Understand you are buying a business, not trading a stock.
The casual investor tends to focus on the wrong thing when investing. Most will think of the stock as the investment while forgetting the most important part.
The most important thing to remember about investing in stocks is that you are not just buying a stock. Rather, with every purchase, you are investing in a business. Investing in businesses and owning companies is at the heart of how we at Whittier Trust think about investing.
Too often, I hear analogies that try to equate investing with throwing darts or, even worse, gambling. If you divorce stock prices from business fundamentals, it is easy to understand how the average person can be confused by short-term volatility. However, conflating short-term price movements as markets digest new information with the odds at a roulette table can lead to suboptimal outcomes. This is one of the reasons we eschew even using gambling terms such as “going all in” or “double down.”
This subtle shift in mindset about owning a business allows us to truly think about the long-term consequences of our decisions and not react to the “daily gyrations of Mr. Market,” as Professor Benjamin Graham famously described the erratic swings of optimism and pessimism.
Owning Stock is Business Ownership
Thanks to this simple mindset shift, we can begin to do our homework. Understanding a business means understanding how a company actually makes money, so we need to have a very strong understanding of how a dollar of revenue translates into a dollar of profit. This basic act of tracing revenues through the income statement will elicit questions and allow us to understand the fundamentals of how a business operates. Things like margins and how they are impacted by both fixed and variable costs will allow us to understand the health of the business and the dynamics of the industries in which they compete.
On the other side of the ledger, we also need to focus on how a business and management team has decided to fund operations. Debt levels and borrowings need to be understood and analyzed. People often think of higher debt loads as universally being a bad thing, but for us, debt financing is a function of the certainty and consistency of cash flows. Said another way, if market cycles will dramatically impact cash flows, as is the case with semiconductors, then those companies should have a more appropriate level of debt financing. When thinking about fundamentals, we look for quality companies that have strong operations, and we think about how they will function during different economic cycles.
Finally—and most importantly—we need to assess the quality of the management team. Quality businesses do not happen accidentally; it’s a consistent and continuous process that allows a culture to take shape. However, this most important component is the most difficult to quantify, and we think this helps give our active approach a very significant edge.
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds have their place in the investing universe. However, we at Whittier Trust believe that investing in a company where you can actively analyze long-term viability and the quality of management, rather than blindly investing in a stock, will ultimately lead to a much better outcome. We make it our mission to do that kind of deep due diligence on behalf of our clients, so that our investment strategies are just that—strategic, based on data and our expectations for the future.
So much has been written about investing in stocks, bonds, and a myriad of other asset classes. It seems a new way of increasing wealth is created with each new generation of investors. Yet if you look through so much of the noise and focus on what is actually driving the value of the investment, you can begin to form a track record of success. For us, understanding that a stock price is the outcome of the health of a business has allowed us to focus on creating wealth for the long term.
Written by Teague Sanders, CFA, Senior Vice President and Senior Portfolio Manager at Whittier Trust. Based in our Pasadena office, he is the co-manager of the company’s Small Cap and SMID investment strategies.
If you’re ready to explore how Whittier Trust’s tailored investment strategies can work for you, start a conversation with a Whittier Trust advisor today by visiting our contact page.
From Investments to Family Office to Trustee Services and more, we are your single-source solution.
Beginning January 1, 2022, a flat 7% tax on net long-term capital gains went into effect. Many advisors believed the tax to be unconstitutional and that it would be repealed if/when challenged. However, the WA Supreme Court upheld the tax in March of 2023 in Quinn v. Washington. Additionally, the public had a chance to repeal the tax in November of 2024, but approximately 63% of the voters opposed repealing the tax. Regardless of the questionable legality and polarizing nature of this tax, it is here to stay.
On May 20, 2025, Senate Bill 5813 was signed into law, creating a new tier to the capital gains tax, adding 2.9%, for a total of 9.9%, for gain exceeding $1m. The change is retroactive to January 1, 2025.
Summary of the Washington Capital Gains Tax
A full explanation of the Washington Capital Gains Tax is beyond the scope of this update; however, several key items are highlighted here:
Only individuals are subject to the tax. This includes any gains that flow through to individuals from pass-through and/or disregarded entities such as LLCs and S corporations.
Taxable trusts are currently exempt.
Gains recognized by grantor trusts, being disregarded entities, will flow through to the grantor(s) and may be subject to the tax.
Additionally, beneficiaries of taxable trusts who receive allocations of long-term gain may be subject to the tax.
Only long-term capital gains are subject to the tax. Ordinary income, short-term capital gains, qualified dividends, tax-exempt interest, etc., are all exempt.
Taxpayers have an annual standard deduction ($250,000 originally but adjusted for inflation. The 2024 deduction was $270,000. The 2025 amount has not yet been released.) With the recent update, the new effective tax brackets are:
The deduction is per taxpayer. Married couples are considered one taxpayer. Therefore, married couples have just one deduction.
Generally, only individuals who are domiciled in Washington (on the date of sale) are subject to the tax. Gain from the sale of certain tangible property is subject to the tax for those domiciled outside the state.
The tax is calculated by starting with the taxpayer’s federal net long-term capital gain for the year and then modified for gains and losses excluded from the tax. The following are excluded (this is not a complete list):
Gain/Loss from the sale of all real estate (which includes gain from the sale of real estate flowing through pass-through entities).
Sales of entities that own real estate, as opposed to the sale of the real estate itself, will likely not qualify for the real estate exemption.
Gain/Loss from the sale of depreciable property under IRC §167(a) or under §179 (i.e. business property such as equipment).
Gain/Loss from the sale of qualified family-owned small businesses:
What constitutes a family-owned small business and how to calculate the related deduction is complex and beyond the scope of this article.
Alternative minimum tax adjustments associated with the gain.
Qualified opportunity zone gain exclusions (this is an add-back for Washington tax).
Like California, gain recognized federally by an incomplete non-grantor trust (ING), regardless of situs, is pulled back into Washington, and taxed as part of the grantor’s individual capital gain.
The taxable gain is reduced by charitable gifts, but only gifts made to charities principally managed in the state of Washington. Additionally, only gifts exceeding $250,000 (also adjusted for inflation, so it tracks with the standard deduction) are deductible, and the total deduction is limited to $100,000 (adjusted for inflation, $108,000 in 2024).
For example, if a taxpayer made $300,000 of charitable gifts in 2022 (before the inflation adjustments), they would deduct $50,000 from their taxable gains, producing $3,500 of tax savings.
Charitable gifts to donor-advised funds (DAF) would only be eligible if the DAF is directed or managed in Washington (even if the DAF distributes grants to organizations outside Washington).
