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Opes Advisors
Opes Advisors was founded in 2005 by entrepreneurs who set out to unify real estate decision-making and traditional wealth management. The firm operates from...
Opes Advisors
Opes Advisors was founded in 2005 by entrepreneurs who set out to unify real estate decision-making and traditional wealth management. The firm operates from Menlo Park, California, and its current operating owners, Erin Whalen and Mark Duvall, took the reins in 2018. Whalen originally encountered the firm as a client seeking to buy a home, joining after more than a decade in the investments business, while Duvall brought a background in West Coast real estate development to the practice. The firm’s investment engine covers portfolio construction grounded in modern portfolio theory, real estate analysis, financial planning, and tax mitigation. Real estate is treated as an integrated asset-class lever rather than an ancillary holding: tools like 1031 exchanges, opportunity zone funds, location optimization, and Nevada or Delaware trusts surface actively in client plans. Geographic exposure concentrates on the West Coast, and while Opes does not disclose a public track record of direct fund commitments, its advisory model spans asset management, equity compensation planning — particularly for Apple employees managing RSU and ESPP concentration — and multi-property real estate portfolios in the Southeast, as illustrated in its published client story featuring a Bay Area family diversifying out of rental properties and concentrated stock through a 1031 exchange. Opes fields a team of 12 professionals, including advisors Unesa Miguel, Drew Himes, Kenji Bleicker, Ann Timoney, Lyla Bonilla, Calvin Webster, Louis Odette, Tracie Southerland, and Anthony Fischetti. The firm has not disclosed total assets under advisement or aggregate deployment figures. July 2025: The firm published guidance on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s temporary increase to the state and local tax deduction cap, reflecting active advisory posture around legislative changes affecting West Coast high-earning clients. The structural differentiator is the OPES Advantage tool itself — a piece of proprietary software built to model real estate’s multi-year tax and liquidity effects inside a unified wealth plan, not as a standalone property analysis. This tools-first, real-estate-embedded architecture sets Opes apart from generalized multi-family offices that typically outsource real estate analysis or treat it as an afterthought in planning discussions.
General information
Firm type
Multi Family Office
Year founded
2005
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Menlo Park
Corporate office
Menlo Park, CA, United States
Principals
Erin Whalen
Operating Owner
Mark Duvall
Operating Owner
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Opes Advisors?
Operating owners Erin Whalen and Mark Duvall have controlled the firm since 2018. Whalen joined Opes after being a client and working in the investments business for over a decade; Duvall’s background in West Coast real estate development shapes the firm’s asset-class emphasis. Investment decisions flow through the advisor team, with all portfolio construction grounded in modern portfolio theory, as stated on the firm’s website.
How does Opes Advisors integrate real estate into wealth management?
The firm uses a proprietary software platform called OPES Advantage that models the downstream financial impact of real estate decisions — from primary residence sales to 1031 exchanges — inside a client’s overall balance sheet. Published client scenarios show the tool being used to negotiate job transitions, manage concentrated stock compensation, and diversify rental portfolios through tax-aware asset sales.
Is Opes Advisors structured as a single family office or a multi-family advisory?
Opes operates as a multi-family office, serving multiple clients from its Menlo Park, California headquarters. The firm was founded in 2005 and has been run as an independent advisory practice by operating owners Erin Whalen and Mark Duvall since 2018.
What investment stages or structures does Opes target?
Opes does not operate as a fund manager or direct investor in private companies. Its advisory model addresses liquid portfolio construction, real estate analysis, equity compensation planning, and tax strategies for wealthy individuals and families, with a documented focus on Bay Area tech employees managing restricted stock units and employee stock purchase plan shares.
Does Opes Advisors manage philanthropic structures or intergenerational transfers?
The firm’s published materials emphasize financial planning, investment management, real estate, and tax strategies, but do not disclose dedicated philanthropic vehicles or trust-administration services. Entity-structuring tools such as Nevada and Delaware trusts are mentioned in the context of tax mitigation rather than explicit multigenerational wealth transfer programs.
How does Opes source its clients, and is there a membership or club component?
The firm conducts a mutual-fit assessment as the first step for prospective clients, reflecting a curated intake process rather than an open-architecture platform. No external club memberships, such as Tiger 21 or YPO, are disclosed, and the firm does not publish a network-sourced deal flow model.
Where does the real estate analysis capability come from?
The capability traces to co-owner Mark Duvall’s early career in West Coast real estate development. Combined with Erin Whalen’s investment background, the firm’s founding thesis was that real estate decisions should be analyzed alongside liquid portfolio management, which led to the development of the OPES Advantage proprietary modeling software.
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