Chaim Investment Advisors

What Chaim Investment Advisors does

Chaim Investment Advisors is a fee-only fiduciary Registered Investment Advisor founded in 2014 by Victor Schramm ("Chaim") and headquartered in Portland, Oregon. The firm is registered to serve clients in Oregon and California, delivering holistic financial planning, portfolio management, workplace retirement plans (401(k), 403(b), SEP-IRA, SIMPLE IRA), investment-only variable annuities (IOVA), variable annuity rescue services, and ESG/socially responsible investing to individuals, families, small businesses, and non-profit entities. Customer segmentation spans individual investors (professionals, executives, small business owners) and SMB/non-profit retirement plan sponsors, with a secondary niche in faith-based and values-aligned investing.

The firm operates without proprietary technology infrastructure. Portfolio construction uses conventional ETFs and mutual funds; IOVA distribution runs on Nationwide's Monument Advisor platform; and ESG research is sourced from MSCI. Service delivery is human-driven by a single advisor — Victor Schramm — who simultaneously serves as Portfolio Manager, Financial Planner, and Owner, holding the CFS, CAS, AIF, and CDFS designations. No AI/ML capabilities, mobile app, or proprietary software platform is disclosed.

Revenue is generated through tiered AUM-based fees (1.00% on $0–$1M declining to 0.65% above $25M), a flat $20/month maintenance fee on IOVA contracts, and hourly billing for self-directed planning clients. Client acquisition relies on content marketing (a blog, the "News & Views" YouTube podcast, multi-platform social media, and an email newsletter) combined with free introductory meetings. Managed-asset clients receive comprehensive financial planning at no incremental cost, which is the central commercial hook of the firm.

Name

Chaim Investment Advisors

Legal name

Chaim Investment Advisors

Website

https://chaim-investment-advisors.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Chaim Investment Advisors is a fee-only fiduciary RIA founded in 2014 by Victor Schramm, providing financial planning, portfolio management, retirement plans, ESG investing, and annuity solutions to individuals and small businesses in Oregon and California.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Investment Advisory and Financial Planning Services

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411)

akta.pro primary industry

Fee-Based Advisory (FSAEAAAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

ESG/Sustainable Investment Advisory (FSAEAAAJ), Corporate Retirement Plan Advisory RIAs (ERISA 401(k)/403(b)) (FSAAACAF), Retirement & Distribution Planning RIAs (401(k)/IRA/Pension Rollovers) (FSAAACAE)

Keywords

• Financial planning services
• Investment advisory services
• Retirement plan administration
• Portfolio management services
• ESG investing advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Eugene

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Assets Under Management (AUM) Fees: Fee-based model where clients elect for Chaim Investment Advisors to manage their portfolios on an ongoing basis. Fees are assessed as a percentage of assets under management with tiered breakpoints, deducted directly from client accounts.
2. Hourly Rate Financial Planning: Comprehensive financial planning engagements billed by the hour. Designed for investors who want detailed frameworks but prefer to implement advice themselves.
3. ESG Research Services: Works primarily with MSCI for ESG research to support Socially Responsible Investing portfolio construction.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Chaim Investment Advisors provides fee-only, fiduciary-focused holistic financial planning and investment advisory services, including customized investment strategy and ongoing portfolio management with low-cost ETF and mutual fund portfolios, workplace retirement plan solutions (401(k), 403(b), SEP-IRA, SIMPLE IRA) for businesses and non-profits, Investment Only Variable Annuities distributed through Nationwide's Monument Advisor platform, and ESG/Socially Responsible Investing portfolios constructed using MSCI ESG research. Services are delivered either on an AUM-fee managed-account basis or via hourly-rate planning engagements, and include variable annuity rescue work using 1035 exchange transfers.