The tax is relatively new, and there remain several complexities and uncertainties beyond the scope of this article. These include, but are not limited to:
Consideration of capital loss carry forwards
Qualified family-owned small businesses
Qualified small business stock
Charitable remainder trusts and how the tax may impact both the grantors and beneficiaries
Allocation of the $250,000 deduction between spouses who file separately
Credits related to:
B&O Tax
Taxes in another jurisdiction related to the same gain
Planning Opportunities
The recent update has not materially changed the existing tax, so the same planning strategies remain. What the increase has done is further clarified the direction and plans of Washington State’s legislature as it relates to tax policy. Along with recent increases in Washington’s Estate Tax, the state has broadened sales taxes and expanded interpretations of B&O Tax. It appears likely the state will continue to create and increase taxes on individuals and businesses residing and doing business in Washington.
There are several strategies for avoiding Washington capital gains tax, including:
Domicile Planning – The Washington capital gains tax is primarily a tax on gain associated with the sale of intangible assets, like marketable securities. This type of gain is sourced to a taxpayer’s state of domicile. Depending on the facts and circumstances of each taxpayer, being thoughtful about the timing of a domicile change may be worth consideration. This is also a powerful planning tool for estate tax avoidance.
Spreading Gain Across Years – Each taxpayer has a $250,000 (inflation-adjusted) annual deduction, and being thoughtful about the timing of sales can be meaningful, as well as specific strategies like installment sales to spread receivables and gain over several taxable years.
Spreading Gain Across Taxpayers – Because every taxpayer has the standard deduction and Washington state has no gift tax, outright gifts to individuals (other than spouses), while being mindful of the federal gift tax implications, can multiply the exemption. This is even more powerful if the gift recipient is domiciled outside of Washington state, making any gain for them fully exempt.
Taxable Trusts – Other than INGs, taxable trusts are exempt from the tax. Once again, being mindful of federal gift tax implications, gifts in trust can completely avoid Washington capital gains tax. Additionally, converting grantor trusts to non-grantor trusts is also potentially a viable strategy.
Washington Capital Gains Tax currently has a maximum rate of 9.9%, and although this is only one aspect of any planning, and although it is unlikely that this tax would be the defining factor in decision making, nearly 10% tax is likely not immaterial. With the state of Washington creating higher taxes across the board, this is a good time to consider both your short-term and long-term planning.
Washington Estate Tax
Recent Update
In addition to an increased capital gains tax, there were two, potentially more impactful, changes to the Washington Estate Tax, impacting estates of decedents dying on or after July 1, 2025:
Estate tax exclusion is increasing from $2.193m (which has been static since 2018) to $3m. Additionally, the exclusion will be adjusted annually for inflation going forward.
Tax rates are increasing dramatically as detailed below, with the top rate growing from 20% to 35%.
To demonstrate how meaningful these changes are, consider the following examples:
Similar to the changes for the Washington capital gains tax, the changes in estate tax do not fundamentally change how the tax works but rather increase the negative outcomes. The same strategies advisors have been using to avoid the estate tax are all still viable, simply more effective now. Common strategies include shifting growth assets out of large estates, domicile planning, employing multi-generational GST-exempt trusts, charitable giving, and so on. With these radical rate increases, it’s the perfect time to have conversations with your advisors.
One planning item that is often overlooked is entity structuring related to real property. Washington estate tax excludes real property outside of Washington, but intangible assets are sourced to the state of domicile. This creates a valuable planning opportunity to categorize assets as intangible or tangible based on the location of the asset and the domicile of the taxpayer. For example, if you are a Washington domiciliary and you directly own a house (i.e. not through an LLC or corporation), or other tangible property, outside of Washington, upon death, Washington will exclude this asset from estate tax because tangible assets located elsewhere are not subject to WA estate tax.1 However, if a Washington domiciliary owns units of an LLC, which owns that house, the value of those LLC units is included in that decedent’s estate tax because LLC units are considered an intangible asset.
To plan for this situation, a Washington domiciliary can own real property located outside the state either directly or in a revocable trust. Conversely, if a non-WA domiciliary owns real property in Washington, that property can be owned in an LLC to ensure that the property is sourced to the non-WA decedent’s state of domicile. This planning should consider non-tax issues, such as any liability concerns, as well.
To learn more about our views on the market or to speak with an advisor about our services, visit our Contact Page.
Why a long-term approach is a smart strategy, regardless of the economic outlook.
It’s nearly impossible to turn on the television or read an economic journal without being confronted with news about stock market volatility and concern about interest rate fluctuations. Ultimately, market factors are always in play. Economies, and the components that make them up, are always fluid.
“While the uncertainty in the interest environment has affected our ability to buy properties, the fundamentals of the properties haven't changed much,” says Whittier Trust Vice President of Real Estate Jorge Ramos, who advocates a long-term approach to real estate investing. “We're still finding quality properties that we like and ones we feel could ride out any cycle in terms of valuation. The properties are just more of a challenge to identify.” Here are some of the reasons why a long-term approach is a winning strategy for real estate investments.
A Good Buy
When Whittier Trust’s real estate division evaluates a prospective investment opportunity, they are looking for population and job growth over time. While any location is open for consideration, Whittier tends to focus on major cities that have a long-term track record, as opposed to small towns with sudden surges. “We want to invest in locations that will do well over a long period,” Ramos says, which can translate into more secure investments for Whittier Trust’s clients.
Although the team reviews various property types, most of Whittier Trust’s recent investments have been in multifamily properties. The team has been focused on investments between $15-30M in client equity. Investigating whether rents are increasing in the market, along with occupancy rates and demand for housing, are key to our evaluation. Whittier Trust’s investment group becomes the sole limited partner, holding 90-95% of a project’s equity, while an operating partner familiar with the market and property type typically holds a 5-10% investment and the responsibility of day-to-day management. Key elements are investigated and evaluated to determine whether a project has the potential to be a viable and opportunistic investment.
Patience for the Long-Haul
When Whittier Trust embarks on a new real estate investment, the team generally looks at investments on a 5 to 10-year horizon, although they are flexible should the right opportunity present itself. It’s a vastly different approach than the goal of making a quick return or planning to “flip” a property. “Within that range, there will likely be an opportunity to have a good outcome for the asset. A long-term strategy is important because it makes you less susceptible to economic cycles,” Ramos explains.
With housing costs—both for single-family homes and rents—on the rise across the United States and interest rates climbing, it’s vital to look toward markets that have a proven track record. “While everything's fair game, there are certain markets that have fared better. We gravitate towards markets that demonstrate greater staying power,” Ramos says. Even with some market volatility, planning to hold onto a piece of real estate for a decade or more gives the investment time to produce solid returns for Whittier’s clients.
