• Manage your wealth
  • Spend smarter
  • Navigate tough decisions

Be a smarter bear

man with notebook

Financial Freedom Starts with a Plan

Why Smarter Bear Financial?

No hidden fees. No commissions. No products to sell.
Your success leads to our success.

A Proven Approach

We begin every client relationship by working with you to understand what’s important to you. We’ll analyze your goals and current circumstances and come up with a plan that is right for you. This personal approach ensures that we can provide planning and investment guidance that really matches your objectives, life goals and risk tolerance.

Planning Futures

We're here to help people with complex financial situations create plans and investment strategies to best meet their long-term financial goals. Have questions about investments, taxes, retirement, and/or estate planning? One of our founders would be glad to help.

Why Us?

We are fee-only financial fiduciary advisors who didn't grow up in the financial services industry. We bring a different perspective to helping our clients plan for the future. We've spent a career helping to build some of the most successful companies in America. We couldn't find the kind of advice that we and our peers needed for complex personal and family financial decisions, so we set out to build it ourselves.

From the blog

"Keep up-to-date with us by checking out what's going on in the market, our industry, and around our office!"

Health Savings Accounts

For people in good health with low medical expenses with access to a High Deductible Healthcare Plan (HDHP), gaining access to a Health Savings Account (HSA) can be a big win. HDHPs have lower annu...

Larry Derany

Make sure cash is working for you

Banks love their "golden deposits" - highly profitable (for them) non-interest-bearing accounts. These deposits are sticky, representing 25-32% of bank deposits, including personal checking account...

Larry Derany

IRS interest rate increase

As of Oct 1, 2023, the IRS interest rate is 8% annually for taxes owned and not withheld or paid via estimated payments. That increase from 3% 2 years ago reflects the rising interest rate environm...

Larry Derany

Receipts to save

If you are a homeowner, when you sell your house, there is a nice exclusion from the capital gains due on the sale. If you h...

Larry Derany

Mail theft and check washing

Many of us have read about mail theft and check washing. It recently happened to one of our clients sending in a check to Smarter Bear. The thief stole the letter, changed the payee on the chec...

Larry Derany