Product overview

Chaim Investment Advisors is a Fee Only, fiduciary-focused financial planning and investment advisory firm offering a comprehensive suite of services built around holistic financial planning as the core foundation. The firm's main product lines include Financial Planning and Investment Advice (the core advisory services), Business Retirement Plans (401(k), 403(b), SEP-IRA, and SIMPLE IRA offerings for employers), Investment Only Variable Annuities (IOVA) offered through Nationwide's Monument Advisor platform, and Socially Responsible Investing/ESG investing approaches. The firm operates on both hourly rate and managed account fee models, with managed accounts receiving comprehensive financial planning included free of charge.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Holistic Financial Planning Holistic financial planning service covering investment advice, retirement planning, and comprehensive financial guidance, forming the foundation of the firm's advisory approach and delivered either as an ongoing engagement or on an hourly-rate basis.
• Investment Advice and Portfolio Management Ongoing portfolio management and investment advisory services building long-term, low-cost, diversified portfolios using ETFs and mutual funds under a fiduciary approach for individual investors and families.
• Workplace Retirement Plans Workplace retirement solutions for for-profit businesses of all sizes from solopreneurs to 500+ employee companies, and for non-profit entities such as churches and schools; includes 401(k), 403(b), SEP-IRA, and SIMPLE IRA plans delivered at competitive pricing with fiduciary duties handled by the plan provider and in-house tailored investment menu management.
• Investment Only Variable Annuities (IOVA) Fee-only variable annuity offering distributed through Nationwide's Monument Advisor platform, providing tax-deferred growth on larger taxable sums with no commissions and a flat $20/month maintenance fee, with access to institutional-quality fund options.
• Socially Responsible and ESG Investing Investment management approach using Environment, Social, and Governance criteria for portfolio construction, leveraging MSCI ESG research to score and rank corporate behaviors and identify areas to invest in or avoid while staying low-cost and well diversified; includes expertise serving faith-based investors (Jewish and Muslim clients) and ESG-focused investors, with charitable giving strategies such as Donor-Advised Funds.
• Hourly Rate Financial Planning Comprehensive financial planning engagement billed by the hour, designed for investors who want a detailed framework for their financial future but prefer to implement the advice themselves, with no minimum required.
• Variable Annuity Rescue Specialty advisory service that helps clients with existing high-fee variable annuities transition to flat-fee alternatives using 1035 exchange transfers, aimed at reducing ongoing fees and surrender charge exposure.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• NationwidecoreTechnology or IntegrationNationwide is the insurance and financial services provider whose Monument Advisor Investment Only Variable Annuity (IOVA) platform Chaim Investment Advisors uses to offer fee-only annuity solutions to clients. The firm works with Nationwide to provide flat-fee IOVA products with $20/month maintenance fees and access to institutional-quality fund options.
• MSCIcoreTechnology or IntegrationMSCI provides ESG research and scoring services used by Chaim Investment Advisors for Environmental, Social, and Governance investment analysis. The firm uses MSCI's ESG research tools to assess companies across countries, industries, and asset classes.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Empower (Personal Capital): Hybrid digital wealth manager combining free tools, robo-advice, and a network of human advisors with fee-based financial planning and AUM-fee portfolio management. Comparable to Chaim's integrated financial-planning-plus-investment-management offering, with a hybrid human-and-digital delivery model.
• Fisher Investments: Large-scale private investment advisor primarily serving high-net-worth individuals and institutional clients with discretionary portfolio management. Competes with Chaim for HNW individuals in the Pacific Northwest but operates at vastly greater scale with a global institutional portfolio approach.
• Schwab Intelligent Portfolios: Charles Schwab's automated advisory platform offering diversified ETF portfolios and access to CFP professionals for financial planning. Comparable to Chaim on fee-based investment management and integrated planning, but at near-zero advisory fees backed by Schwab's scale.

Direct peers

• Carson Group (Carson Wealth): Network of fee-only fiduciary advisors providing financial planning, retirement plan services, and ESG advisory to individuals and businesses. Compares to Chaim on the fee-only RIA model and workplace retirement plan offering, with a much broader partner-advisor ecosystem.
• Facet Wealth: Fee-only flat-fee financial planning and investment advisory firm serving individuals nationwide with a remote-first, technology-enabled advisor model. Directly comparable to Chaim on the fee-only fiduciary positioning and individual-investor focus, though at considerably larger scale with multiple advisors.
• Buckingham Strategic Wealth: Fee-only fiduciary RIA offering holistic financial planning, investment management, and retirement-plan services to individuals and businesses. Closely comparable to Chaim on fee structure, fiduciary model, and integrated planning-plus-portfolio-management approach.
• Edelman Financial Engines: Fee-only RIA providing financial planning, investment management, and 401(k)/workplace retirement plan services to a national clientele. Comparable to Chaim on the fee-only advisory model, integration of planning with portfolio management, and corporate retirement offerings.
• Creative Planning: Large fee-only fiduciary RIA offering holistic financial planning, investment management, and retirement-plan advisory to individuals, families, and businesses. Overlaps with Chaim across fee structure, fiduciary positioning, and breadth of service, including ESG investment offerings.

Emerging players

• Wealthfront: Automated investment advisor (robo-advisor) offering diversified portfolio management with tax-loss harvesting, plus goals-based planning features. Competes with Chaim for younger mass-affluent investors who might otherwise engage a fee-only RIA, though it operates with little human advisory interaction.
• Betterment: Robo-advisor offering goal-based portfolio management, retirement accounts, and tax-efficient investing at low AUM fees. Tangentially competes with Chaim at the entry-level investor segment and competes for clients considering low-cost holistic financial planning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chaim-investment-advisors

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Chaim Investment Advisors