Interest Rates’ Impact on Real Estate Investing
As real estate investors are aware, a property is worth what someone is willing to pay for it. However, during a period of ultra-low interest rates, buyers could afford to pay more for properties in some cases. That’s changing amid higher interest rates, and it requires a nuanced approach to get the best result for Whittier Trust clients.
“We're at a certain place in terms of valuation based on cap rates,” Ramos explains, adding that interest rates have increased by approximately three and a half percentage points since the beginning of 2022. “Valuations haven’t necessarily gone down as quickly. Interest rates are significantly higher than the cap rates on many properties, which means that the unlevered yield would be lower than the interest you're paying, leaving you in a position where you have to fund debt service initially, as the property stabilizes.”
Whittier Trust’s Real Estate division looks for investments that are both solid buys and growth opportunities, with the objective of generating lucrative returns, even in the face of interest rate fluctuations. And should interest rates drop over the life of a property, refinancing for a more advantageous position is possible.
Building a Legacy
This long-term approach perfectly aligns with one of Whittier Trust’s core tenets: legacy-building by passing wealth intergenerationally. “We know that there is staying power in real estate. History favors the patient investor,” Ramos says.
Approaching real estate investments conservatively so that they will perform well over time includes going back to basics to make sure the fundamentals are solid, choosing a good location, partnering with top-notch management, and optimizing the debt on the property. When Whittier Trust closes any deal, “we thoroughly understand the market conditions that will make the property perform well,” Ramos says.
If you’re ready to explore how Whittier Trust’s real estate services can work for you, your family, and your portfolio, start a conversation with a Whittier Trust advisor today by visiting our contact page.
From Investments to Family Office to Trustee Services and more, we are your single-source solution.
Markets are in a constant state of change—it's a natural characteristic of a dynamic, evolving economy. With that change often comes a steady stream of headlines, opinions, and predictions. From shifting policies to economic speculation, the volume of commentary can feel overwhelming. But amid the noise, long-term investors must focus on what truly matters: the underlying signals that shape lasting market performance.
Noise vs. Signal
Much of what dominates the financial news cycle is short-lived—noise that captures attention in the moment but has little bearing on long-term outcomes. Signals, on the other hand, reflect durable economic forces. These include productivity trends, demographic shifts, technological innovation, consumer behavior, and the direction of monetary and fiscal policy. These elements play a far more significant role in shaping market returns over time.
As Nielsen Fields, Vice President and Portfolio Manager at Whittier Trust, puts it: “The highs and lows in the market are normal and temporary. Over the long term, stock prices track the earnings power of businesses.” Decades of data support this view. Over the past 70 years, the vast majority of market returns—over 90%—have been driven by fundamentals such as earnings and dividends. Meanwhile, valuation shifts, measured by the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio, have accounted for less than 10% of returns.
Figure 1: S&P 500
Source: Bloomberg, Data from June 1955 through May 2025.
Volatility Is Part of the Journey
Periods of market volatility can be uncomfortable, especially when they affect long-term financial plans. But volatility is not a flaw in the system—it’s a feature. Markets reflect the evolving expectations of millions of participants reacting to new information in real time. What matters is not avoiding volatility but maintaining discipline and clarity amid it. Long-term investing success depends on the ability to tune out the noise and stay focused on enduring fundamentals. The challenge is real—but so is the reward.
The Risk of Reactionary Decisions
“Reacting emotionally can be more damaging than any downturn itself,” says Whittier Trust Executive Vice President and Chief Portfolio Manager Caleb Silsby. “Historically, missing just the best 5 days in the market can reduce overall returns by nearly 40%. Those days typically happen in or around bear markets, so if you're getting out and you miss the recovery early on, it can make a significant difference in your total return profile. It brings your whole average down quite a bit.”
“The COVID-19 lockdown was a perfect example of when some investors wanted to sell everything,” Silsby continues. “In the end, government stimulus completely turned the market around. And because it occurred on a Sunday, there was no way to trade ahead of that. So even if you were right about everything from an economic perspective with COVID, the policy response was so swift and dramatic, that if you had sold and missed out on the recovery, that was more damaging than if you decided to ride out the storm.”
“If you could have seen the headlines that were coming for the first three months of 2020, you would have surely thought no way should I invest,” Fields adds. “But then stocks were up 18% that year. So even if you had perfect news and headline visibility, it doesn't necessarily give you certainty on your equity return. In fact, periods of high uncertainty and volatility have historically led to the best forward short- and long-term returns.
Figure 2: S&P 500 Returns vs. Volatility Index
Source: FactSet. As of April 15, 2025. Data since 1990.
The Whittier Strategy
At Whittier Trust, our long-term perspective on markets creates latitude that can help shield client portfolios against temporary downturns. “For example, we encourage clients to keep one year's worth of spending in a cash reserve,” Fields says. “We aim for another 3 to 4 years worth of fixed income to shore up against any short- to medium-term storm on the equity side. This way, a client’s spending needs are covered for the next handful of years, and there’s no need to make a rash move at the wrong time in the equity market.”
Market growth occurs as a series of highs and lows—it’s not a straight line. “Investors will inevitably experience drawdowns in their portfolio at times. Historically, market downturns, while concerning in the moment, have proven to be an opportunity in the fullness of time,” Fields says. “If you own quality businesses with durable competitive advantages, strong balance sheets, run by capable management teams investing to grow the business for the long term, then the noise is a less important factor than the enduring pursuit of fundamental investing.”
In that vein, the Whittier Trust team uses a two-tiered approach to investing, integrating macroeconomic analysis with stock-specific security selection. On the macro side, we look for broad economic health by tracking various information such as inflation, overall economic growth, and consumer health. We analyze consumer purchasing behavior, default rates, delinquencies, as well as savings and employment rates. The Whittier Investment Committee then assimilates this top-down macro information with the bottom-up, company-specific insight generated by the investment team to form a view on the fundamental direction of the economy and businesses and how that compares to all the “noise” in the headlines.
Headline Noise & Opportunities
“Here's one example of how we sift through the media noise to get to the heart of an issue,” Fields says. “A recent headline reported that a North Carolina bridge project had been defunded at the federal level, and this caused a significant stock market reaction for related stocks. But the reality was that a small amount of grant funding related to a few initiatives had been pulled, not the entire project. That was an opportunity for our clients.”
Silsby adds: “Once you understand how much the public overreacts to news, the perceived threat of a short-term swing can be transformed into new investment opportunities. When people are becoming bearish, and getting out of the market because they're fearful, that's often a good time to be adding capital to that asset class.”
