11 Mike Thompson
– Company: UBS Financial Services
– Location: Mission Viejo
– Years in business: 19
– Education: finance bachelor’s, Miami University of Ohio
With $525 million under management, Mike Thompson likes to keep it simple.
Most of his clients are small-business owners and professionals who come to him for retirement planning.
Working with just one assistant forces him to work with his clients directly, rather than with a junior partner, Thompson said.
He is married with two kids. Originally from Chicago, he enjoys sports and playing in a softball league.
12 Karl Romero
– Company: LPL Financial Services
– Location: Santa Ana
– Years in business: 36
– Education: finance, economics bachelor’s, California State University, Long Beach
A retired Army lieutenant, Karl Romero is big on discipline and persistence.
Managing $150 million, he invests for the long term, using five basic portfolios models that have matched the performance of major benchmarks such as the S & P; 500 index.
A typical client will have $500,000 invested with him.
Private placements in downtown Los Angeles real estate have been one of his more popular investments, Romero said.
Rather than manage a large pool of clients, Romero says he prefers to have a small but loyal base.
He is married with four kids and loves traveling. Two of his children work with him as advisers.
13 Christopher Price
– Company: Smith Barney
– Location: Laguna Niguel
– Education: bachelor’s in computer science, University of California, Irvine
Chris Price works with clients across various industries throughout Southern California.
With about $440 million under management, his typical client will have $1 million to $2 million in assets. A typical account with Price will be anywhere from $750,000 to $2 million.
Working mostly with executives, Price says he has a unique understanding of their complex finances.
He is a member of the retirement planning group at Smith Barney, and also educates people on the topic.
Price is married with three children.
14 David Runstrom
– Company: Merrill Lynch & Co.
– Location: Newport Beach
– Years in business: 31
– Education: bachelor’s California State University, Long Beach
Steady going suits David Runstrom’s investment style.
At the helm of $400 million of his clients’ money, he said he feels a strong sense of duty for what he does.
“My team members and I take ownership over what we do,” Runstrom said.
A typical account size with Runstrom is about $5 million.
Stocks, bonds, fixed income and alternative investments are the usual holdings of his accounts. He uses outside money managers to handle specific strategies.
After serving in the Navy, he entered Cal State Long Beach wanting to become an electrical engineer.
Out of college, he ran a circuit board company for a couple of years.
15 Rhonda Finby
– Years in business: 28
– Education: finance bachelor’s, California State University, Long Beach; master’s from College of Financial Planning, Denver
With Rhonda Finby’s career dedicated to retirement planning, she has spent a lot of time educating herself.
She helps manage $180 million in assets. An average account size is $1.5 million.
She also gives workshops to Fortune 500 companies, covering topics such as planning, pension options and individual retirement account rollovers.
She has been married for 12 years and has a 6-year-old son whom she enjoys surfing with.
16 Elizabeth Amendt
– Company: Citi Private Bank
– Location: Costa Mesa
– Years in business: 24
– Education: psychology bachelor’s, business master’s from University of California, Irvine
Giving wealth meaning is one of the perks Elizabeth Amendt says she offers clients.
She handles a half billion dollars for people with $25 million worth of investment money.
In Orange County, she has 20 of these clients. Many of them have acquired wealth through real estate.
Planning, managing portfolios, lending and even philanthropic advice are part of the package Amendt offers.
Amendt got into finance with Citigroup Inc.’s corporate banking division.
Amendt serves on the board of the Orangewood Children’s Foundation. She lives in Laguna Niguel with her husband and two children.
17 Richard Spraker
– Company: Wachovia Securities
– Location: Newport Beach
– Years in business: 38
– Education: finance bachelor’s, University of Southern California
With time on Richard Spraker’s hands while serving in the Army, he began to stick his nose into finance. He charted stocks simply because he had nothing else to do, he said.
With $350 million under management, the average wealth of his clients is $5 million to $10 million. The typical account size is about $2 million.
“I’ve always been a salesman,” he said.
A relationship with one of the county’s top medical companies helped advance his career, Spraker said.
After graduating from college he got into the business as a broker at Shearson Hamill & Co., in 1969. He formerly was at Prudential Financial Inc. when Wachovia Corp. bought it.
He is married with two children and enjoys international fly fishing and golf.
