LPL’s Still the Best Place to Be

Financial advisor Christopher Neubert wouldn’t want to be anywhere else

Christopher Neubert, J.D., CFP, and president of MONECO Advisors, LLC [i.e., MONECO] has been with LPL Financial for almost 30 years, and he hasn’t regretted a single moment. “We wouldn’t do what we do with any other group,” he says, “and if I were to do it again, I would still pick LPL.”
 

Chris sees his partnership with LPL as just that — a true partnership — and for him, LPL’s been a key partner in his growth.

A leader in the financial advisory space

Chris primarily selected LPL for our Strategic Asset Management (SAM) advisory platform. “LPL was the leader in fee-based asset management — no one else was really doing it then,” he says, “and while things have changed, I still believe LPL is the leader in this space. We started with SAM, and now we are using SWM (Strategic Wealth Management) as a hybrid firm.”

MONECO became a hybrid firm in October 2014 and is now going on its sixth year. While the hybrid support model at LPL has been an ongoing evolution, Chris feels LPL’s flexibility and willingness to provide a variety of support has been evident every step of the way.

“We became a hybrid a couple of years after SWM was rolled out, and it has been a tremendous growth tool for us,” he says. “The hybrid business model has evolved over time, and we are being well supported. I appreciate the number of options LPL provides, even beyond the different revenue-sharing models. In fact, there are more than five different ways someone can do business with LPL now — that represents tremendous flexibility.”

A story of commitment and partnership

From the very beginning, Chris has felt LPL’s focus is on the advisor and, while LPL has grown tremendously since he joined the firm in the 1990s, he feels nothing has changed.

“Back then, when I was perhaps the 1,000^th rep, the home office knew me individually and placed an emphasis on thanking advisors for our business,” he says. “Now, there are approximately 16,000 advisors, and I still get that feeling of partnership — especially in the past five years under Dan’s leadership. You hear ‘we’re one team on one mission,’ and I truly believe that is the case.”

Chris says his story has been one of wonderful growth, thanks, in part, to LPL’s support. “We feel that LPL’s support has been critically important every step of the way,” he says.

“We have been and continue to be committed to growth, and LPL has been committed to supporting our growth 100% by providing whatever we needed. It is truly a partnership.”

As an example, Chris talks about adding new advisors and advisor groups to MONECO’s practice in recent years, and how LPL has helped make that happen.

“LPL has put an emphasis on connecting financial advisors, especially by supporting acquisitions and promoting succession planning, which is a huge move,” he says. “They have provided capital to help us when we have needed it and offered legal, business, and financial guidance when asked. That support has contributed to our growth significantly and concurrently builds the strength of LPL overall by retention of the business. Win-Win!”
 

No other choice but LPL

Chris says that he and his MONECO associates get calls from other firms, but they won’t even take the calls anymore. “It is hard for me to believe that any other broker/dealer or custodian could have something LPL doesn’t offer,” he says. “We have everything we need at LPL.” 

On top of the support, Chris is always impressed with LPL’s staff as well. “I think the personnel is fantastic,” he says. “My wealth consultant and business consultant have both been instrumental in my firm’s growth.”

When all is said and done, there’s nowhere else Chris would want to be. “Nothing is perfect — of course there are going to be bumps in the road,” he says, “and sometimes it is us [the advisor] who cause the bumps! Whatever challenges we have encountered, LPL has been right there with us, helping us address the issue in front of us and supporting our continued growth. Simply put, at the end of the day, you could not find a better firm to be affiliated with.”

The views and opinions expressed by the LPL financial professional may not be representative of the views of other financial professionals and are not indicative of future performance or success. Neither LPL Financial nor the LPL financial professional can be held responsible for any direct or incidental loss incurred by applying any of the information offered.