2017 Client Survey Results
We are excited and pleased with the results of the Client Survey we conducted December 2017. When asked where First Affiliated rates in Client Experience, we achieved an average rating of 9/10! Here are some of the responses we received:
1. We feel that our best interests are taken to heart by all who advise us and manage our money. We like the personal touch. Thank you! We feel secure in the Family Office – Mississauga, ON
2. Strong service orientation. – Mississauga, ON
3. Consolidation of financial concerns and constant review of portfolio mix. – Collingwood, ON
4. Financial planning for our future. – Barrie, ON
5. Expertise and organizational assistance. – Oakville, ON
6. The relationship, the genuine caring, the competence. Thanks for having our best interests at heart! – Peterborough, ON
7. First Affiliated is a smaller organization that has effectively personalized our financial and wealth management needs since 2000. Over the past 17 years we have had a very positive experience with First Affiliated. The FA team members are efficient, friendly and are always available for us. We highly recommend them as a Family Office – Thornhill, ON
8. Your professionalism, patience and promptness in replying to our many emails. – North Bay, ON
9. Expertise, professionalism and trust you are in knowledgeable, capable, understanding hands. Tolerate non-knowledgeable clients such as ourselves. Timely and responsive reply to all concerns. – North Bay, ON
10. People are knowledgeable, available, and friendly. – Toronto, ON
11. Professionalism, dedication, transparency and perspective / approach to Family Wealth (as outlined in Chris’s new book). In 2018 we plan to embark on Chris’ Family Wealth strategy. Thank you to all the team for their outstanding work.– Mississauga, ON
12. Professionalism and speed of response. – Huntsville, ON
13. Knowledge, professionalism and prompt response. – Waterloo, ON
14.I value the step by step process FA has taken us through to sort through our family financial affairs. What initially felt complicated was made logical and cohesive so that we could easily work through each step. – Mississauga, ON
15. I like the diverse expertise provided by the FA team, and appreciate their promptness and all the work they do for us. Also, I like having you choose and watch investments, rather than selling them to me. We too often found the only person profiting from our investments was the sales person. I think FA is a great business plan – Grey Highlands, ON
16. They take a big picture view of our financial situation, offer very personal service. – Mississauga, ON
17. Trust and confidence. – Thornhill, ON
18. Knowledgeable, accessible, friendly, respectful, informative. – Halifax, NS
19. Your thoroughness in review of our business and personal life. Prompt attention to matters and expertise. – Barrie, ON
20. How personal it is and how FA aims to have a “family” relationship with us. FA has a diverse group of people with competencies in many areas. This makes it very easy to work with them and move forward on many of our projects. They provide great insight and advice to ensure we are keeping to our family’s goals, mission and vision – and are not afraid to question our thoughts. – Peterborough, ON
21. Accessibility to the staff and their expertise. – Burlington, ON
22. We are treated with respect – not just us, but our entire family. The FA team meets our requirements in a professional and satisfactory way. We appreciate so much our excellent long term relationship with the entire Team. We are being totally truthful where we say FA has, and continues to meet our family needs perfectly. – Toronto, ON
23. Total package: estate, finance and legal. – Grey Highlands, ON
24. FA appears to be a strong well founded knowledgeable organization. – North York, ON
25. Knowledgeable, friendly, reliable, reachable when needed, responsive. – North York, ON
26. Very thorough and professional and great follow up. – Toronto, ON
27. Appreciate the regular dialog and balanced returns. – Toronto, ON
28. It has all been taken care of by First Affiliated. FA has done an amazing job taking care of ours and our children’s finances. From day one I’ve been very confident that we chose well and have not been disappointed. – Toronto, ON
Previous Client Testimonials
One of the defining characteristics of First Affiliated as a Family Office is our deep respect for and unwavering commitment to client confidentiality. As such, we will never display our client’s pictures, names or personal details. The following testimonials are candid responses from some of our clients when asked to describe their relationship with First Affiliated. If you wish a direct reference, please contact us and we would be pleased to arrange appropriate introductions.