18 Janice Hobbs
– Company: JanHobbs Financial Group
– Location: Orange
– Years in business: 23
– Education: economics bachelor’s, San Diego State
University; business master’s, University of Southern California
It’s all about the big picture for this former beer seller at San Diego Padres and Chargers games.
Jan Hobbs runs her own operation, with about $250 million under management.
Her typical client’s worth is $1 million to $3 million. Her average account size falls between $1 million and $1.5 million.
“I know I picked the right profession because I look forward to reading the financial news on the weekends and getting back to work on Monday,” she said.
Hobbs serves as a director of the Saddleback Memorial Hospital Foundation. She also enjoys spending time with her family and friends.
19 Anouchka Balog
– Years in business: 20
– Education: finance bachelor’s, University of Montreal
Strategic planning is at the core of Anouchka Balog’s service.
As principal of the Balog Group, she works with clients in the $5 million to $10 million range. Her total assets under management are $300 million, with the average account size of $2 million to $5 million.
She is one of Smith Barney’s top 5% advisers. Prior to Smith Barney, she worked at Prudential Securities.
Outside work, Balog enjoys tennis, skiing, traveling and reading. She lives with her family in Laguna Niguel.
20 Jason Weaver
– Company: Ameriprise Financial
– Location: Huntington Beach
– Years in business: 10
– Education: bachelor’s, University of California, San Diego
As one of the youngest financial advisers on the list, Jason Weaver manages about $230 million. His investors tend to be worth less than $1 million, with an average account size of $250,000.
Weaver’s strategy involves seven models he created based on risk. Each one is designed to fit a basic risk tolerance match for his clients.
“I’ve always been a numbers person,” he said.
He attributes much of the growth of his business to referrals he gets from the accountants and lawyers of clients.
Another thing that helped his business grow was acquiring about $50 million in accounts from advisers who threw in the towel after the last bear market.
Weaver is married and has two kids. He is an avid tennis player and enjoys golf.
21 Thomas Scott
– Company: Scott Wealth Management Group Inc.
– Location: Irvine
– Education: certified financial planner certificate, University of Southern California
A demand for stability got Tom Scott into the business.
After his father, an entrepreneur, experienced wild financial swings from his work, Scott vowed he would never let that happen to himself.
His philosophy toward the market is to plan ahead, and keep the long term in view.
In managing $150 million in assets, his typical account size is about $1 million.
Scott said he especially likes to manage money that will mean something to someone, rather than for someone who doesn’t care.
“I’ve had no fewer than six deathbed calls from people saying thank you,” he said.
He has two daughters, enjoys squash and sailing. His girlfriend is professional ballerina Fabienne Levenson.
22 Mark Carroll
– Company: Morgan Stanley
– Location: Brea
– Education: certified financial planner certificate, Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
Mark Carroll describes himself as a generalist. Rather than fit a specific mold of investing, he believes that having a little bit of everything is the best long-term approach.
This means putting money into different types of stocks, including of large and small companies in various industries, as well as those in international markets.
With 200 household accounts, he handles more than the average adviser on the list.
With a typical account size of $1 million, his total assets managed come in at $275 million.
He has grown his business mostly through referrals from accountants and lawyers he works with, Carroll said.
Carroll is married with two children and enjoys hiking and travel.
23 Robert Rumishek
– Company: Smith Barney
– Years in business: 27
– Education: business bachelor’s, University of Hawaii, Honolulu
Bob Rumishek got into finance at the age of 12 when he bought his first stock. His career as a financial adviser began the way many have.
For 15 years he worked the seminar circuit in an effort to gain clients. Every other week he would pack up his gear and head out to a new business or community setting where he would educate audiences on the basics of investing as well as the goals of retirement.
From this groundwork, he was able to grow his assets managed to $200 million. The typical account size for him is $700,000.
He is married with two children and six grandchildren. He enjoys golf and traveling.
24 Brandon Hunt
– Years in business: 15
– Education: bachelor’s, University of Southern California
The prospect of unlimited upside lured Brandon Hunt into the financial advice business.
The former mortgage broker saw greater potential for himself managing wealth than he did arranging loans.
With $1.5 billion under management, Hunt is one of the largest advisers on the list. The average worth of his clients is about $10 million, with the typical account size of $1 million to $4 million.