The indisputable upward growth of the S&P 500 over more than 70 years demonstrates how it continues to perform despite the world’s most challenging moments—wars, recessions, pandemics—and how long-term investors are rewarded for their patience.
S&P 500 Total Return
Source: Bloomberg. Data from June 1955 through May 2025.
Trusting in their Whittier advisor and the longstanding upward trend of global markets, clients can stay grounded and navigate uncertainty with confidence. Patient capital investing—owning businesses that can compound capital at an attractive rate over the long term—is Whittier Trust’s core philosophy, and it has served our clients well, with strong returns on their investments, for more than 40 years.
If you’re ready to explore how Whittier Trust’stailored investment strategies can work for you, start a conversation with a Whittier Trust advisor today by visiting our contact page.
From Investments to Family Office to Trustee Services and more, we are your single-source solution.
In a recent roundtable discussion hosted by the San Diego Business Journal, Whit Batchelor, Executive Vice President and San Diego Regional Manager at Whittier Trust, joined fellow Southern California wealth management professionals to address the most pressing questions facing clients today.
How do I strategically incorporate philanthropic vehicles like a donor-advised fund or family foundation into my comprehensive wealth management plan and overall asset allocation?
Integrating philanthropy into your wealth management strategy requires thoughtful coordination between your giving goals and tax planning. Private foundations and donor-advised funds offer powerful legacy-building opportunities, but with important distinctions in tax treatment and governance that must inform your selection.
Strategic asset selection can significantly enhance tax efficiency. Non-income producing assets like car collections, vacation properties, or significant artwork often represent ideal philanthropic contributions–potentially providing substantial deductions while converting non-cash-flowing assets into charitable impact. We approach this holistically, viewing your wealth across three dimensions: assets inside your estate, outside your estate, and within philanthropic entities.
This integrated perspective allows us to optimize your philanthropic impact while creating meaningful tax advantages and preserving family values across generations.
I’m considering splitting my time between California and other locations. What strategic tax planning approaches should I implement to legitimately minimize my California income tax exposure?
California residents approaching business transitions or retirement often have unique opportunities to optimize their tax situation while fulfilling lifestyle goals. Strategic planning around residency can yield significant tax advantages–particularly when spending time in non-income tax states like Nevada, Washington, Texas, and Florida.
Proactively establishing non-California trusts or entities prior to significant liquidity events can dramatically reduce tax exposure when selling business interests. Similarly, establishing legitimate residency in no-income-tax states before drawing on retirement accounts can preserve substantial wealth.
We emphasize that “asset location” is as critical as asset allocation in comprehensive wealth planning. This includes thoughtful positioning of assets across various jurisdictions to leverage beneficial tax treatment both inside and outside high-tax states like California–creating long-term advantages while supporting your desired lifestyle.
I’ve built a substantial portfolio of investment real estate that has appreciated significantly, creating potential estate tax exposure. What sophisticated strategies would you recommend for transferring these properties to my children in a tax-efficient manner?
California’s remarkable real estate appreciation over recent decades has created both opportunity and challenge–with many families holding properties now exceeding lifetime estate tax exemptions. The goal becomes transferring these high-value assets to future generations while addressing several competing concerns.
Effective strategies must balance estate tax minimization with maintaining control and preserving cash flow during your lifetime, while also considering California’s property tax implications. Tools like Spousal Limited Access Trusts (SLATs), intentionally defective grantor trusts, and qualified personal residence trusts can be particularly effective.
Strategic discounting through family limited partnerships or LLCs can further enhance transfer efficiency. These sophisticated approaches allow significant real estate value to move outside your taxable estate while retaining income streams and influence–preserving both wealth and your desired lifestyle during retirement.
Our family’s wealth has grown substantially in both value and complexity. What solutions should we consider for streamlining this complexity and ensuring seamless continuity if either of us becomes incapacitated or passes away?
As family wealth grows in complexity, what was once intellectually stimulating can eventually become burdensome–especially as priorities shift toward lifestyle enjoyment rather than wealth management. This challenge becomes particularly acute when responsibility has primarily rested with one spouse, potentially creating significant stress for a surviving partner.
Multi-family offices provide an elegant solution by offering comprehensive services that address both investment management and administrative complexity. Services like bill payment, household accounting, bookkeeping, tax coordination, and compliance management create a seamless infrastructure that functions reliably regardless of family circumstances.
This integrated approach ensures continuity during difficult transitions and provides peace of mind that your affairs will be managed according to your wishes–protecting both your surviving spouse and future generations from administrative burdens that they may be unprepared or unwilling to shoulder.
Answers provided by Whit Batchelor, Executive Vice President and San Diego Regional Manager with Whittier Trust.
If you have more questions about philanthropic planning, real estate strategies, tax-efficient wealth transfers, or simplifying complex family finances, start a conversation with a Whittier Trust advisor today by visiting our contact page.
From Investments to Family Office to Trustee Services and more, we are your single-source solution.
In investing, “value” is a word that’s used often but rarely understood in depth. It is not just a price tag, an item on a balance sheet, or a line on a chart. Rather, value is a complex blend of trust, expectation, and the interplay between certainty and speculation. The recent surge in gold prices to record highs—driven by central banks seeking safe havens and investors responding to global uncertainty—has reignited a timeless question: What is something truly worth?
As a result, we’re sharing more about the logic of value across asset classes, moving from the most predictable to the most speculative, and revealing how different forms of value are calculated, perceived, and ultimately believed.
Bonds: The Arithmetic of Certainty
Bonds are the bedrock of financial predictability. These instruments are essentially contracts: You lend money, receive regular interest, and—assuming no default—get your principal back at maturity. Their valuation is rooted in arithmetic:
Present Value of Future Cash Flows: Each coupon payment and the return of principal are discounted to today’s value using prevailing interest rates.
Yield to Maturity (YTM): This is the expected rate of return if the bond is held to maturity.
Credit Spreads: Non-government bonds require higher yields to compensate for additional credit risk.
While factors like inflation, interest rate changes, and shifts in creditworthiness add complexity, bonds remain anchored in accountability and well-defined terms. They represent the closest thing to certainty in the investment world.
Real Estate: Tangible and Local
Real estate offers visibility and utility. Properties can provide income through rent and often appreciate over time. Valuation in real estate relies on several methods:
Comparable Sales (Comps): What have similar properties sold for in the area?
Income Approach (Cap Rate): Calculated as Net Operating Income divided by Property Value, this method is key for income-producing properties.
Replacement Cost:What would it cost to rebuild the property today?
Real estate is about more than numbers; it’s about neighborhoods, tenants, and local narratives. While the fundamentals are solid, they are never static. Location can create value, while a poor tenant can erode it. The reverse is also true. The asset’s tangibility and the potential for steady cash flows make real estate a unique blend of predictability and variability.
