user avatar

James Paulsen

Advisor at Taxable Wealth

Updated today

Location

San Diego, CA 92128

Credentials

CFP®, Series 63

Industry experience

21 years

About

James Paulsen is a CFP® with 21 years of industry experience, currently serving as the sole advisor at Taxable Wealth. His prior roles include ten years at Guggenheim Funds Distributors LLC and two years at John Hancock Funds LLC. Outside of his advisory work, he holds a passive ownership stake in a clothing company. Taxable Wealth provides investment advisory and portfolio management services alongside comprehensive financial planning for individual clients, high-net-worth households, corporations, and charitable organizations. The firm employs a fundamentally driven, largely passive investment approach using index funds, ETFs, and third-party managers, while also offering private investment opportunities and digital asset consultation.

Client services

Based on Taxable Wealth

Financial planning Portfolio management Selection of other advisers

Expertise

Based on Taxable Wealth

Real estate investing Wealth management College savings (529s, UTMA, etc.) Cash flow / budgeting General estate planning guidance

Fee options

Fixed

Project-Based Financial Planning: $500 - $25,000 fixed fee

Percentage

$0 - $1,000,000: Up to 1.00% $1,000,001 - $2,000,000: Up to 0.75% Above $2,000,000+: Up to 0.50%

Project-based

Financial Planning: $400 per hour; Estate Planning: $400 per hour

Other

Fee-only: Comprehensive Financial Planning: $3,000 - $36,000 per year (ongoing, monthly or quarterly); Project-Based Financial Planning Fixed Fee: $500 - $25,000; Hourly Financial Planning: $400/hour; Tax Preparation: $500 - $3,000; Estate Planning: $400/hour

Location

13520 Evening Creek Dr N, Ste 130

San Diego, CA 92128

Most active in

California

Work history

Taxable Wealth

2026 - Present (1 year)

Guggenheim Funds Distributors Llc

2016 - 2026 (10 years)

John Hancock Funds LLC

2014 - 2016 (2 years)

John Hancock

2014 - 2016 (2 years)

Disclosures

Exclamation point means they have disclosures of this type. Check mark means no disclosures of this type were found.

Business activities & affiliations

user avatar

Frederick P

Series 65

Poway, CA

Pearson, Frederick, Norman Jr.

Frederick Pearson is a Series 65-licensed financial advisor with 15 years of industry experience. He operates as a self-employed advisor through his independent firm, Pearson, Frederick, Norman Jr., based in Poway, CA. His firm provides discretionary portfolio management primarily for individual investors, focusing on IRA accounts. The investment strategy centers on income through dividend-paying stocks and ETFs, with a smaller allocation to growth equities managed under a strict money-management framework.

Income planning Active portfolio management
user avatar

Brian C

Series 65

Solana Beach, CA

CSJ Wealth Management, LLC

Brian Caine is the principal advisor at CSJ Wealth Management, LLC, an independent firm based in Solana Beach, CA. He holds a Series 65 designation and has 29 years of industry experience, including prior roles at Caine Capital Management and CSJ Capital Advisors Inc. Outside of his advisory work, he is president of The Caine Group, Inc., and is involved in private real estate development and legal services. CSJ Wealth Management serves individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, ERISA plans, and certain corporate and institutional clients. The firm offers discretionary portfolio management, outsourced financial planning, and advice on private funds, employing a long-term, asset-class diversification strategy for individual accounts and a more active security-selection approach for pooled and institutional mandates.

Concentrated stock management Private / alternative investments Active portfolio management Tax-loss harvesting Founder/Business Owner
user avatar

Clair L

Series 63, Series 65

Rancho Santa Fe, CA

Leedom Asset Management, Inc.

Clair Leedom is the principal of Leedom Asset Management, Inc., an independent firm based in Rancho Santa Fe, CA. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has 20 years of industry experience. Prior to founding Leedom Asset Management in 2007, he has been involved with California Equity Research since 2003, where he also serves as chairman of the board. Leedom Asset Management provides discretionary portfolio management for individual investors, charitable organizations, and pension/profit-sharing plans. The firm manages equity and fixed-income portfolios, operates a private pooled investment vehicle, and employs a growth-oriented strategy focused on small- to mid-cap emerging-growth stocks using a proprietary strength indicator and a combination of fundamental and technical analysis.

Active portfolio management Concentrated stock management Options & derivatives strategies Private / alternative investments Founder/Business Owner
user avatar

John M

Series 65

Poway, CA

Engineering Financial Independence, Inc.

John Malaney is the principal advisor at Engineering Financial Independence, Inc., holding a Series 65 designation with three years of industry experience. He also works as a Program Manager at General Atomics, a role he has held since 2012. Engineering Financial Independence, Inc. provides portfolio management and financial planning primarily for individual and high-net-worth clients, combining fundamental analysis, modern portfolio theory, and quantitative methods. The firm offers written Investment Policy Statements and free educational content such as newsletters and blog posts, with an investment approach that includes equity recommendations and options strategies.

Options & derivatives strategies Active portfolio management Engineering Professional FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early)
user avatar

Robert L

Series 63, Series 66

San Diego, CA

Torrey Wealth, LLC

Robert Leuffen is a financial advisor at Torrey Wealth, LLC in San Diego, CA, with 21 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 66 licenses and has worked at TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services and TIAA prior to joining Torrey Wealth in 2020. Torrey Wealth is an independent registered investment adviser serving individuals, trusts and estates, corporations, and pension or profit-sharing plan sponsors. The firm manages portfolios using diversified allocations of low-cost ETFs, fixed income, and alternative investments, employing a range of analytical methods and offering wrap asset management alongside comprehensive financial planning and consulting services.

General retirement planning Charitable giving & philanthropy College savings (529s, UTMA, etc.) General tax planning Tax-loss harvesting
user avatar

Earl W

Series 66

San Diego, CA

Spirit Global Investment Advisors, LLC

Earl Wong is a financial advisor at Spirit Global Investment Advisors, LLC with 14 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has been with Spirit Global since 2013. Outside of his advisory role, he manages One Road Media Ventures, focusing on developing and distributing global media projects with an emphasis on partnerships in Asia. Spirit Global Investment Advisors serves family offices, ultra-high-net-worth individuals, and institutional investors with integrated wealth management, combining public-market portfolio management, alternative fund access, and institutional-grade digital asset services. The firm employs a manager-of-managers approach with significant allocations to alternatives and digital assets, primarily targeting sophisticated and institutional mandates.

Private / alternative investments Tax-loss harvesting Real estate investing Wealth management Founder/Business Owner Executive Retired
Warmer team member

Not sure where to start?

We'll help you think it through – whether you ultimately need an advisor or not.

Call (201) 292-4557

Warmer provides personalized recommendations and introductions to independent fiduciary advisors. We do not supervise advisors, manage or hold assets, guarantee performance, or provide advice about specific investments.

Each advisor listed on our site is an independent fiduciary responsible for their own advice. Warmer may receive fees from advisors for participation or referrals; these fees are paid by advisors and do not affect the fees clients pay for advisory services.

For advisor listings, we rely on sources including public filings and data provided by advisors, and we cannot guarantee that all information is current or accurate. Please review an advisor's Form ADV and do your own diligence before entering into an advisory relationship.

By using our service, you agree to Warmer's Terms of Service and Advisory Agreement and Privacy Policy. Logos provided by Logo.dev

© 2026 Warmer Holdings Inc. ("Warmer")