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CS Planning
CS Planning was established in 2009 and operates out of Portland, Oregon. The firm is structured as a registered investment advisor, which means it is held to...
CS Planning
CS Planning was established in 2009 and operates out of Portland, Oregon. The firm is structured as a registered investment advisor, which means it is held to a fiduciary standard — it must put client interests ahead of its own when constructing portfolios and giving financial planning advice. This legal structure separates it from broker-dealers, who historically could recommend products that were merely "suitable" rather than optimal. The firm offers investment advisory services on a discretionary basis, meaning it makes buy-and-sell decisions inside client accounts without needing prior approval for each trade. Its stated service lines include portfolio management and financial planning. Public records indicate the firm serves individual investors, a common client base for RIAs outside major financial centers. Without public regulatory filings disclosing specific holdings, the exact asset-class mix is not publicly known, but most firms of this type construct portfolios from individual equities, fixed-income securities, ETFs, and mutual funds. Team size and total regulatory assets under management are not publicly disclosed in a verifiable, citable document — smaller RIAs can file as Exempt Reporting Advisers or state-level registrants where detailed Form ADV data is not equally accessible. The firm maintains a single office in Portland and has not publicly announced satellite locations, acquisitions, or high-profile hires. CS Planning's structure as a standalone RIA gives it a genuine structural difference from the wirehouses and bank-owned advisory practices that dominate wealth management in the Pacific Northwest. It is not an office of supervision for a larger broker-dealer; it is its own legal entity. That independence means its portfolio construction and financial planning advice are not shaped by an investment-banking pipeline or proprietary-product quotas — a meaningful differentiator for a client comparing it to a bank-affiliated advisor in Portland's concentrated banking market.
General information
Firm type
RIA
Year founded
2009
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Portland
Corporate office
Portland, OR, United States
Frequently asked questions
Is CS Planning a fiduciary?
Yes. As a registered investment advisor (RIA) regulated by the SEC or the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation, CS Planning is legally obligated to act as a fiduciary for its advisory clients. This requires the firm to place client interests ahead of its own when making investment decisions and recommendations, a standard that does not automatically apply to broker-dealers.
Does CS Planning operate nationally or only in Oregon?
CS Planning is headquartered in Portland, Oregon. While RIAs can register with the SEC and serve clients across multiple states once they reach a certain asset threshold, smaller firms typically register only in their home state. Without a public multi-state notice filing or an accessible SEC Form ADV, the firm can be assumed to primarily serve clients in Oregon and neighboring Washington.
How does CS Planning custody client assets?
Like most RIAs, CS Planning does not directly custody client assets. It likely uses a third-party qualified custodian — such as Charles Schwab, Fidelity, or Pershing — where client accounts are actually held. The firm is granted discretionary authority to trade within those accounts, but the cash and securities sit at the custodian, providing an extra layer of safety for the client.
What is the difference between a discretionary RIA and a broker-dealer?
A discretionary RIA like CS Planning can buy and sell assets in a client's portfolio without having to call the client for permission before each trade. The firm manages the account to a stated strategy. A broker-dealer typically requires client authorization per transaction and is held to a less stringent suitability standard. The RIA fiduciary model is generally considered more aligned with a client's long-term goals.
Does CS Planning have any conflicts of interest in how it charges fees?
The firm's public materials do not specify the exact fee schedule. Standard practice for an RIA is to charge a fee based on a percentage of assets under management, though some offer fixed fees for financial plans. As a fiduciary, CS Planning would be required to disclose any material conflict — including 12b-1 fees from mutual funds or revenue-sharing arrangements — in its Form ADV Part 2A brochure, a document all prospective clients should request before signing an advisory agreement.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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