Stocks: Ownership with Imagination
Owning a stock means holding a claim on a company’s future earnings, decisions, and relevance. Unlike bonds or real estate, stocks are inherently forward-looking and subject to interpretation. Key valuation methods include:
Discounted Cash Flow (DCF): Projecting a company’s future cash flows and discounting them to present value based on risk and time horizon.
Sum of the Parts (SOTP): Valuing each underlying business or asset separately to determine the overall worth.
Earnings Multiples and Dividend Models: Using metrics like price-to-earnings ratios or dividend discount models to gauge value.
Stock prices swing on earnings reports, macroeconomic shifts, and geopolitical events. Yet, in the long run, fundamentals—such as earnings growth—tend to prevail. Successful investors are those who can distinguish signal from noise and think in years rather than days.
Gold and Precious Metals: The Value of Belief
Gold sits at the far end of the valuation spectrum. It generates no income and pays no dividends, yet it endures as a store of wealth. Its value is driven by:
Scarcity: Mining is slow and costly, and supply is limited by nature.
Macroeconomic Trends: Inflation, currency debasement, and global uncertainty boost demand.
Market Psychology:In times of turmoil, investors seek gold for safety, not returns.
Recent years have seen gold prices soar to historic highs, with forecasts for 2025 ranging from $3,000 to nearly $3,700 per ounce as central banks and investors seek protection from economic and geopolitical risks. Unlike other assets, gold’s value is almost entirely a matter of belief—that is, confidence that others will continue to see it as a safe haven when other systems falter. In this sense, gold is as much about philosophy as it is about finance.
Value, Reconsidered
Tracing the arc from bonds to gold is a journey from definition to interpretation—from contractual returns to collective belief. Each step reveals not just how we price assets, but how we understand risk, reward, and resilience.
Warren Buffett famously said, “Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.” But what you get depends on how well you understand what lies beneath the numbers. In a world obsessed with immediacy, the ability to think in fundamentals-across asset classes and through market cycles-is a quiet but powerful advantage.
Ultimately, value is not just a calculation. It is a reflection of human judgment, emotion, and conviction—qualities that no formula can fully capture. At Whittier Trust, we understand value, both in the mechanics of strategically selecting assets that make sense based on our clients’ present needs and future legacy goals, but we also make it our business to understand each client’s underlying concerns.
Written by Caleb Silsby, Executive Vice President, Chief Portfolio Officer at Whittier Trust. Caleb oversees a team that collaboratively manages portfolios for high-net-worth clients, foundations, and endowments. He is credentialed as a CFA Charterholder and CFP professional.
If you’re ready to explore how Whittier Trust’s tailored investment strategies can work for you, start a conversation with a Whittier Trust advisor today by visiting our contact page.
From Investments to Family Office to Trustee Services and more, we are your single-source solution.
Investing is a balancing act between risk and reward in the best of times, but today’s uncertain economic climate and fluctuating markets present an unprecedented challenge for investors. While some people choose to stay with traditional options like money market funds and government bonds, others are taking on more risk with hard-money lending and alternative investments – everything from cryptocurrency to classic cars.
“Given the volatility in the equity markets, some investors are reducing risk in their portfolios due to a slowing economy, stubborn inflation, and uncertainty around trade policies,” said Dean Byrne, regional manager of The Whittier Trust Company of Nevada, which has offices in Reno, Portland, Seattle, and Austin, Texas. Byrne said the U.S. is currently in a “risk-off” environment, in which investors are more risk-averse and are selling assets like stock and moving their money to lower-risk options. As a trust management company, Whittier Trust offers a wide range of financial services. Its investment management team handles core assets, such as equities, fixed income and real estate.
In general, Nevada follows national trends in investing, such as increasing interest in digital assets like cryptocurrency, which have become widely accepted, even by institutional investors and hedge funds. Technology is also driving increased interest in companies that supply the energy needs and the physical infrastructure (think data centers) for the growing artificial intelligence (AI) sector. “We see an enormous amount of capital being deployed into public and private AI investments on the expectation of continued growth and attractive returns,” said Byrne.
The migration of wealthy Californians to Nevada is changing the nature of investing in the Silver State, according to Nevada Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar, whose office performs registration and oversight of securities, securities brokers and dealers, and investment advisors. “Enclaves like the Summit Club in Summerlin bring the investor-minded type of individual to Nevada, and with that comes more opportunity to invest in private placement deals, real estate offerings, private credit offerings, cryptocurrency, gold and silver,” he said. “[These new residents] are sophisticated investors who are looking to diversify their portfolios. There’s more investing in Nevada now than in previous years because these people bring their money and their investment portfolios with them.”
One option for savvy investors looking for diversification is hard money lending. “We specialize in private lending, with multiple lenders joining together to fund loans on Nevada real estate,” explained John Blackmon, owner/broker of NV Capital Corporation, a private lending and investment brokerage based in southern Nevada. “Our property-backed hard money loans make financing available on a wide variety of single-family and multi-family homes, business buildings, and land for development. Many people choose a trust deed investment because they are looking for more secure, high-yield returns. If properly structured by a specialized broker, trust deed investments have the potential to yield favorable returns – especially when you look at other investment options with similar risk profiles. That’s because your risks are mitigated by the value of the property being used as collateral against the loan.”
People who don’t mind taking some additional risk may consider any one of a number of alternative investments. “Alternative investments are a broad asset class, but narrow down to investments outside of traditional cash, bonds and stocks,” said Byrne. “Real estate, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, private equity, hedge funds, commodities, even collectibles like art, coins and classic cars, fall into the alternative investment bucket.”
Byrne pointed out that owning a business could also be considered a form of alternative investment, with its own level of risk and reward. “Business owners usually reinvest all their profits into their own company,” he said. “In essence, they’re investing in one stock, and they’re comfortable with that risk. Yes, it may keep them up at night sometimes, but they know it inside and out, and it’s familiar.”
He added that Nevada provides a better opportunity for multi-generational wealth creation than other states because it doesn’t have an estate tax and it offers favorable laws allowing a business owner to transfer business interests into a trust. “Gifting interests in a family business to the next generation is a powerful tool, and if structured appropriately, allows for succession planning, building and protecting family wealth, avoiding probate, and reducing taxes,” he said.
What Should New Investors Know?
“What I tell my children and grandchildren is that they can still get about 4 percent in a US Treasury mutual fund,” said Blackmon. “That’s a good place to be right now. It’s fairly risk-free, and at least your money is making something. Be a little disciplined and every so often move some money from a regular bank account to a money market fund to get some interest. Then, if you have some money to invest and don’t mind a little risk, you can get into a small deal with a trust deed. One of my kids did that and they enjoy driving out and looking at their collateral.”
