Kathleen McQuade is a Certified Financial Planner® with three years of industry experience, operating as the sole advisor at her independent firm in Laurel, MD. She has been managing her practice since 2010 and holds a Series 65 license. Her firm provides fee-only financial planning and consulting services to individual clients, focusing on investment, retirement, insurance, education, and estate planning. The practice employs a long-term, buy-and-hold investment approach, primarily recommending no-load, low-cost, tax-efficient mutual funds with asset allocation as the key factor in portfolio returns.

Stanley Liu is the principal of DocEmpowered, LLC, a fee-only financial advisory firm based in Baltimore, MD. He holds a Series 65 designation and has one year of industry experience. Prior to founding DocEmpowered in 2023, he worked for eight years at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. In addition to his advisory role, Mr. Liu practices part-time as a non-invasive cardiologist. DocEmpowered, LLC provides comprehensive financial planning and consulting primarily for physicians and their adult household family members. The firm emphasizes long-term, passive investment strategies based on Modern Portfolio Theory and behavioral finance, offering project-based and ongoing services without discretionary management or custody of assets.

Hi, I’m Matt. My job as a financial planner is to make your life simpler. To help you efficiently and effectively narrow down your options, so you can make the right decisions. And be confident in those decisions for the long-term. Financial planning and investment management are often muddied by unnecessary complexity (usually in an effort to sell you something). It doesn’t need to be this way. I began my career in the financial services industry in 2003 as an analyst with the due diligence law firm Snyder Kearney, LLC (Columbia, MD). At Snyder Kearney, I reviewed public and private securities offerings and evaluated national securities sponsoring companies, focusing on real estate investments and non-traditional investment products. It was there that I realized that I wanted to know more about the practice of law and a lot more about the pretty co-worker in the cubicle next to me, Sylvie. I earned my law degree in 2007 from the University of Baltimore School of Law and married Sylvie in 2008; further proof that education and personal relationships are the investments that produce the best returns. After law school, I practiced law with the firm David Albert & Associates, LLC (Bethesda, MD), focusing in estate planning and administration, guardianship administration, taxation of estates and trusts, and business formations. There, I recognized that helping clients through complicated and often stressful issues was intellectually stimulating and emotionally fulfilling. In 2010, I opened Patuxent Financial Partners, LLC, registered as an Investment Adviser with the State of Maryland in 2017. Here, I leverage my legal background to provide clients with value-added insight in the overlapping areas of estate and financial planning. More importantly, as a personal financial planner and small business owner, I can build lasting relationships with clients and their families; these connections make my work fulfilling, because client success becomes intertwined with my own. I am a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ practitioner and hold the FINRA Series 65 securities registration. Raised in Columbia, Maryland, I graduated from McDaniel College with a bachelor's degree in English. Outside of the office, I enjoy running, reading, and hiking with my wife, son, and our mutt hound, Kodi.

Gabriel Trasatti is a financial advisor at Trasatti Wealth Planning, LLC in Baltimore, MD, with 15 years of industry experience. He holds the PFS™ and Series 66 designations and has led his independent firm since 2004. His background includes advanced financial planning and accounting credentials. Trasatti Wealth Planning provides comprehensive financial planning and investment management to individuals, families, charitable institutions, foundations, and corporate pension or profit-sharing plans. The firm offers customized investment strategies with continuous monitoring and formal quarterly reviews, integrating holistic planning across retirement, tax, estate, and cash-flow matters.

Jeffery Holmes is a financial advisor at Investream with seven years of industry experience. He holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at firms including Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch. Holmes is also a licensed real estate agent. Investream is a single-advisor independent investment adviser serving individual and high-net-worth clients, providing portfolio management and customized Investment Policy Statements. The firm utilizes a multi-method investment approach, including fundamental and technical analysis, options strategies, and both discretionary and non-discretionary account management.