“First Affiliated help me sleep better. As a Chartered Accountant who retired as Vice Chair of TD Securities, having run a number of global trading businesses, I am all too aware that the biggest risk to maintaining my family’s life style is my own hubris. First Affiliated have been my trusted advisors for six years, and during that time have acted as a wise council and trusted friends. They have been willing to challenge me when I am heading off course, and to remind me when I am being lazy. Since I know that they are worrying, I don’t have to, and I sleep far better for knowing it……” (Mississauga, Ontario)
“We are a multi-jurisdictional family, now living in the UK, with investment, small business and property interests in a variety of locations. We have been working with the FA team for over 5 years. We are very pleased with the scope, scale, independence and quality of the advice and support that we receive on an ongoing basis. Managing our lives has become a lot easier for us since we established our relationship with Chris and her team. Our family undertakes a review of all of our advisory relationships every two years. Looking at alternative advisors across all of the jurisdictions in which we are involved shows that there is no better price and quality adjusted alternative available to us in the market than First Affiliated. We are very pleased with our choice of our primary advisor.” (Surrey, United Kingdom)
“Today, almost 10 years into our relationship, it is clearly evident that that the Estate/Financial Planning advice provided by the professional staff at First Affiliated has withstood the test of time and helped navigate the turbulent waters of succession.” (Whitby, Ontario)
“We became clients of First Affiliated in the late nineties as we were considering the timing for our retirement. In a very short period of time, we came to trust the First Affiliated team – dedicated, hardworking, open, frank and very approachable – great financial support and advice from terrific people. These were challenging and tumultuous years for portfolio growth, but we put total faith in the balanced direction in First Affiliated’s administration and made the decision to retire in 2002. Since then, meeting with them on a regular basis, we have enjoyed a worry free first decade of retirement. ” (Burlington, Ontario)
“As the financial scene darkened mid decade last, the same balanced approach and proactive communication from First Affiliated ensured this worry free time. “ (Toronto, Ontario)
“We discovered First Affiliated after a pretty long search of financial management companies. The family office concept was very appealing but the main reason my husband and I chose to go with their team was because we related to their values. There are many reasons why we feel the choice we made was the right one. In our regular meetings, the team answers every question we have with patience, expertise and a sense of humour. They have never once patronized me and they do a great job of partnering with us to work through details associated with our complicated tax returns or trust papers. At one point, two First Affiliated staff came to our house to install, customize, and explain financial tracking software on our home computer. They have anticipated and recommended several planning strategies for our children and put the appropriate instruments in play. Last year my husband went through an unexpected job change and First Affiliated was a huge support throughout the process. The office has a large external network of experienced colleagues, whose input and expertise we use and appreciate often . With our approval, members of the First Affiliated team speak to CRA, tax lawyers, estate lawyers, employment lawyers, accountants, insurance brokers, money managers, investors, bankers, and even the payroll and HR departments on our behalf. We believe they understand our financial goals and make good investment decisions with our portfolio. Their involvement and superb follow up skills save us huge amounts of time but also mean more accurate and profitable results – and ultimately give us peace of mind. I feel they care about us as individuals and as a family and my relationship with the firm is now personal – we trust them to do the right thing, with integrity, accurately and on time, and they have never let us down.” (Oakville, Ontario)
“We have worked with First Affiliated for 23 years. In our retirement we enjoy a comfortable lifestyle doing the things we want to without financial worries. We have been able to achieve this because we stuck with the strategic plan created by Chris & her team. Over the years we have highly recommended First Affiliated to our family & friends. Our son is now one of their clients.” (Blackville, New Brunswick)
“We have had the pleasure of being a client of First Affiliated for over ten years. They have always provided informed, friendly, timely, and effective advice on a wide array of family financial matters. As our children have grown, married and started their own families, First Affiliated continues to be a valued advisor and in many ways, part of “our family”. (North York, Ontario)
“My wife and I have been clients of First Affiliated for more than 5 years. It was a pleasant and secure experience to have our haphazard affairs taken care of and put in order. When the time came they advised and guided us from employment into retirement. The team have a comprehensive knowledge of our affairs and would be able to provide the information if anything unforeseen would happen to us. We sleep well at night even in these uncertain times secure in the knowledge that our affairs are being professionally looked after.” (Thornhill, Ontario)
“We have worked closely with the FA team for the past 14 years; during that time, they have exceeded our expectations and have willingly taken on all aspects of our financial affairs, in a proactive and very professional manner. During this time they have been very personable and easy to work with and we recommend them without hesitation.” (Etobicoke, Ontario)
“Our financial planner introduced us to First Affiliated in 1998. From the beginning we have been impressed by their philosophy and approach to managing our investments. They took the time to shape a portfolio which was appropriate for us, and have made sure it stayed relevant as our circumstances changed over the years. They keep us informed with quarterly meetings, communicate clearly about issues and options, and are astute and thorough in their analysis. Because they have no product to sell us, we feel they are unbiased in their fund and manager assessments. We have come to know Chris, Bart, and the staff quite well and, fourteen years later, we are still pleased to be their clients.” (Mississauga, Ontario)
My wife and I received financial services from First Affiliated since 2003 and have been extremely satisfied. We have always found their staff to be professional and extremely approachable and have been impressed by the highly knowledgeable and practical advice that they consistently provide. They offer clear investment advice while at the same time, have respected our comfort level in terms of our risk profile. The staff was consistently up to date on our portfolio and we always felt that they were advocating on our behalf. In addition, they often provide assistance without being asked, something that was particularly appreciated as it gave us peace of mind knowing that someone was looking after our personal affairs, leaving us to focus on the running of our business. Given their competence and expertise as financial advisors and their emphasis on providing individualized customer service, I strongly recommend First Affiliated to anyone seeking management of their financial affairs.” (Toronto, Ontario)
Professional Partner Testimonials
Having a number of mutual clients with First Affiliated, we have built a relationship of mutual trust and collaboration with Chris and her team. Through this working relationship we observed that the First Affiliated team has an unwavering commitment to their client’s best interest.
Further, it has been our experience that First Affiliated professionals provide effective communication and synergies when working with the client’s legal counsel, investment professionals and other advisors in ensuring the best result for the client.
Dan Natale, CPA, CA
Partner
Segal LLP
We have worked with First Affiliated for nearly 10 years as a strategic partner providing accounting and tax services for their clients. We value our relationship with First Affiliated. They are a dedicated and professional team who are genuinely interested in the well-being of their clients and serving their needs. Their organizational skills make our job easier and allow us to be more efficient in delivering our services to their clients.
Ralph Neate, B.Sc., CPA,CA, TEP
Partner
Collins Barrow SGB