Our Affiliations
We have allied our core team of in-house professionals with recognized coaching and credentialing programs which provide us with support, resources and ongoing research. Our affiliations enable us to continually offer best-in-class services and cutting-edge wealth management to every client.
FINANCIAL PLANNING ASSOCIATION™ (FPA)
The advisors at Northstar are all members of the Financial Planning Association™ (FPA), a membership organization for the financial planning community. FPA is the largest association of professionals dedicated to championing the financial planning process. FPA members are committed to supporting the financial planning process and to helping people make smarter decisions to achieve their goals and dreams. FPA believes that everyone needs professional, objective advice to make smart financial decisions.
KINDER INSTITUTE
Where “financial planning meets life planning,” the Kinder Institute provides us with many of our materials and methodologies for working closely with clients to discover — and plan for — their deepest and most profound goals. By applying a structured but flexible process for listening and inquiry, we conduct life planning for our clients according to the Kinder Institute program. More meaningful than conventional financial plans, life planning focuses on the human side of the financial process.
Robin Young CFP® has earned her Registered Life Planner ("RLP®") designation by completing Kinder Institute’s five-day intensive training program as well as a six month practicum involving peer review and mentor coaching.
SUDDEN MONEY INSTITUTE
Northstar is among an elite group in the New England region to serve as Certified Financial Transitionists (CeFT), a division of the Sudden Money Institute. which means our leadership has completed the highest level of training in conjunction with ongoing group coaching. This practical experience contributes greatly to our ability to help individuals manage the financial, emotional, behavioral and cognitive stresses related to significant life transitions. Whether the transitions are due to influxes of wealth or other life-altering events, we have both passion for and experience in helping clients achieve effective life and financial decision-making during periods of upheaval.
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®
Each of our Northstar advisors has met the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® Board of Standards Inc.’s rigorous certification standards and is authorized to serve as a CFP® professional, providing personal financial planning.
DIMENSIONAL FUND ADVISORS
We turn to fund manager Dimensional Fund Advisors for the majority of our recommended holdings within clients' low-cost, globally diversified portfolios. This is not because we are beholden to Dimensional in any way. To best fulfill our fiduciary obligation to serve clients' highest interests, we are a fee-only firm, accepting no commissions from third-party providers. We do, however, hold a shared view with Dimensional about how capital markets work and how best to provide clients with a successful investment experience; we are among a select group of advisors with access to the firm's fund offerings.
CHARLES SCHWAB & CO., INC.
Northstar has selected Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. ("Schwab") as primary custodian for our clients' accounts. Having Schwab act as custodian for client assets provides us access to a wide range of services that help us serve our clients.
THE FINANCIAL PSYCHOLOGY INSTITUTE™
The mission of the Financial Psychology Institute™ is to increase the understanding of how psychological factors impact financial behaviors and establish evidenced-based practices for improving clients’ financial health. Julie Fortin, CFP® has earned the Certified Financial Behavior Specialist ("FBS®") designation by completing the Financial Psychology & Behavioral Finance program through Creighton University and demonstrated additional Financial Psychology Institute competency requirements.
AMERICAN ENDOWMENT FOUNDATION
Established in 1993, American Endowment Foundation is a leading, national, independent sponsor of Donor Advised Funds. AEF is distinguished from most other sponsors of Donor Advised Funds by the fact that they are wholly independent. They offer a neutral platform for investment flexibility and grantmaking, as well as administrative expertise geared to personalized charitable management.
FEE-ONLY NETWORK
Robin Young is a member of The Fee-Only Network, a network of fee-only fiduciary financial advisors.
INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY OF COLLABORATIVE PROFESSIONALS (IACP)
Collaborative Practice is a voluntary dispute resolution process for divorcing families in which parties settle without resort to litigation.
MODERN WIDOW'S CLUB - SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE CHAPTER
Modern Widow’s Club mission is to provide a safe and supportive environment that empowers widows to move forward on their journey with the help of other widows who have walked before them.
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF PERSONAL FINANCIAL ADVISORS
National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) is the country’s leading professional association of Fee-Only financial advisors—highly trained professionals who are committed to working in the best interests of those they serve.
NAPFA members live by three important values:
- To be the beacon for independent, objective financial advice for individuals and families.
- To be the champion of financial services delivered in the public interest.
- To be the standard bearer for the emerging profession of financial planning.
FINANCIAL TRANSITIONIST INSTITUTE
We at the Financial Transitionist Institute (FTI) have an intention. We want to change the financial services profession. We want financial advice to be a true collaboration of human beings. And in order to do that, we need to change not only what we are doing but how we are being as financial advisors. Financial Transitions Planning is a specialty created to fill a gap in the world of financial advisory. It was born out of the desire to identify and work through the struggles that lead to problems for the client as well as for the client-advisor relationship during major life transitions.