Gregory Fridley is a financial advisor at Society Investment Management in Baltimore, MD, holding Series 63 and Series 65 designations with three years of industry experience. He has worked at Financial First Advisors since 1991 and has managed his own business, Taxbusters, since 1990. Society Investment Management provides personalized financial planning and discretionary investment management to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and small businesses. The firm operates on a fee-only basis, emphasizing growth and income investment strategies while incorporating tax preparation and electronic filing as part of its advisory services.

Christopher Mamunes is a financial advisor at Railroad Street Wealth Management, LLC with 29 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has led his independent firm since 2014. Railroad Street Wealth Management provides customized investment management and periodic financial planning to individual and high-net-worth clients. The firm manages approximately $20.4 million across 55 client relationships, using a tactical, rules-based investment process that combines technical analysis with a relative-strength framework to guide portfolio construction and risk management.

Samuel Asare is a financial advisor at Laser Wealth Management, LLC in Kensington, MD, holding a ChFC® designation along with Series 63 and Series 65 licenses. He has 13 years of industry experience, previously affiliated with Laser Financial Group. Outside of advisory services, he is a licensed insurance agent and provides tax planning and filing services as an enrolled agent and bookkeeper. Laser Wealth Management serves individual clients and business owners by offering investment advice, financial planning, and consulting. The firm uses a third-party manager to implement investment strategies based on Modern Portfolio Theory, focusing on asset allocation and periodic rebalancing, while providing clients with plan development, reviews, and educational seminars.

Anvar Izbakiev is a CFP® professional with seven years of industry experience. He is the principal of Serenity Wealth Advisors LLC in Baltimore, MD, and has prior experience with National Accounting Services Inc. In addition to his advisory work, he owns and operates Ameritax Accounting and Finance, Inc., an accounting and tax preparation business. Serenity Wealth Advisors provides financial planning and employee benefit plan services to individuals, high-net-worth clients, corporations, and employer plan sponsors. The firm uses a primarily passive investment approach focused on low costs, limited turnover, and tax efficiency, and offers a range of planning services including ongoing subscription-style engagements, fixed-fee projects, and hourly consultations.

Jonathan Mathews is a CFP® professional with four years of experience in financial planning. He is the sole advisor at Nautical Financial Planning, an independent firm he has led since 2018. Mathews also works as a tax advisor with Block Advisors, providing personal and business tax preparation and planning. Nautical Financial Planning offers fee-only, hourly and project-based financial planning and consultation to individuals, couples, families, and business entities. The firm focuses on globally diversified, low-cost, tax-efficient passive investments and provides clients with guidance on asset allocation, custodial setup, and periodic portfolio reviews without managing assets directly.

Robert Sandler is the principal and sole advisor at Robert A. Sandler, LLC, an independent firm based in Clarksville, MD. He holds a Series 65 designation and has eight years of industry experience, including four years at Element Fleet Management prior to founding his current firm in 2017. Robert A. Sandler, LLC provides personalized financial planning and investment management primarily for individual clients, focusing on diversified, low-cost index mutual funds and ETFs with a buy-and-hold approach. The firm emphasizes customized risk profiles, periodic rebalancing, and operates on a fee-only basis without commission arrangements or custody of client assets.

Stephen Lee is the principal of Lee Financial Group, Inc. in Columbia, MD, and holds the CFP® designation and Series 63 license. He has 45 years of industry experience and has been associated with Raymond James Financial in various capacities since 2004. Outside of financial advising, he is the owner of a law office focusing on wills, trusts, and powers of attorney, and serves on the advisory board for River Hill FBLA, providing student mentoring. Lee Financial Group offers individualized financial planning and wealth management advice to individuals and families, including high-net-worth clients, trusts, and charitable organizations. The firm provides written financial plans through a data-gathering process and offers follow-up consultations, with investment recommendations based on fundamental, technical, and cyclical analysis.

Lorie Scheibel is the principal of Smarter and Wise, an independent financial advisory firm, with 15 years of industry experience. She holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at firms including Cambridge Investment Research Advisors and Lincoln Financial Advisors. Scheibel also serves as adjunct faculty at Anne Arundel Community College and operates as an independent insurance agent. Smarter and Wise provides financial planning and discretionary wealth management to individuals nearing retirement, high-net-worth clients, and sponsor-level retirement plans. The firm employs a planning-first approach centered on a comprehensive RetireSmarter process, incorporating risk modeling and ongoing portfolio management, and offers specialized investment real estate planning alongside retirement plan advisory services.

