Scott Bird, Matt Krull and Scott Poelman. It became a standalone firm in 2015. It is owned equally by The Bird Family Trust, The Poelman Family Trust and Matthew Bloom-Krull.
At Olympus Wealth Management, advisors typically start by constructing appropriate asset allocations for each client’s unique situation. Then, they make tactical adjustments based on their current market views, including their economic expectations and geopolitical risks.
Client money is typically invested in mutual funds, ETFs and index funds. Other types of investments can also be used, including more sophisticated options, such as private equity, limited partnerships, futures, commodities and options.
Olympus Wealth Management has a clean record. As a registered investment advisor, the firm is required by the SEC to disclose any legal or disciplinary items in the last 10 years involving the firm or its employees or affiliates that would be material to a client evaluating the firm and the integrity of its leaders. Learn more about the firm by viewing its IAPD page.
With a $2 million typical investment minimum, Crewe Advisors serves many high net worth clients. Despite its current published minimum, however, the firm also serves many investors not considered high net worth per the SEC, meaning they have less than $750,000 to invest or a net worth of less than $1.5 million. Crewe Advisors also works with charitable organizations, businesses and insurance companies.
For their individual clients, Crewe Advisors offer portfolio management, including selecting outside managers, as well as general financial planning around topics such as retirement, college, debt and credit and executive counseling.
Founded in 2014 and based in Salt Lake City, the group is principally owned by two managing members and the firm’s chief investment officer.
Crewe Advisors invests client money based on a client’s goals, time horizon and risk tolerance. The team uses many types of analysis to guide its decisions, including digging into a company’s fundamentals to determine a fair value, and looking at historical market trends and patterns.
Typical investments used in portfolios include mutual funds, equities, fixed income, ETFs, annuities, private placements, venture capital funds, options and hedge funds. Advisors may recommend separately managed accounts handled by third-party managers.
Crewe Advisors has a clean legal and disciplinary record. The SEC requires all registered investment advisors to disclose any actions against the firm, its employees or its affiliates over the last 10 years that clients would find material to their opinions of the firm or the integrity of its leaders. Learn more by viewing the firm’s IAPD page.
Drive Wealth Advisers has been providing investment advice since 2015. The firm is owned by its founder and chief compliance officer, Lowell Crabb. The team works out of its sole Lehi office, located between Salt Lake City and Provo.
The team offers portfolio management and financial planning to individuals and families (including those with high net worth), as well as certain institutions including pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations and businesses. The firm’s financial planning service can take the form of consulting on a single topic, or can include a written plan to help clients reach their goals. Topics addressed may include retirement, cash flow, estates and education.
The team at Drive Wealth Advisors believes that portfolios should be spread across many market areas to mitigate risk. Thus, when appropriate, the firm builds an asset allocation where traditional asset classes are paired with private asset classes such as private credit, real estate and private equity.
As such, client money is typically invested in stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, bonds and CDs, as well as more sophisticated choices such as options, and limited partnerships investing in real estate, oil and gas. When it comes to selecting investments, the team uses a combination of bottom-up and top-down research, meaning it will look at both individual stock specifics and macroeconomic factors.
Drive Wealth Advisers discloses no legal or disciplinary marks against the firm or its employees or affiliates in the prior 10 years that would materially impact someone’s view of the firm or its leaders’ integrity. To learn more, visit the firm’s IAPD page.
Since 2010, Foresight Wealth Management, LLC has provided portfolio management and financial planning to a diverse set of clients, including individuals and families who are and are not high net worth, as well as pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations and other businesses, among others. A minimum account size of $100,000 is typically required, though it can be waived. Advisors can address a long list of topics for clients, including cash flow, retirement, insurance, education and estate planning.
The firm also does business under additional brands, including The Gilman Financial Group, Regents Park Advisors and Foresight Retirement Solutions, each with their own disclosures. Headquartered in Draper, Foresight Wealth Management has additional Utah offices in Provo, South Jordan and Salt Lake City, as well as a Bardonia, New York location. The firm is owned by its founder, Adam Nugent.
Foresight Wealth Management believes that the mix of assets in a portfolio is the primary driver of its risk and return. Client money is mainly invested in stocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds and options. Occasionally, advisors may recommend investing in hedge funds and private equity funds, including affiliated funds. The firm may use outside money managers or have a sub-advisor manage some or all of a client’s account.
