Rapport Financial · San Francisco, CA · Serving Clients Across the Country
Rapport Financial is an independent registered investment adviser based in San Francisco and serving clients across the country. We provide comprehensive financial planning and wealth management to owners of service-based businesses, including medical practices, law firms, technology and consulting firms, and solopreneurs who left corporate America to build businesses of their own.
Rapport Financial was founded in 2017 on a simple belief: great financial planning starts with building Rapport and Trust. Not a portfolio review, or investment strategy selection. Trust is earned, one conversation at a time.
From day one, we've operated differently. As a boutique firm, we're able to dedicate more time and resources to each family we serve, pairing comprehensive financial planning and investment management with a curated network of vetted outside professionals. We've helped families navigate company exits, retirement transitions, business growth, and estate complexity.
We named our firm Rapport Financial because building close relationships, and becoming increasingly integral to the families we serve, is the foundation of every relationship we build, and the standard we hold ourselves to.
As an independent registered investment adviser and CFP® professional, Rapport Financial and Aaron Hattenbach act as fiduciaries when providing investment advisory services and financial advice, putting clients’ interests first while disclosing and managing material conflicts of interest.
Over 16 years advising individuals, families, and institutions, we combine experience gained at large financial institutions with the personal attention of a boutique firm.
We coordinate a trusted team around you: CPAs, estate attorneys, insurance specialists, lenders, and more, in concert with your financial plan.
We keep our practice boutique so clients have direct access to the advisory team they meet at the beginning of the relationship.
Our investment offering combines comprehensive financial planning with access to public- and private-market strategies selected based on each client's objectives, risk tolerance, liquidity needs, and eligibility.
We help with retirement plan design, succession and continuity planning, operational infrastructure, talent retention benefits, and business strategy.
I entered the industry in 2010 as an intern at AllianceBernstein, my first look at how institutional-caliber investment management and research actually works. From there, I joined teams at Telemus Capital and HighTower Advisors, working alongside advisors who ran their own boutique practices, a first taste of what it looked like to build something more personal within a larger platform. Eventually, I went off on my own, building a solo practice within Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Even there, I kept coming back to the same realization: the firms I'd trained at were built for scale, not for relationships. Real financial planning happens at the kitchen table, not in a quarterly statement. So at the end of 2016, I left Merrill to build something different, and more personal.
It's why we're called Rapport Financial. Before any written financial plan or investment portfolio, there's a relationship, and that's always come first. I built the firm living room by living room, driving to clients' homes, sitting down in person, and taking the time to actually understand their lives before ever talking about a portfolio.
That hands-on instinct is still how we operate today. We stay close to our clients through frequent touchpoints, not just an annual check-in.
We act as a true financial quarterback, sitting at the center of each client's professional advisory team and coordinating alongside their CPA, estate attorney, and other trusted advisors.
Like Aaron, I became interested in financial services at a young age after realizing how much a comprehensive financial plan could have impacted my family. In today's landscape, full-time employment and diligent budgeting may keep a roof over your head, but it's no longer enough to guarantee a timely, secure retirement. That recognition set me on a path toward building the industry knowledge and skills to help as many people as possible find genuine financial security.
After graduating from the Ohio State Fisher College of Business, I found a passion for process and execution, helping visionary financial advisors put personalized plans into place for hundreds of hard-working clients. I specialize in workflow design, custodial operations, and client communication, pairing technology with established organizational strategies to support an organized, responsive, and personalized client experience.
We've been working together for half a decade, treating every client as if they were our only client.
I was drawn to Rapport Financial because of Aaron's passion and his deeply personal approach to every engagement. I currently live in New York City, where in my free time I enjoy playing tennis, exploring the city's neighborhoods and parks with my partner and our dog Timon, and watching my beloved New York Mets find new and innovative ways to lose baseball games. I'm also a voracious reader and creative writer, and I volunteer with the Crown Heights mutual aid network and the Coalition for Concerned Medical Professionals.
A conversation is the first step toward understanding where you are today, what matters most to you, and how we may be able to help. No pressure or obligation.