About
Who we work with
Life is busy. Between work, kids and a hundred other priorities, learning more about your 401k investment options or choosing between Roth or Traditional contributions is rarely at the top of the list. But financial decisions, or lack of decisions, can be very consequential over time. Voyageur works with individuals and business owners who are seeking to maximize their financial well-being, yet recognize that they lack the time, interest, or specific knowledge needed to make all the decisions alone.
Individual Investors
Whether you’re starting a career, starting a family, or starting to think about retirement, we can help sort through all your options and provide the tools and guidance you need to move forward with confidence.
Don’t already have a large nest egg? No problem. Our process is designed to give you the help you need, no matter what your current financial situation is.
Business Owners
With increasing employee demand for greater benefits, selecting the right retirement plan for your business can be an important part of making sure you are able to attract and maintain great employees. But selecting the right retirement plan can be a daunting task and can take focus away from running your business. Let Voyageur help.
We will help you select, design and maintain a cost-effective retirement plan, so you can stay competitive in the labor market and get back to more important things.
Why Voyageur
Most advisors today get paid in one of two ways. They charge either as a percentage of assets under management, or they earn commissions when you make trades or buy products.
Both of these approaches incentivize advisors to conveniently omit or dissuade against differing (and possibly better) solutions for their clients, because if they don’t generate trades or accumulate assets, they don’t get paid. Are you receiving truly unbiased advice if your advisor’s income is entirely dependent on you making trades or having your assets at their firm? We don’t think so.
We don’t earn commissions, nor do we get paid solely based on how much money you have. That means our focus can be on giving you the best possible advice and superior service.
With over a decade of experience working with hundreds of clients, we have the knowledge and experience to develop and execute a well-thought-out plan. Yet, our learning is never complete. We believe that in keeping the mindset of a student, we will continue to become better advisors. Day after day, we hone our craft and challenge “the way it’s done,” in order to maintain a high level of service and to ensure we’re giving the best advice.
A fancy looking plan isn’t very useful if it doesn’t provide you with clear and actionable advice. There is also limited usefulness in trying to project how the next 10, 20, or 40 years of your life will unfold. While these tools can provide meaningful support, we believe that real value comes from taking the time to think deeply about your situation and working together to develop solutions that are based on thought-provoking conversations and a thorough understanding of your thoughts and feelings around money.
We believe almost everyone could benefit from our guidance. Yet not everyone is ready for an ongoing relationship, or for someone else to manage their investments. Through our initial planning engagement, we’ll provide you with all the recommendations and follow-up assistance you need to get pointed in the right direction, with no additional strings attached.
For those looking for access to professional advice and support whenever they need it, we offer ongoing planning and investment management services.
Finance and investing can be complex and at times, confusing. Often, it can take several conversations to fully review a concept or recommendation. Occasionally, all it takes is conveying the message a bit differently. We believe that in order to build trust and confidence, our role should not be limited to just making strong recommendations, but also taking the time to make sure you understand the “why” behind the recommendation.
About Matt
Matt’s love for investing began when he purchased his first stock at age 13. Since then, his passion has evolved and grown beyond just buying stocks. Over the years, he has seen in the lives of those closest to him and experienced in his own life, the value of good financial decisions and the consequences of bad ones.
Matt has over a decade of industry experience. He previously worked at one of the largest wealth management firms in the world, working directly with hundreds of clients, ranging from those just starting out in their careers, to business owner’s worth tens of millions, to retirees looking to make sure their money lasts. After much thought, Matt launched Voyageur Capital Advisors with the idea that creating a firm hyper-focused on advice and service over products and sales, would greatly benefit clients in the long-run.
When not working with clients, Matt enjoys home improvement projects, exploring the natural world via camping, hiking, and canoeing and serving his community as a part-time firefighter for Hopkins. Matt and his wife, Kristin, welcomed their first son, Woods, in February 2022. They also have a 4-year old chocolate lab, named Marshall. Marshall does not enjoy splitting attention with Woods.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, but there is a big distinction between fee-only and flat-fee. Fee-only simply means that the advisor does not earn commissions on trades or product sales. Most fee-only advisors earn money by charging based on a percentage of assets that they manage.
For example, if you have a $1 million portfolio and the advisor charges you a 1% fee, you pay $10,000 per year. The amount you pay changes every time, but the percentage stays the same. Under this model, if you rolled over your old 401k, with a balance of $500,000, your fee may increase to $15,000 ($1.5 million x 1%), even if the advisor doesn’t have to do any additional work.
Flat-fee is also “fee-only,” as flat-fee advisors also do not earn commissions, but instead of charging as percentage of assets, it is simply a flat dollar amount. This means your fee doesn’t automatically increase just because the market had a good year, or you rolled over an old 401k.
Voyageur charges on a flat-fee basis. We believe this is the most straightforward and transparent way to help our clients. Our view is that clients should be charged based on their needs, not simply by how much money they have. It also frees us from endlessly trying to get clients to rollover more assets or sell them products and allows more time for service and advice.
Clients pay us directly for our services, either through bank draft, credit card, or direct billing from an investment account. We try to make it crystal clear to clients how much they’re paying and what they’re receiving in exchange.
For anyone who chooses to use our investment management services, we require at least $250,000 of investable assets. There is no investment minimum for anyone who only wants to use our financial planning services.
Client assets are held at Charles Schwab. Charles Schwab serves as the custodian of the assets and Voyageur serves as the independent investment advisor.
That is your choice, but it is not required to work with with us. Our business is structured so that you can continue managing your own investments, have us manage them for you, or a combination of the two.
Yes, we are. A fiduciary is someone who is legally obligated to put client interests ahead of their own.
Non-fiduciary advisors only have to make suitable recommendations. Those recommendations may or may not be what is best for the client.
No. At the start of our relationship, you will sign a 3-month commitment that ensures we’re compensated for all the work performed during the initial planning engagement. Ongoing services can be cancelled at any time.
We use the financial planning process to identify insurance needs and make coverage recommendations, but when it comes time to purchase insurance, we either encourage you to get in touch with an agent you know and trust, or we’re happy to refer one to you. We receive no compensation for insurance or referrals.