The questions everyone asks first.

Most families who hire us are within ten years of retirement, one side or the other, with portfolios that have grown past $1 million. They did the saving themselves, carefully, over decades. What they want now is to hand off the weight — the monitoring, the tax decisions, the what-ifs — to someone obligated to carry it properly.

A single fee, set down in writing and visible on every statement, calculated on the assets we manage. That is the firm’s entire revenue — no commissions, no product payouts, no referral arrangements. The accounts are yours, held at Schwab, so if money moved any other way, you would see it. And when the survey turns up an old annuity or a genuine insurance need, Ruth holds the licenses to handle it inside the firm instead of sending you to a salesperson.

Yes, in the strict legal sense: Stratton is a fee-only fiduciary, and the duty to put your interests first covers every recommendation we make — there is no hat-switching. The office is in Traverse City; the 140+ families are not. Most reviews happen over video, and we will meet however suits you.

Nothing. The first conversation costs nothing and commits you to nothing. You ask your questions, we ask ours, and both sides decide whether this is the right place for your plan. If it is not, we will tell you plainly and suggest where to look instead.

We talk — about where you are, what enough looks like for you, and what’s been keeping you up at night. Nothing to prepare, nothing to bring except your questions. From there, if it makes sense, we survey the full picture and show you what the Bedrock System would look like built on your numbers.