Susan Chesson
CFP®, CPWA®
Buckingham Strategic Wealth
Wealth Advisor
Susan Chesson
CFP®, CPWA®
Buckingham Strategic Wealth
Wealth Advisor
As a fee-only wealth advisor, we like to look at the big picture together to make sure you meet all your personal and family goals. - Susan Chesson, CFP®, CPWA®
Forever standing on the side of our clients.
Buckingham Strategic Wealth is a fee-only, fiduciary wealth management firm providing comprehensive financial planning, investment management and holistic wealth planning to help clients build and protect their wealth through life’s transitions. Our highest aspiration is to help our clients fulfill their financial dreams. Our advisors are never paid a commission of any kind and have a legal obligation to provide unbiased and trustworthy financial advice.
After 20 years in corporate finance at Fortune 500 companies, Susan Chesson made the leap to financial planning, preferring to work one-on-one with clients to make a positive difference in their lives. Today, she uses the skills she honed managing multi-billion dollar portfolios to offer sound financial advice and professional investment management.
Susan loves the challenge of connecting the dots in a client’s financial life to provide a comprehensive plan showing how they can accomplish their goals. She often runs analyses to illustrate how different life choices can change the outcome of a financial plan, providing clarity that helps clients make sound decisions.
Before joining Buckingham in 2017, Susan was senior vice president and senior wealth advisor at Focus Wealth Management. Before pursuing her financial planning career, she worked in corporate treasury, fixed income investing and banking operations at Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Capital One.
Originally from England, Susan has a bachelor’s degree in French and Russian literature from Oxford University and an MBA in finance from the University of Texas at Austin. She also holds the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERTM professional and Certified Private Wealth Advisor℠ designations. Susan has served on the Executive Board of the Financial Planning Association® (FPA) of the National Capital Area and is involved with the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA). Susan lives in Northern Virginia and enjoys spending time with her family, traveling and being outdoors.
Susan Chesson is a Member of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors
The National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) is a leading professional association of Fee-Only financial advisors - highly trained professionals who are committed to working in the best interests of those they serve.
NAPFA members live by three important values:
- To be the beacon for independent, objective financial advice for individuals and families.
- To be the champion of financial services delivered in the public interest.
- To be the standard bearer for the emerging profession of financial planning.
Experience is everything.
Imagine having the freedom to focus your time and attention on the things that give you energy. We have spent decades closely following the market, economy, tax strategies and planning topics—so you don’t have to. Buckingham Strategic Wealth helps individuals, businesses, nonprofits and retirement plans owners achieve their most important life and financial goals by building holistic, evidence-based wealth plans.
First, we embark on a personal discovery process to uncover what’s important so we can DESIGN a plan customized to address your deepest wants and needs.
With academic research and financial science as the foundation, we BUILD a plan that’s the perfect fit, with distinct objectives and attainable action items.
Then, we PROTECT your plan by checking in to measure progress toward your goals and adjust as needed.
We are enthusiastic, unapologetic advocates of evidence. Your dreams and passions are too important to leave up to chance. Our offices serve as think tanks, where a kinetic mix of intelligence and diverse professional experience come together to benefit our clients.
We love working with data. Then those insights are put into play. We construct our portfolios out of diversified stock funds; high-quality bonds; and, in some cases, alternative investment strategies. We help you control what you can in your portfolio: taxes, fees and risk.
In addition to being fiduciaries who always work in your best interest, we are proudly fee-only. We do not receive compensation or commission for selling products. This model ensures we are always on the same side as our clients.
Fee-Only, Fiduciary, Independent: Three Important Criteria to Consider When Choosing a Financial Advisor.
Specialties
- Comprehensive Financial Planning
- Retirement Income Planning
- Investment Management
- Tax Planning
- Estate planning
- Charitable Giving
Ideal Clients
- Retirees and Near Retirees
- Business Owners and Executives
- Sudden Money Situations
- Multiple Generation Families
- Women Breadwinners
Working Together
- In-Office Meetings
- Virtual Meetings
- Clearly Defined Fees
- No Product Sales
- Complimentary Initial Consultation
Professional Designations & Affiliations
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Susan Chesson is a NAPFA-Registered Financial AdvisorThe National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) is a leading professional association of Fee-Only financial advisors—highly trained professionals who are committed to working in the best interests of those they serve.
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Susan Chesson is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professional - Click for VerificationCFP® professionals are held to strict ethical standards to ensure financial planning recommendations are in your best interest. What’s more, a CFP® professional must acquire several years of experience related to delivering financial planning services to clients and pass the comprehensive CFP® Certification Exam before they can use the CFP® designation.
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Susan Chesson is a Certified Private Wealth Advisor ® (CPWA®)The CPWA certification is an advanced professional education and certification for advisors who provide the breadth of specialized skills required to meet the needs of high-net-worth clients. This certification requires advisors to develop advanced knowledge and skills to address the wide range of complex issues faced by wealthy individuals and families, including portfolio strategies, wealth transfer, family dynamics, risk management, asset protection, closely-held business ownership, charitable giving, estate planning, retirement planning, and more. Fewer than 1% of financial advisors have achieved the CPWA certification.
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Susan Chesson is a member of The Financial Planning Association® (FPA®)FPA® is the largest membership organization for CFP® professionals in the U.S. and supports high standards of professional competence, ethical conduct, and clear, complete disclosure when serving clients.
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Susan Chesson is a Member of the FPA of the National Captial Area
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Susan Chesson Named Washington, DC’s Best Financial Advisers in Washingtonian
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Susan Chesson is Featured on Forte: "THE COMBO OF MBA AND CFP PACKS A POWERFUL PUNCH"
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Susan Chesson is Quoted on BBC Worklife: "Till death—or financial discord—parts you"
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Susan Chesson was the 2019 Secretary and Chair of Advocay Day for the FPA of the National Captial Area
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Susan Chesson is Quoted in Northern Vigrinia Magazine: "Investing 101 is Not for Dummies"
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Susan Chesson is Mentioned on S&P Global Market Intelligence: "St. Louis-based wealth management company buys Focus Financial Partners"
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Susan Chesson is Quoted on FinancialAdvisorIQ: "Patience With Volatile Prospects Can Pay Off"
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Susan Chesson is the Author of "Why Have an Annual Investment Review?" on Wealth Advisor
Contact Susan Chesson
Office Locations:
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11325 Random Hills Rd
Suite 210
Fairfax, VA 22030 -
112 West Washington
Suite 204
Middleburg, VA 20117