Byrne recommended that new investors start with a clear goal. “What are you trying to accomplish? Are you investing for retirement, a large future purchase, building wealth or simply creating a shoot-for-the-moon portfolio – one with high risk and potentially high reward? If that investment goes to zero, you have to be okay with that. Higher risk should come with a higher return, but it doesn’t always work as planned. Most people want investments that enable them to sleep at night.”
He advised new investors to think long-term and be prepared to weather the short-term ups and downs of the market. “It’s important to remember the adage: ‘Time in the market is better than timing the market,’” he said. “In the first week of April, [the stock market] had some pretty rough days. Then, with the announcement that tariffs were being delayed for 90 days, the S & P jumped seven percent, just like that. Nobody could have predicted that amount of volatility or timed it appropriately. Just start early and invest consistently, in good times and bad times. Long-term investments lead to appreciation and compound interest.”
Aguilar would advise a new investor to perform their due diligence before trusting anyone with their money. “Research who will be managing your money and guiding your investments,” he said. “Call the Secretary of State’s office to verify that they’ve been licensed. Doing the verification process will save you a lot of heartache. If the investment vehicle is complicated, get someone to explain it to you in terms you can understand, and trust your gut. If it sounds too good to be true, it isn’t [true].”
Avoiding Fraud in a Dangerous World
While there is a certain amount of risk in any investment, a very real risk is becoming a victim of a fraudulent investment scheme. Aguilar reported that in fiscal year 2023, his Securities Division received complaints of securities fraud from investors totaling more than $16 million, and in fiscal year 2024 that number was almost $10 million. Fraud cases are investigated by the Securities Division and prosecuted by the state attorney general and county district attorneys.
“We’re especially looking out for what’s called ‘pig butchering,’ which typically targets males with a social media presence,” Aguilar said. In this scheme, scammers build relationships with victims through social engineering to lure them into investing in fake opportunities or platforms, ultimately leading to financial losses. They “fatten the pig before slaughter” by getting them to make increasing monetary contributions, generally in the form of cryptocurrency, to a seemingly sound investment before the scammer disappears with the contributed monies.
“When that happens, people are often embarrassed to tell us that they’ve been the victim of investment fraud,” said Aguilar. “In addition, many of the fraudsters are located overseas and it’s hard to get jurisdiction over these individuals. What we can do is make sure the marketplace is educated about these issues so they don’t fall victim to them.” He advised investors to make sure they are dealing with a licensed advisor or a broker-dealer with a good reputation – someone who’s a part of the industry, not just a random person who contacted them online.
“Find a reputable financial advisor to guide you,” said Byrne. “Read the fine print about their fee structure and any proposed investments. Don’t be afraid of getting a second opinion.”
Blackmon advised people considering hard-money lending to ask to see an appraisal or a broker price opinion on the property. “That will give you a third-party valuation that the property is worth more than the proposed loan amount,” he said. “Be sure to go with a company with experience in real estate lending, and in my opinion, you should go with a brokerage company that uses a third-party service to collect the monthly payments from the borrowers and distributes them to the investors. Unscrupulous brokers may otherwise divert the payments to their own account and be tempted to use that money for other purposes. It’s just one more level of protection.”
Aguilar noted that, although reported losses to fraudsters total millions of dollars each year, victims of fraud often lose their entire life savings and are not compensated. Many guilty parties in securities cases do not have any money to pay court-ordered restitution to their victims. In FY 2023, investors received restitution of only $205,000 and in FY 2024 it was just over $1 million. His office is supporting a bill in the Nevada Legislature this year that aims to fill the gap between the restitution that’s owed to victims and what they actually receive. Senate Bill 76, entitled “Victim Restitution Act,” would create a fund from monies received from enforcement actions due to violations of the Nevada Securities Act (NRS 90). Nevada residents who have received an award for restitution in a criminal conviction can apply for restitution from the fund if they don’t get repaid from the fraudster.
“The main reason we are proposing this legislation is that it provides a way for Nevada residents to obtain desperately needed relief after losing what is often a significant chunk of their savings to someone who has defrauded them,” said Aguilar. “Often, victims of securities fraud are in the most vulnerable communities, especially our senior communities and others on fixed incomes.”
"Safe" is Relative
Aguilar advised potential investors to discuss the level of risk with their money manager and decide what they’re comfortable with. “100 percent safe would be putting cash in your mattress, but even then, you run the risk of theft,” he said. “Putting your money in an FDIC-insured checking or savings account is safe, but there’s the opportunity cost of giving up a chance for appreciation, and inflation may erode the value of your principal. Medium-risk may be S&P 500 stocks, and high-risk would be private-party deals or hard money investments. You should only take high risks if you have the capacity, and if it won’t change your lifestyle if you lose your investment.”
“Safe is a relative term,” agreed Byrne. “Cash in a low-yielding, FDIC-insured bank account has risks of eroding your purchasing power due to the effects of inflation.”
What's Ahead?
“Right now, we have a fairly new president and there are some unknowns about tax policy and other things,” said Blackmon. “We’re not sure if that will lead to more investments in real estate or to fewer people willing to invest. This spring, things have slowed down for us because of uncertainty on the macro level. If you’re thinking of building an $83 million building, you’d be a little nervous to start. You may want to wait a few months before investing, to see which way the wind is blowing and what interest rates will be doing. Some people say tariffs won’t cause interest rates to rise, but it seems to me that increasing costs will lead to an increase in interest rates. I’m looking forward to being proved wrong. It will be interesting to watch what’s ahead in the next six months. I still look to the US government, even with whatever issues are going on right now. It’s the best country in the world.”
Featured in Nevada Business Magazine. For more information on Whittier Trust's investment services and portfolio management strategies, start a conversation with a Whittier Trust advisor today by visiting our contact page.
From Investments to Family Office to Trustee Services and more, we are your single-source solution.
Next-gen philanthropy is about more than just giving money away.
Philanthropy is about helping others and offering invaluable funding to support communities and causes. With a family foundation, it’s also about preserving a legacy andbringing family members together in the name of a shared cause or purpose. The styleand look of a family foundation varies, and it’s important to consider how to engage the next generation in all aspects of the foundation.
Junior boards—also called associate boards—can be a powerful tool in helping prime thenext generation for leadership, and they can be highly personalized in structure, style, andpurpose. They can be as small as a few members, or as large as 20 or more, and the agelimitations can be anywhere from pre-teen to mid-30s. These launch pads areinstrumental in not only growing the foundation’s reach but also growing the junior board members as individuals.