The team uses many forms of analysis to determine its investment picks, including:
Foresight Wealth Management and its employees and affiliates have had no disciplinary or legal events over the last 10 years that would materially impact a client’s view of the firm or its leaders’ integrity. View the firm’s IAPD page to learn more.
DFPG Investments, LLC became a registered broker-dealer in 2011, and a registered investment advisor in 2015. Based in Sandy, Utah, the firm does business through a network of advisors who often work under their own branding, but who are supervised and offer services through DFPG Investments. This network includes roughly 20 offices scattered around the country, including many in Utah and California.
Advisors offer investment management and financial planning to individuals, including those who are considered to be high net worth clients. Some have a niche serving medical professionals and business owners, including small business owners. The firm also serves pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable institutions, businesses and other institutions. Separately, most of the registered investment advisors are also licensed as broker-dealers, and can buy and sell securities for commissions.
The group is owned by its co-founders, Daniel Luke, Ryan Smith and Michael Bendix.
Advisors at DFPG Investments build asset allocations tailored specifically to each client, based on the client’s goals, needs and risk tolerance. Client money then may be invested in a portfolio overseen directly by the advisor, or it can be invested through approved outside managers. The DFPG team also designs models that may incorporate third-party managers.
Client money is typically invested in mutual funds, equities, bond funds, real estate securities, private equity and ETFs. Alternative assets may also be utilized, including real estate, private equity, commodities, hedge funds and venture capital, among others.
DFPG Investments has a clean record, disclosing no legal or disciplinary marks in the prior 10 years that clients would find material to their opinion of the firm or the leaders’ integrity. That said, since many of the firm’s network advisors operate their own legal entities with their own branding, be sure to look up the specific advisor at investor.gov/crs. Additionally, you can learn more about DFPG Investments by viewing the firm’s IAPD page.
Capita Financial Network, LLC primarily serves individuals and some high net worth clients who are either planning for retirement or are already in retirement. It also works with small businesses. The firm provides its clients with investment management and financial planning.
Founded in 2018, the group is principally owned by its president and founder, Michael Littledike, and Britney Littledike. The firm works out of its single office in Sandy, Utah. Its team also includes estate planners and attorneys, Medicare and Social Security experts and accountants, among others.
Based on a client’s situation and risk profile, the team at Capital Financial Network selects a model portfolio from an outside investment manager. That third-party manager then selects the investments, which typically include individual securities, ETFs and mutual funds. The team primarily recommends TownSquare Capital (the firm at the top of this list) as a sub-advisor for its clients’ portfolios.
Capita Financial Network handles client money through discretionary management, meaning the client gives advisors control to decide what to trade, and how much, without first needing client preapproval.
Capita Financial Network has a clean disciplinary and legal record. The group discloses no marks against itself or its employees or affiliates in the prior 10 years that a potential client would deem material when evaluating the firm and its leaders’ integrity. To learn more, view the firm’s IAPD page.
Overall Utah is moderately tax-friendly. State residents pay a flat 4.95% state income tax, which puts the state on the low to mid end of the tax spectrum nationwide. Utah does not levy an estate or inheritance tax. However, residents could still be subject to federal estate tax.
No, not all advisors focus on getting ready for retirement. Some advisors may focus more on simply managing your portfolio, while others may take a more comprehensive look at your finances and aim to help you meet your financial goals, which often include retirement. Thus, ask all potential advisors what specific services focused on retirement you can expect, such as a written plan to help you get on track to meeting your goals, if you know retirement planning is a priority for you.
Start your search for a financial advisor in Utah by focusing on advisors who will work with clients with the amount of money you plan to invest, since many advisors have investment minimums. Also look for advisors that offer the specific services you are looking for, such as a written retirement plan, or a focus on tax consequences. Be sure to also ask how the advisors are paid, and by whom. Fee-only planners typically have fewer conflicts of interest because they do not accept commissions or referral income when you buy a product or consult with someone recommended.
There is no one path to become a financial advisor. Professionals may earn various designations. Two of the common designations that financial advisor professionals earn are the certified financial analyst (CFA) and the certified financial planner (CFP) designations. To become a CFP, for example, one must have a bachelor’s degree, complete coursework in financial planning, have 6,000 hours of financial planning experience, and pass an exam. Regardless of the specific designation a professional earns, all registered investment advisory firms must be licensed to work in the state.
Amanda GenglerAmanda Gengler has been researching and writing about finance for more than 15 years. She honed her personal finance writing as a journalist at Money magazine for a decade.
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