An independent fee-only fiduciary San Francisco based financial advisor (planner) focused on securing and actualizing client financial goals.

About Skylark Wealth


Your time is valuable, spend less of it on your finances by outsourcing them to Skylark.

My name is Michal Skowronski, I founded Skylark Wealth to strike the ideal balance for personal financial services combining the latest in technology with fiduciary level personal service alongside a fee-only structure that properly aligns incentives towards mutual long term success.

Skylark’s open architecture allows me to serve clients wherever their assets may be held using the most suitable investments and to evolve the platform with the latest in technology without restriction or limitation. Skylark’s fee-only fiduciary model incentives me to do only that which is in the long-term best interest of my clients. In fact, I have signed a fiduciary oath to do so.

For 10 years prior I worked at a similarly structured Registered Investment Advisor that grew from $75mm to $1b in assets under management. During that time I earned the Certified Financial Planner designation. Click here to learn more about the CFP® designation.

As you read more below you can keep in mind the CFP Board suggests 10 questions every client should ask their financial advisor. If I haven’t fully answered those questions below please feel free to ask.

Michal Skowronski, CFP®

What will Skylark help me with?


Investment management
Are you confident your investments are positioned for success?
Make sure you’re invested in the right securities in the right types of accounts with suitable asset allocations based on your financial goals and aligned with your risk tolerance.
Have questions about my investment philosophy and its historical performance? Read more

Succinctly put and with some exceptions I believe a globally diversified, passive market-cap weighted, index-based, low cost investment strategy implemented primarily through ETFs with an emphasis on choosing suitable asset allocations for each of your specific goals maximizes the potential for success by controlling the variables that can be controlled and minimizing the risks associated with the variables that cannot be controlled. Custom solutions around existing positions including potential capital gains issues will be made. More information including a table of historical returns will be made available soon via a link here.
Tax planning
We’ll complete your end-of-year tax planning, coordinate your annual taxes directly with your accountant and minimize taxes via year round tax-loss harvesting of your taxable assets.
Business planning
As a small business owner I provide consulting services for clients who currently operate their own business, are considering starting a business, or are planning for an exit from their current business.
Expatriate planning
Living and working abroad as an expatriate? Make sure your taxes are being prepared correctly and that your assets are accessible and managed properly back home whether you plan on returning to the states or not.
Risk management
From property casualty insurance to life, disability and long term care, we’ll make sure you’re properly covered based on your exposure to major risks.
Education planning
Know how much to save for your children’s education and make sure you’re using the right type of account with suitable investments.
Retirement planning
We’ll make sure you’re on track to provide for your retirement.
Employee benefits optimization
Make sure you’re taking full advantage your company sponsored employee benefits package with each open enrollment.
If you are a business owner, we will consider and/or recommend the various benefit programs that can be structured to meet both business and personal retirement goals.
Estate planning
Make sure your assets are disbursed according to your wishes, in the best interest of your beneficiaries and survivors and any estate taxes are minimized or avoided.
Cash flow and debt management
Which debt should you be paying off first? How can your expenses be reduced? How much should you contributing towards your retirement versus using to pay down your student debt? We’ll also create an appropriate emergency cash reserve.
Financial goals
We will identify what you plan to accomplish, what resources you will need to make it happen, how much time you will need to reach the goal, and how much you should budget for each goal.
Investment analysis
We’ll develop an asset allocation strategy to meet your financial goals and risk tolerance, provide information on investment vehicles and strategies, review any employee stock options, as well as assist you in establishing your own investment account whether at your current or our recommended custodian(s).

What can I expect?


We’ll get to know you and your family. We’ll work together to gather and organize your information.

We’ll create and implement a plan based around your goals and needs.

We’ll manage the plan and adjust for any changes along the way.

Opportunities Cutting-edge Optimization Independent Responsive Fiduciary Proactive Fee-only Tax-efficient No-commission Investments Performance Retirement Education Low-cost Mortgage Options Credit Stocks Estate Loans Goals Bonds Risk Cash Debt ETFs Tax

Including year-round proactive optimization of your plan to tap available opportunities and to eliminate mistakes.

Skylark Personal Trainer

We’ll serve as your personal trainer for your personal finances. With no limits on scope of service, no eventual up selling, achieve your optimal financial fitness with Skylark.

What are you looking for in a financial advisor?


I’d like

more free time

I’d like to

avoid making financial mistakes

I’d like to

avoid hidden and unnecessary fees

I’d like to

save money on my taxes

I’d like to

create a diversified investment portfolio

I’d like

someone to manage my investments

I’d like to

match or beat the performance of the markets

I’d like to

have someone I can call with questions

I’d like to

work with a fee-only fiduciary

Fee diagram

Great! Do more with what you already have and what you will have with Skylark.

onboarding

Skylark’s unique streamlined and paperless on-boarding process can have us up and running within 30 minutes. Once you share your information and link your account(s) we’ll handle the rest for you. Click here to get started.

How can I trust Skylark Wealth with my money?


signed Fiduciary Oath

I’ve signed a fiduciary oath to always put my clients interests ahead of mine. This includes my fee-only fee structure which aligns my interests directly with yours.

Rather than being incentivized to provide investments and services from a selection of options that makes the advisor the most money Skylark is, at all times, incentivized to make YOU, the client, the most money. You can rely on my advice to always put your interests ahead of my own.

Skylark does not hold custody of any assets

I do not nor will I ever hold custody of your assets. All of your assets are held by a third-party custodian such as Schwab, TD Ameritrade or Fidelity. Your account statements will be generated independently of Skylark and directly by your custodian(s). Skylark is merely granted a limited power of attorney over your assets to view them and trade on them. Money movement powers are limited solely to Skylark’s clearly invoiced management fee.

Skylark is regulated and audited

Skylark is regulated by FINRA and by the regulators of each state (e.g. California) it does business in.

Where can I find more information? You can find Skylark’s registration with the SEC here, my personal profile here and Skylark’s latest Form ADV Part 2 here. You can also click through each of the listing of the various organizations (including CFP Board, NAPFA, XY Planning Network, Google, Yelp, NestEggZone and FeeOnlyNetwork) I’m associated with for more information. Finally, schedule a complimentary phone or video consultation with me and or ask any questions you may have via the chat or message tools below with no obligation.

Where can I learn more?


Where do we help?


Serving the San Francisco Bay Area as well as U.S. citizens both nationwide and globally

While Skylark Wealth is currently based out of San Francisco we serve clients both locally and nationwide including U.S. citizens currently (or those planning on) living abroad (i.e. retirees, digital nomads and those on sabbatical).

We use the latest screen sharing and secure file transfer and storage technologies to serve and help our clients wherever they may be.

CFP Credential Certification
Proud member of XY Planning Network. Advisors displaying this badge have been accepted into XY Planning Network by vowing to adhere to strict fiduciary standards.

Get in touch


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