“We want to achieve the maximum return possible with the least amount of risk,” he said.
Hunt is a deep-sea fisherman, and is chairman of the Billfish Foundation, a marine conservation group.
He is married with two kids.
25 Ed Levin
– Company: UBS Financial Services
– Location: Newport Beach
– Education: bachelor’s, California State University, Long Beach
Clients seeking the advice of Ed Levin mostly want to earn income on their wealth.
He manages $350 million for clients who have an average worth of $5 million and accounts in the $2 million to $5 million range.
As a fixed-income specialist, Levin says he’s best at arranging a consistent flow of cash from bonds and other income generating investments.
After a brief career in banking, he said he became a financial adviser because he thought it would be a lot more interesting.
He is married with three kids, enjoys reading, music and working with nonprofit organizations.
26 Gary Roney
– Years in business: 25
– Education: business bachelor’s, Tulane University
The perpetual change of the financial markets has kept Garey Roney an interested player throughout his career.
With his partner, Daniel Lucier, the two manage $640 million. Their clients’ worth ranges between $5 million and $20 million, with a typical account of $2 million to $10 million.
The two consult their clients on issues such as financial planning, strategic asset allocation and cash flow analysis, portfolio structure, and money manager analysis and implementation.
He is married with two kids. He enjoys playing golf, exercising and spending time with his family. He was also president of the Laguna Niguel Girls Softball League, which has grown to be one of the largest of its kind in the country, he said.
27 Daniel Lucier
– Company: Smith Barney
– Location: Irvine
– Years in business: 26
– Education: business administration bachelor’s, University of Vermont
Daniel Lucier came into financial advising right out of college.
He has been in a partnership with Garey Roney his entire career.
As part of Irvine-based MainStreet Group at Smith Barney, they manage $640 million.
Lucier says he provides his clients access to parent company Citigroup Inc.’s most senior strategic advisers in the areas of tax planning, estate planning, risk management, credit and lending.
Clients range from the wealthy, whose worth is around $5 million, to the more wealthy, who have at least $10 million.
He is married with three children and enjoys staying in shape and coaching soccer and lacrosse.
28 Shirley Quackenbush
– Company: Merrill Lynch & Co.
– Years in business: 23
Nice and easy is the way Shirley Quackenbush likes her investing.
Emphasizing consistency with low volatility, she manages $175 million with an average account size of $5 million.
Her clients make up some of the wealthiest in the county, with a typical worth of $20 million.
Hedge funds and private equity are the most common investments for achieving her goals, she said.
Quackenbush also uses a lot of math to measure risk and reward, she said.
“I spend as much time with the lawyers and accountants as I do with the clients,” Quackenbush said.
She is married with two children, enjoys cooking, long walks and planning for exotic travels.
29 Andrew Karlinski
– Company: AK Financial Group
– Education: bachelor’s, Queen’s College in New York
Independence has been the primal driving force behind Andrew Karlinski’s career.
As founder of Irvine-based AK Financial in 1976, Karlinski has spent his entire career outside the major investment banks that dominate his industry.
He handles $150 million, with average account sizes of $750,000 to $1 million.
Karlinksi’s average client is worth $1 million to $8 million.
He moved to Aspen 13 years ago. His firm and the majority of his clients remain in the county.
He is married with three children, two of whom are professional snowboarders. He also enjoys snowboarding.
30 Douglas Cosgrove
– Location: Newport Beach
– Years in business: 13
– Education: bachelor’s, San Diego State University
Following his father’s footsteps, Douglas Cosgrove entered the financial world at the same firm his father worked at for 30 years.
He started at PaineWebber before UBS AG bought it in 2000.
His approach is to grow wealth slowly, yet consistently.
“I’m looking for singles and doubles, not unsustainable growth,” Cosgrove said.
He manages $275 million in assets, with a typical account size of $1 million to $3 million.
His clients are worth from $2 million to $10 million. Most of them are pre-retirees.
Investing in stocks and bonds is his favored approach. Leary of hedge funds and annuities, Cosgrove keeps his clients out of them.
He is married with an 18-month-old, and enjoys skiing, biking, running, swimming and camping. He has also been a reserve police officer for about 15 years.
