Our Firm

Mission Statement

To provide trusted, comprehensive, and customized financial advice to families, businesses, retirement plans, and non-profit organizations so that our clients may obtain their goals, financial security, and peace of mind.

Team-Centered Solutions

Dunn Mistr Tederick, LLC, will offer a team approach to financial counseling.  Unlike many financial planners who operate individually, Dunn Mistr Tederick, LLC, offers trusted, comprehensive financial advice regarding goal setting, tax and retirement planning, estate planning, cash flow, risk management and investment analysis as a coordinated effort.  Our philosophy is that three experienced and unique perspectives are better than one in evaluating the needs and objectives of our clients.  Our objective is for the client to feel as if Dunn Mistr Tederick, LLC, is part of their extended financial team.

Fee-Only Advisors

Dunn Mistr Tederick, LLC, is a “fee-only” financial planning firm.  Our only sources of compensation are the fees paid to us by our clients.  Fee-only planners sell no products and receive no commissions.  “Fee-only” planners are different from “fee-based” planners in that fee-based planners are permitted to sell products and receive commissions in addition to charging fees. 

Brokerage houses, insurance companies, and banks employ nearly 800,000 professionals in the United States who refer to themselves as financial planners.  These professionals vary widely in terms of experience and expertise.  More importantly, these professionals are often compensated in a manner that puts the financial planner’s economic interest in direct conflict with the best interest of the client.  Because we do not sell products or accept commissions, Dunn Mistr Tederick, LLC, is only incentivized to employ financial products or strategies that advance the best interests of our clients.  Our fee structure allows us to be objective and unbiased in our financial planning and investment advice.  As such, we offer a unique and empowering opportunity for our clients to understand and participate in the many important financial decisions affecting their finances and day-to-day lives.

Dunn Mistr Tederick, LLC, charges several types of fees that are intended to provide fair and reasonable fee structures for clients who have different financial planning or asset management needs.  Discrete or short-term financial planning projects may be structured appropriately with hourly fees or project fees.  Ongoing comprehensive planning and investment advice may lend itself better to retainer fees or fees for assets under management.  We would be glad to discuss our fee arrangements with you in greater detail. 

Quality Time & Client Education

Because of the way we are compensated, it is everyone’s best interest to have long-term relationships with our clients.  Although we are willing to assume a great deal of responsibility over our clients’ financial affairs, our relationships work best when we act in concert with our clients.  To that end, we believe that clients should be educated and informed at a high level in their financial matters.  We are committed to devoting whatever quality time is necessary to make that happen.  At the same time, we are also committed to ensuring that our clients are able to free themselves from financial worries to spend more of their time doing what they enjoy—whether that is growing a business, spending time with family, or enjoying travel and other recreational pursuits.

The Significance of Our Service as Fiduciaries

In compliance with the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the “IAA40”), Dunn Mistr Tederick, LLC, is registered as an investment adviser with the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) and the Commonwealth of Virginia State Corporation Commission.  It is our pleasure to work within the requirements of the IAA40 and its requirement that we serve as fiduciaries for our clients. 

A fiduciary relationship is the highest standard of care imposed at either equity or law.  A fiduciary (i.e., the agent) is expected to be extremely loyal to the person to whom they owe the duty (i.e., the principal or client) and may never place personal interests before the duty or profit from the position without the consent of the client.  Good faith is always required of the relationship.  As fiduciaries, financial planners must make fair and complete disclosure of all material facts and must take care to avoid misleading their clients.  Fiduciaries must exhibit the highest form of trust and confidence, and are expected to act in the best interest of their clients at all times.  Persons who serve as fiduciaries should feel and act on a sense of responsibility that goes well beyond what is required by law and that will be grounded in highly moral and ethical business practices.

Regrettably, all financial planners are not required to serve the best interests of their clients.  In fact, many planners who operate as salespeople in commission-driven environments (e.g., most broker-dealers and insurance agents) are exempt from this law and are not required to serve as fiduciaries for their clients.  This is an important distinction because while some brokers and insurance agents aim to serve the best interests of their clients, they are not required by law to do so nor are they compensated for so doing.  To the contrary, they are compensated by mutual funds and insurance companies for selling investments and products that are merely “suitable” for client needs.  Determining “best fit” is not part of the equation or analysis.  The partners of Dunn Mistr Tederick, LLC, remain committed at all times to finding those “best fits” and serving first the highest and best interests of our clients. 

NAPFA-Registered Advisors

The National Association of Professional Financial Advisors (NAPFA) is an exclusive professional association of fee-only financial planners who provide comprehensive objective financial advice.  Members have some of the highest training in the industry with continuing education requirements that are twice those of competing industry groups.  NAPFA is the only financial planning organization that requires an applicant to submit a comprehensive financial plan for peer review prior to being offered membership in the organization.  Our firm is pleased to associate with NAPFA and realizes that only a very small percentage of financial planners are qualified and recognized as NAPFA Registered Advisors. 

At Dunn Mistr Tederick, LLC, we are pleased at the vote of confidence provided by the membership of NAPFA in electing one of our partners, Blaine P. Dunn, to many positions of leadership within the NAPFA organization.  Blaine is a former national board member and has chaired the National Government Affairs Committee and served as a member of the National President’s Council.  Blaine currently serves on the board of the Northeast Mid-Atlantic Region for NAPFA, and has served in recent years as the Chair, President, and Treasurer for the region.  Active participation in NAPFA, including participation in its leadership and governance, allows us to collaborate with others that have committed to a better model of financial planning and a higher level of client service. 

Getting Started

We offer an initial meeting at no cost to get to know you and learn more about what you hope to accomplish in working with a fee-only financial planner.  This meeting will provide us with the information we need to determine whether our services would be valuable for you.  This meeting is also a good opportunity for you to get to know our advisory team and assess whether our processes and philosophies are a good fit for you.  Please feel free to ask for any information you need to make that determination.  We are excited about and believe in the work that we do and look forward to developing long-lasting relationships with clients who entrust us with their most personal and sensitive financial information and decisions.