Ben Bouman
Los Alamos native Ben Bouman has chosen a good time to open his Los Alamos office. Los Alamos National Laboratory has changed its 403(b) and 457 retirement plans and many people are confused or unhappy with their choices.
Bouman is a financial advisor, and his company, Alpine Financial Partners opened its Los Alamos office in the Mary Deal Building this June. Bouman and Alpine Financial Partners are part of the Cetera Advisors, LLC network of advisors. Cetera Advisors, LLC is an independent broker/dealer based in Denver, Colo.
One of the changes to the plans is that they now included a “brokerage window”, which allows investors to finally retain advisory support to help manage their investments and gives them access to a much broader array of choices than those available within the plans.
Bouman has been in the financial industry since 2002. He returned home to Los Alamos in 2009 accepting a contract position with a local Credit Union. In 2013 he hung his own shingle and has been operating as an independent financial advisor in Santa Fe. Since so many of his clients are in Los Alamos, Bouman decided to open an office here.
“What makes me unique is my investment philosophy,” Bouman said. “I come up with creative solutions rather than cookie cutter solutions.”
Bouman works closely with each of his clients to find unique solutions that are best for them.
“I’m as invested in my clients as they are in me,” he said.
Bouman extends his philosophy of investing in people beyond his work. He’s an officer of the Los Alamos Elks Lodge, works with United Way of Northern New Mexico, The Los Alamos Chamber of Commerce, and works with Self Help Inc. and is active with the nonprofit Foundation for Financial Wellness, which promotes finance education.
Bouman is an independent Investment Advisor Represented (IAR), which means he has a vast array of investment companies and products available to him on his broker/dealer platform. It also allows him to conduct fee based planning as well as transactional.
“I can look for the best investments in any category. I’m not tied to proprietary products or sales goals as a captive agent would be,” he said.
Bouman is the only IAR in Los Alamos with access to The Pacific Financial Group. Companies like TPFG take fiduciary responsibility for and manage the brokerage window option in retirement plans.
“I’m very excited about TPFG,” he said. “They have 32 unique portfolios to choose from better suited to an individual’s time horizon and risk tolerance and their historical rate of return has been very positive.”
Why work with a professional like Bouman instead of managing investments yourself?
“Studies have found that investors earn three percent more when they work with a professional, and that’s after the fees they pay for advice,” Bouman said.
“Investing can be intimidating,” Bouman said. “It starts with education and understanding.”
What is Bouman’s business philosophy?
“Don’t trip over dimes to get to dollars,” he said. “Treat people right and the rest will come.”
Bouman can be reached at 505.500.8420 bbouman@ceteraadvisors.com.
