Our Investment Process

Your plan decides the mix. Our rules do the rest.

For business owners and professionals in Mount Pleasant and across the Charleston area, we invest the way we plan your taxes: in writing, ahead of time, and with a reason for every move.

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Breakaway Financial Group invests by plan first, then by rules. Your financial plan sets how your money is split across three building blocks. Written rules decide what each portfolio holds and when it changes. Your advisor reviews every rules signal before anything is traded, and records the reason whenever they decide differently.

Our principles

What guides every decision

  • Plan first. Your portfolio is built from your goals, your timeline and your comfort with risk, not from a market forecast.
  • Rules, written down. Every model portfolio has a written rulebook: what it can own, how positions are sized, and when they are trimmed or replaced.
  • Follow strength. We favor the areas of the market that are leading and reduce exposure to those that stop leading.
  • Risk has its own rules. Defensive steps are set in advance, so decisions in a falling market are not made on emotion.
  • Tax-aware by design. We are a tax-focused firm, so holding periods, which shares we sell, and which account holds what are part of the process.
  • A person makes the call. Rules produce recommendations. Your advisor decides, and documents any departure from them.
  • We keep score honestly. Each portfolio is measured every month against a benchmark and against what its rules alone called for.
The process

How our investment process works, step by step

  1. Understand youYour financial plan maps your goals, cash flow, taxes and retirement targets. A short questionnaire captures your comfort with risk and what you are open to owning.
  2. Set the mixYour risk profile sets how your portfolio splits across Core, Equity and Diversifiers. Money you need within a year stays in cash equivalents; goals two to three years out go to a short-term reserve.
  3. Put it in writingYou and your advisor sign an Investment Policy Statement that records the mix, the accounts involved and any restrictions.
  4. Build the portfolioEach building block is filled with one or more of our model portfolios, and each holding is placed in the account where it fits best for taxes.
  5. Watch the market every weekA weekly screen ranks which sectors, industries and large companies are leading.
  6. Review and act every monthEach portfolio's rules produce targets. Your advisor compares them with what you actually hold, decides what to trade, and writes down the reason for any difference.
  7. Update the plan every yearA one-page Annual Update shows your progress toward your plan and any drift in the mix. As a goal gets closer, its money shifts toward steadier holdings.

Every month, a person checks the rules.

Rules keep us disciplined. Judgment keeps them sensible. Each month your advisor reviews what the rules call for, and every decision to do something different is logged with a reason.

Building blocks

Three building blocks, one portfolio

Every client portfolio is assembled from the same three building blocks, in different amounts.

Core

Broad, diversified global stock funds that make up the foundation.

Equity

Focused portfolios of individual companies and industry funds, for growth.

Diversifiers

Bonds, gold and other assets that have historically behaved differently from stocks.

Five risk profiles, from Aggressive to Preservation, set how much goes into each. A more aggressive profile leans on Equity; a more conservative one leans on Diversifiers. Crypto is available only to clients who choose it.

Go deeper

Explore our approach

Model Portfolios: one system, each portfolio with a clear job

We run a defined set of model portfolios, each with its own written rules. Companies can graduate from one to another as they mature, from fast grower to established leader to steady dividend payer.

See our model portfolios →

Following Market Leadership: we lean toward strength

Each week we rank every sector, the industries inside them and the largest companies inside those. Our portfolios lean toward strength and away from areas that are losing it.

How we follow leadership →

Managing Risk: decided before the market falls

Every portfolio has written rules for when to reduce risk, so decisions are made with a clear head, not in a headline. Each month we score ourselves against those rules.

How we manage risk →

Tax-Aware Investing: investing that thinks about your tax return

Where each investment is held, how long it is held and which shares are sold all affect what you keep. We plan for all three.

Tax-aware investing →
FAQ

Questions we hear often

Do you pick stocks?

Yes, in some of our portfolios. Others use low-cost funds. Your risk profile and account size decide the mix, and smaller accounts use a broad index fund where whole shares of every stock are not practical.

Do you try to time the market?

No. Our rules reduce stock exposure gradually when long-term trends weaken and add it back as they recover. They do not predict short-term moves.

Who makes the final decision?

Your advisor. The rules produce recommendations, and every trade is reviewed by a person.

Is crypto required?

No. It is available only to clients who choose it.

See how this would work for your plan

Your investments should follow your plan, run on rules you can read, and be placed where each piece works hardest. Let us show you what that looks like for your situation.

Book a planning conversationNot sure yet? See where you fit
Your Wealth. Our Shoulders.

This is educational content, not personalized financial or tax advice, and not a recommendation to buy or sell any security or to adopt any investment strategy. Advisory services are offered through Savvy Advisors, Inc., an SEC-registered investment adviser; tax and business services are provided by Breakaway Financial Group. Investing involves risk, including loss of principal. Rules-based strategies may not perform as intended and can lag sudden market moves. Model portfolios are adjusted by the advisor for each client; individual results will differ. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Crypto assets are highly volatile and may not be suitable for all investors.