Matthew Wyskiel is the sole advisor at Skill Capital Management in Baltimore, MD, holding a Series 63 designation with four years of industry experience. He has been with Skill Capital Management since 2007, serving as its founder and sole owner. Skill Capital Management provides discretionary portfolio management to individual clients, primarily using Vanguard index mutual funds to offer diversified exposure across U.S. and international equities and U.S. investment-grade fixed income. The firm manages separate accounts with standardized model portfolios and rebalances client allocations quarterly.

Patrick Tuma is a CFP® professional with 23 years of experience in financial advising. He has worked at Financial Dimensions, Inc. from 1997 to 2024 and has been the principal of Tuma Financial, LLC since 2016. In addition to his advisory role, he also practices as an accountant, providing services outside the advisory business. Tuma Financial, LLC offers portfolio management and financial planning primarily to individual and high-net-worth clients. The firm uses fundamental analysis and modern portfolio theory for asset allocation and security selection, combining long-term strategies with options trading while maintaining documented risk tolerances and quarterly account reviews.

David Merkel is a CFA charterholder and principal of Aleph Investments, LLC, an independent advisory firm he founded in 2010. He has 15 years of industry experience. Outside of his advisory work, he maintains AlephBlog.com, a website providing educational content for investors since 2007. Aleph Investments manages discretionary portfolios primarily for individual investors, as well as charitable organizations and small pension clients. The firm employs fundamental equity analysis and a risk-conscious fixed income approach, offering strategies including a yield-oriented balanced portfolio and customizable accounts, with features such as hedged equity options and client-imposed ethical restrictions.

Chung Hei Sing is a financial advisor at Applied Derivative Research (ADR) with four years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has worked at Arquitos Capital Management and UNC Management Company prior to joining ADR. He serves as a board member of the Maryland Technology Development Corporation, an organization focused on economic development through early-stage investments. Applied Derivative Research provides discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management and advisory services to high-net-worth individuals, institutional investors, and pooled investment vehicles. The firm combines bottom-up fundamental research with a thematic top-down overlay emphasizing sustainable and impact-oriented opportunities, employing customized mandates and offering both strategic asset allocation advice and active portfolio implementation.

Michael Worch is the principal advisor at Worch Financial Group, LLC, an independent firm based in Rockville, MD. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has nine years of industry experience. His prior work includes roles at The Financial Xchange and 1939 Capital, LLC. Worch is also a licensed insurance agent and dedicates a significant portion of his practice to insurance sales. Worch Financial Group serves individual and high-net-worth clients, providing financial planning, portfolio management through third-party money managers, and access to pooled investments. The firm emphasizes fundamental analysis and uses both long- and short-term trading strategies, often implementing investment solutions via referrals rather than direct discretion over client accounts.

Kendell Phillip is a financial advisor at Lockstep Financial LLC with five years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Maverick Trading and Northrop Grumman. Lockstep Financial LLC is an independent advisory firm serving individual and high-net-worth clients with financial planning and discretionary portfolio management. The firm employs a primarily passive investment approach using index funds and ETFs, supplemented by fundamental and technical analysis, and manages held-away assets through third-party platforms.

Maureen Mcshane is a financial advisor at Capital Investment Management Inc. with 20 years of industry experience. She holds a Series 66 designation and has worked at Capital Investment Management since 2007, following a prior role at H. Beck, Inc. Mcshane is also licensed as an independent insurance agent. Capital Investment Management provides non-discretionary investment supervisory services primarily to individuals and high-net-worth clients, including trusts, estates, IRAs, and 401(k) accounts. The firm’s approach centers on diversified, risk-based allocations implemented mainly through mutual funds and Modern Portfolio Theory, with ongoing client approval of investment actions.