Howe & Rusling

What Howe & Rusling does

Howe & Rusling is a fee-only, employee-owned registered investment adviser founded in 1930 and headquartered in Rochester, New York. The firm provides full-service wealth management to individuals, families, and institutions, with service lines spanning investment management, financial planning, estate planning, and tax strategy. Its investment platform is organized around three core building blocks (stocks, bonds, and ETFs) expressed through seven active strategies: Core Equity, Equity Income, Total Return Fixed Income, Total Current Fixed Income, Domestic Equity ETF, Global Equity ETF, and Global Equity Income ETF. Financial planning is supported by proprietary scenario-testing software that models compounding returns, cash-flow changes, inflation, and tax outcomes, supplemented by digital onboarding and reporting tools.

The firm operates from four offices — Rochester (headquarters), Syracuse, Boise, and Colorado Springs — and serves clients across more than 30 U.S. states. It is registered as an investment adviser with the SEC, maintains a fiduciary standard, and structures fees primarily as an annual asset-based management fee, with a smaller stream from standalone financial planning engagements. Leadership is concentrated among employee owners; Craig Cairns serves as President and majority owner following a 2006 employee buyout, with ownership subsequently broadened in 2020 and 2023 to include Emily Lambert, Dylan Potter, and Sarah Swan. The firm reached $1 billion in assets under management in 2020 and supports a team of approximately 24 credentialed professionals, including multiple CFA charterholders and CFP® practitioners.

Revenue scales directly with AUM under an asset-based fee model; management has indicated the vast majority of revenue is collected through this single recurring channel. The firm has pursued a measured westward geographic expansion (Boise, Colorado Springs) as a complement to its New York base, and recently relocated to a new state-of-the-art headquarters at the Culver Road Armory in Rochester in 2023, signaling reinvestment in physical infrastructure consistent with retention and recruiting objectives.

Name

Howe & Rusling

Legal name

Howe & Rusling, Inc.

Website

https://howeandrusling.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1930

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Howe & Rusling is a fee-only, employee-owned registered investment adviser providing investment management, financial planning, estate planning, and tax strategy to individuals, families, and institutions across 30+ U.S. states from offices in New York, Idaho, and Colorado.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wealth Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive/Full-Service RIAs & Independent Wealth Managers (FSAAACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Financial Planning–Led RIAs (FSAAACAB), Portfolio Management–Led RIAs (Discretionary/Model-Based) (FSAAACAC)

Keywords

• Wealth management services
• Investment management
• Financial planning
• Estate planning
• Tax strategy

Headquarters

HQ city

Rochester

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Asset-Based Management Fee: Annual asset-based management fee covering comprehensive planning and management of all investment accounts. The vast majority of revenue is collected through this fee structure.
2. Financial Planning Fee: Fee for financial plans for a limited number of clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Howe & Rusling is a full-service, fee-only registered investment adviser that provides holistic wealth management to individuals and institutions. Its offering combines actively managed stock, bond, and ETF investment strategies with comprehensive financial planning, estate planning, tax strategy, and digital account solutions. The firm manages assets on a fiduciary basis, charging primarily an annual asset-based management fee, and serves clients across more than 30 U.S. states from offices in Rochester, Syracuse, Boise, and Colorado Springs.

Product overview

Howe & Rusling is a full-service wealth management firm offering a unified platform of investment management and financial planning services. The investment side includes seven distinct strategies: Core Equity, Equity Income, Total Return Fixed Income, Total Current Fixed Income, Domestic Equity ETF, Global Equity ETF, and Global Equity Income ETF — built around three core building blocks (stocks, bonds, and ETFs). Complementary services include financial planning, estate planning, tax strategy, and digital account solutions. The firm also offers socially-conscious screening capabilities for religious, environmental, or values-based investment mandates.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Core Equity Actively managed stock solution composed of larger companies within the broader US market, designed for clients who want assets to grow mostly untouched over time.
• Equity Income Actively managed stock solution of larger US companies focused on absolute dividend yield and dividend growth, suitable for clients who need to live off their portfolio for income.
• Total Return Fixed Income Actively managed, above-average credit quality bond solution that seeks to control risks while maintaining steady and consistent cash flow, with a main objective of total return over the long term.
• Total Current Fixed Income Actively managed, above-average credit quality bond solution that seeks to control risks while maintaining steady and consistent cash flow, with a main objective to maximize current income.
• Domestic Equity ETF Actively managed stock ETF solution designed to provide diverse exposure to US markets.
• Global Equity ETF Actively managed stock ETF solution designed to provide diverse exposure to global markets.
• Global Equity Income ETF Actively managed stock ETF solution designed to provide diverse exposure to global markets with a focus on dividend income.
• Financial Planning Comprehensive evaluation of current and future financial concerns using sophisticated financial planning software that tests scenarios and variables including compounding returns, anticipated cash flow changes, and inflation to develop personalized financial roadmaps.
• Estate Planning Estate planning services including living trusts, wills, beneficiary designations, and incapacity documents to help clients organize and protect their financial legacy.
• Tax Strategy Tax planning and strategy services including tax-deferred, tax-free, and taxable account optimization and asset location strategies.
• Digital Solutions Electronic processes for client onboarding, account maintenance, and reporting, providing increased ease, convenience, and security for clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% employee-owned
• +1 more outcomes

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Manning & Napier Advisors: Rochester, NY-headquartered investment advisor with a long history of active equity and fixed income management for individuals and institutions. Highly comparable to Howe & Rusling on geography, fee-only model, and active multi-asset approach, and is directly relevant because a senior Howe & Rusling advisor (Ryan Tomko) previously worked there.
• Moneta Group: Independent, employee-owned RIA providing comprehensive wealth management, financial planning, and tax strategy for HNW and UHNW clients. Comparable in employee-ownership structure, fee-only model, and full-service wealth platform.
• Carson Group: Large independent RIA offering wealth management, financial planning, and coaching services to individual and business clients. Comparable in full-service RIA positioning and multi-channel advisor network, though significantly larger in scale.
• Glenmede: Privately held investment and wealth management firm serving HNW families, foundations, and endowments. Comparable as a fee-only, employee-influenced RIA combining investment management with estate and fiduciary services.
• Fort Washington Investment Advisors: Active fixed income and equity manager serving institutional and wealth management clients, with comparable investment strategy offerings across actively managed bond and equity solutions.

Broad incumbents

• Creative Planning: Large national fee-only RIA providing investment management, financial planning, estate, and tax services. Comparable across the same comprehensive service stack, but operates at a substantially greater AUM scale with broader geographic reach.
• Mariner Wealth Advisors: National RIA consolidator offering wealth advisory, tax, estate, and retirement plan services. Comparable on comprehensive-service positioning and fee-only model, but materially larger and operating a roll-up acquisition strategy.
• Bessemer Trust: Private wealth and investment management firm serving UHNW families with bespoke investment, trust, and family office services. Comparable on fiduciary, multi-generational wealth management and estate/trust services for wealthy families.
• Brown Brothers Harriman Investor Services: Wealth management and custody arm of BBH, providing investment advisory, trust, and estate services to HNW individuals and families. Comparable on fiduciary, multi-generational wealth and trust capabilities.
• Edelman Financial Engines: Large national RIA providing financial planning, investment management, and workplace retirement plan services. Comparable in fee-only comprehensive wealth management, but operates at much greater scale and with a stronger retirement-plan distribution channel.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles26 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Howe & Rusling