“Junior boards help teach the next generation about the foundation and its mission, howit’s structured and more. It’s a good way to strengthen members’ financial literacy skills. Ithelps them learn about the value of money, investing the foundation’s assets, learningabout the stock market and the power of giving with an eye on both strategy and passion,”says Jesse Ostroff, Assistant Vice President and Client Advisor for Whittier Trust’sPhilanthropic Services. Junior boards can also help strengthen familial ties, preparemembers to transition to the main board and help members discover more about themselves. Here’s how.
Strengthening Family Bonds
Junior boards can help strengthen a family’s bond, especially if there are many branchesor if the members aren’t particularly physically or emotionally close. “It’s a good way forcousins or more distant relatives to be able to collaborate and decide how and where themoney should go,” says Ostroff, who adds that working together is helpful in makingjunior board members feel less alone in their giving.
Even close-knit junior boards can deepen their relationship. Ostroff recalls one example of a small junior board that had been working together for many years. Whittier Trustfacilitated an opportunity for them to share during a family retreat, where each membermade a presentation on their chosen grantee organization, describing why they felt it wasworthy of support and providing an overview of the diligence they had conducted on it.“It was during the pandemic so it took place over Zoom,” Ostroff noted, “but it workedreally well, and the subject matter helped them develop deeper connections with eachother and with the foundation Board.” One of the unanticipated outcomes was a numberof cousins deciding to collaborate and support each other’s chosen organizations. “Eventhough you’re family, you don’t always take the time to listen and hear about each other’s interests,” he says. “This opportunity strengthened family ties in a natural, organic way.”
Facilitating Family Continuity
Family foundations often struggle with succession plans, so establishing a well-functioningjunior board can help smooth younger family members’ transition to the main board. Butit also takes intentionality. “Part of our role is to get the junior board excited enough towant to devote time and attention to their philanthropy, despite the competing demands ofcareer and family,” says Ostroff, whose team does this by showing interest in juniormembers as individuals, having strategic conversations with them about the change they’dlike to see in the world, and accompanying them on site visits to grantee organizations sothey can see first-hand the impact they’re having.
Conversely, some junior board members are exuberant and need help focusing their interests and reining their strategies. Ostroff recalls one junior board of teenagers whowere excited to be participating in their family’s philanthropy, but they hadn’t yetidentified a mission and felt daunted by the responsibility to give money away. To theircredit, they wanted to do it right and didn’t know where to begin. “We convened thegroup and used a core values game to help them to identify first the family’s core values,and then their individual values,” he says. “From there, it was easier for them to select oneor two focus areas for their grantmaking, and then to drill down and choose particular nonprofits they wanted to support.”
Inspiring Personal Growth
Ostroff’s favorite aspect of his job is watching junior board members grow through theirparticipation in the family’s philanthropy. “They develop life skills, such as financialliteracy, respectful communication, critical thinking, and collaboration, that set them up forsuccess in their careers and relationships.” As they begin to see the myriad benefits ofaligning their family’s wealth and values, younger family members become more effectivestewards of the wealth they may eventually inherit.
Whittier Trust helps create, manage and develop junior boards, tailoring their recommendations and plans to a family’s philanthropic mission and grantmaking style,while simultaneously helping them find their own philanthropic voice. “As the nextgeneration moves up, there will be new societal challenges, new philanthropic trends andopportunities. Millennial and Gen Z family members are coming of age in a world that iscompletely different from the one their grandparents inhabited,” says Ostroff. “And we’reable to provide them with the tools and support they will need to meet their moment andmake their own impact.”
If you’re ready to explore how Whittier Trust’s tailored philanthropic services can work for you, start a conversation with a Whittier Trust advisor today by visiting our contact page.
From Investments to Family Office to Trustee Services and more, we are your single-source solution.
How smart entrepreneurs future-proof their legacy.
Most entrepreneurs who have built a corporation to a valuation in the hundreds of millions (or higher) will tell you about a beginning filled with hard work, sleepless nights and worry over whether or not their business would survive. We work with many family businesses that are now worth over a billion dollars, but they all started somewhere.
Those early days are the ideal time to strategize for future success by shielding yourself and your business from unnecessary tax burdens, maximizing the impact of your legacy and creating terms that fulfill your vision. However, many of those same entrepreneurs who are so good at building a business from the ground up fail to forecast 20 or 30 years into the future. They're too focused on the now. Unfortunately, by the time a business reaches the pinnacle of its success, it may be too late to fully take advantage of the opportunities that existed early on.
That's where an experienced multifamily office comes in: they are specialists in helping individuals, entrepreneurs and families think far ahead and lay the necessary groundwork for a best-case scenario. The goal is to maximize potential returns and help “future-proof” clients' legacies, allowing them to fully enjoy the fruits of their hard work.
Easing Tax Burdens
When a company isn't worth a fortune, it's easy to forget about what might happen when its value rises. One important step is to qualify for Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) when the business is worth less than $50 million. Setting up a business to qualify for the QSBS isn't overly challenging. The entity must be a domestic C Corp, at least 80% of the corporation's assets must be used to conduct one or more qualified trades and originally acquired stock must be held for a minimum of five years, among other requirements. However, this process must be diligently undertaken to ensure entrepreneurs can reap the benefits down the line.
With QSBS, 100% of the gain from a sale can be excluded from federal income tax (subject to certain limitations), which can amount to a fortune if a company is sold for a high value. A number of multifamily office — and, more specifically, those with robust trust services — can both serve in an advisory capacity and handle the execution of the necessary steps (such as engaging and managing the right tax and legal professionals), allowing the entrepreneur to focus on growing the business.
Location, Location, Location
If there's any flexibility regarding where a business is located, multifamily offices can help set owners up in the most tax-advantaged position. For example, businesses located in California are subject to one of the highest corporate tax rates in the nation at 8.84%. If the income is generated by California real estate or headquartered in California, there's no way to escape that rate.
However, if the business can be headquartered in a more tax-advantaged state such as Nevada, which does not levy a corporate income tax, it might be worth considering. To help smooth the generational transition, some families utilize a trust situs in Nevada to hold their shares of the business. Nevada situs can help avoid California income taxes and California capital gains taxes (which amount to 13.3%) upon the sale of the business.
Mitigating Future Estate Taxes
If businesses grow inside a taxable estate, the government takes 40% of the value upon the owner's passing. For entrepreneurs who are building a successful corporation, it can be beneficial to allocate some shares into a trust outside of the taxable estate, where they can grow in value without being subject to the estate tax. There are a variety of trusts that allow owners to reap the benefits of the assets during their lifetimes, while shielding the estate from an onerous tax burden.
