Playbook

Daniel Fagan, MSPFP, MPA, AIF, is managing partner at Radiant Wealth Management, an independent firm in Connecticut specializing in financial planning for academics, physicians and high net worth families.

He previously spent 17 years at TIAA advising faculty at top universities including Yale, UConn, Wesleyan and other leading institutions.

Russell Curzon has over 20 years of commercial experience in the payments industry. As vice president of commercial sales at Nuvei, Curzon and his team are building Nuvei's market share in the UK and Ireland and helping businesses with Nuvei's next-generation payments technology.

As Gen Z navigates student debt, housing costs and a slew of other financial pressures, many have become disillusioned with the possibility of retirement. Financial advisors say that can make planning difficult, but not impossible.

Sean Graham is a registered CPA, real estate investor and founder of Maven Cost Segregation. With a background in public accounting, tax strategy, and private equity, he helps real estate investors unlock major tax savings through cost segregation studies. Through Maven Cost Segregation, he brings institutional-grade strategies to everyday investors — making it simple and affordable to accelerate depreciation and reduce taxable income.

Social Security claims are up, suggesting retirees are worried about the program. We asked advisors if the economy and solvency of the program have them changing their strategies.

UBS continues to lose larger advisory teams after making changes to compensation policies last year. Meanwhile, Ashton Thomas and LPL both score advisory teams.

Even without net new assets, the firm's assets under management and administration were pushed upward by market gains.

Areas around Jackson Hole, Aspen, Palm Beach, Miami, New York, Dallas and Austin are in the group. Other top performers may come as more of a surprise.

Graham Tasman is principal of advisory services at Grant Thornton Advisors LLC.

Vikrant Rai is the managing director of the risk advisory practice at Grant Thornton Advisors LLC.