Preserving Family Harmony
Finally, it may not be obvious, but it's important to coordinate the estate plans of all family members who are involved in the business to ensure that they are aligned with the overall succession plan. The goal is to put a master plan in place that balances financial, corporate and relational goals so that the business — and the family attached to it — will thrive in perpetuity.
Start Early for Maximum Benefits
If you're reading this and your business isn't (yet) close to the multimillion-dollar threshold, it's still important to take the time to be thoughtful about how you'll set it up for future success. You may be spending your days working on improving the current bottom line, managing staff and investing in refining your product and service offerings. Still, we've seen companies quickly catapult from a few million in assets to a much higher value, so it's important not to wait. Having a go-to team of advisors who can provide both strategy and execution to file necessary paperwork, think critically about the company's financial trajectory and maximize the benefits as it grows.
Written by Brian Bissell, Senior Vice President, Client Advisor in the Orange County office of Whittier Trust.
Featured in Family Business Magazine. To learn more about how Whittier Trust can support you, your family and your legacy through our family office services, start a conversation with a Whittier Trust advisor today by visiting our contact page.
From Investments to Family Office to Trustee Services and more, we are your single-source solution.
Three key questions to strengthen your investment strategy.
At its core, investing is straightforward: Buy low, sell high. But additional factors such as taxes, along with your risk tolerance and asset mix, can significantly impact your returns. Three key questions can help ensure your investment strategy is positioned to maximize your long-term after-tax returns and legacy goals.
1) Is your wealth concentrated in just one or two businesses, asset classes, or stocks?
At Whittier Trust, new clients frequently come to us having created significant wealth through a single asset—perhaps their own company or stock from an employer. As the oldest multi-family office headquartered on the West Coast, we have seen this position time and time again. But that doesn’t mean that we respond in the same way each time.
“Conventional wisdom tells us that reducing the concentration and diversifying the proceeds is the appropriate way to mitigate an investor’s risk,” says Nick Momyer, Senior Portfolio Manager at Whittier Trust. “But while that may work for one client, it could be all wrong for another.”
At Whittier, we never take a one-size-fits-all approach. “The first step,” Momyer explains, “is to leverage our expertise as fundamental investors to gain a foundational understanding of your assets.”
The Whittier investment team will study the tax characteristics of your holdings and factor in the exposures that inform potential risk and return. “Then, armed with this deep knowledge, we craft personalized portfolios comprised of uncorrelated assets, minimizing the overlap with your existing holdings,” Momyer says.
This complementary method delivers tax efficiency and enhanced downside protection, safeguarding your wealth.
2) Is your investment portfolio tailored specifically for you? Or do you sometimes feel you’re just another account number to your wealth manager?
At Whittier Trust, we believe our clients deserve a more calibrated approach that can significantly improve the compounding power of your portfolio: the use of individual securities for tax-efficient wealth management. Unlike mutual funds, individual securities offer granular control over your portfolio, selecting each holding with detailed knowledge of its track record, integrity, and growth potential.
“Our client-centric approach starts with your objectives,” Momyer says, “which guide our management of a customized portfolio, tailored specifically for your unique needs and desired outcomes. This gives us great advantages for capital gains management and tax-loss harvesting. We can identify assets to complement and diversify a legacy portfolio of concentrated positions, then manage capital gains on a security-by-security basis. This allows us to potentially defer, transfer, or even avoid capital gains taxes through calculated selling and tax-efficient gifting strategies.”
The market will always have ups and downs, and at Whittier, we use these fluctuations to your advantage. By strategically harvesting tax losses on underperforming stocks, the Whittier team offsets taxable gains from other investments, reducing your tax bill and freeing up capital for reinvestment. “Think of it as tax alpha,” Momyer says, “Actively using tax-efficient strategies to boost your after-tax investment returns.”
These stratagems are particularly beneficial for ultra-high-net-worth clients with complex portfolios that include concentrated and highly appreciated assets. Individual securities allow us to navigate these situations effectively, minimizing tax drag and preserving more of your wealth to compound over time.
“One recent example was a client who inherited a concentrated technology holding with a looming tax burden,” Momyer recounts. “We saw an opportunity for a multi-pronged approach. By expertly harvesting tax losses elsewhere in their portfolio and leveraging the client’s donor advised fund, we reduced their tax liability, diversified their portfolio, and honored their charitable wishes.”
3) Are your investments aligned with your long-term financial and legacy goals?
Many investors focus on growing their wealth but may not have a clear roadmap for sustaining it over generations. At Whittier Trust, we integrate portfolio strategy with estate planning, philanthropy, and wealth transfer goals.
“Our approach goes beyond returns. We help clients structure their investments to support their broader objectives, whether that’s leaving a legacy for their family, supporting causes they care about, or simply enjoying financial freedom,” Momyer says. “By considering factors like trust structures, estate planning, and tax implications, we help ensure your portfolio works in concert with your long-term vision.”
At Whittier Trust, we take a holistic approach to wealth management, ensuring that your investments align with your evolving financial needs and legacy aspirations. By combining deep investment expertise with thoughtful estate and tax planning, we help clients not only grow their wealth but also secure their financial legacy with confidence and purpose.
Getting Started
At Whittier Trust, our history and experience become your advantage, directing you to the strongest market performers while making sure taxes don’t erode your wealth. Once our investment team gains a clear understanding of what matters most to you, we craft a customized, efficient portfolio of individual securities, to maximize your after-tax return and meet your objectives. You gain greater control with less effort and stress, knowing you can rely on your fiduciary advisor and family-office investment team to act in your best interests. We invite you to contact Whittier Trust today and discover how we can help you not only achieve your personal and financial goals, but perhaps surpass them.
If you’re ready to explore how Whittier Trust’s tailored investment strategies can work for you, start a conversation with a Whittier Trust advisor today by visiting our contact page.
From Investments to Family Office to Trustee Services and more, we are your single-source solution.
The casual investor tends to focus on the wrong thing when investing. Most will think of the stock as the investment while forgetting the most important part.
Thanks to this simple mindset shift, we can begin to do our homework. Understanding a business means understanding how a company actually makes money, so we need to have a very strong understanding of how a dollar of revenue translates into a dollar of profit. This basic act of tracing revenues through the income statement will elicit questions and allow us to understand the fundamentals of how a business operates. Things like margins and how they are impacted by both fixed and variable costs will allow us to understand the health of the business and the dynamics of the industries in which they compete. 
Finally—and most importantly—we need to assess the quality of the management team. Quality businesses do not happen accidentally; it’s a consistent and continuous process that allows a culture to take shape. However, this most important component is the most difficult to quantify, and we think this helps give our active approach a very significant edge.
