Get to Know James
Why I Love My Job
HH offers an environment where you can chart your own path within the firm. I value the fact that there are no proprietary products we need to sell or quotas that must be met to outside shareholders.
As a Senior Wealth Advisor with Halbert Hargrove’s Long Beach office, James engages with and advises clients on decisions that strongly impact their financial lives. As he puts it, “Every outcome is driven by doing what is truly in clients’ best interests. This allows us to sit on the same side of the table when important financial choices are made.” James enjoys educating clients—including translating complex investment and insurance concepts into everyday language.
Prior to joining Halbert Hargrove in 2012, James worked as a financial advisor with Citi Personal Wealth Management as well as Edward Jones Investments. He says two of the aspects of working at HH he most appreciates are “the ability to be fully engaged in our clients’ lives—and to be under zero pressure to sell products or report quarterly earnings to shareholders.”
James earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with an Emphasis on International Relations from the University of California, Los Angeles. He was awarded the ACCREDITED INVESTMENT FIDUCIARY™ designation by the University of Pittsburgh-affiliated Center for Fiduciary Studies and is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™.
James is married to Sonia, an elementary school teacher with Los Angeles Unified School District and a lecturer with Loyola Marymount University; they share three children. Two things he’s particularly proud of: paying for his UCLA education by selling books door to door, and scoring four touchdowns in a single game. In his spare time James enjoys spending time with family and friends, cooking, attending concerts, camping, and golfing. He can be found on most weekends attending his kids’ games and dance classes.
Fun Fact
I have traveled to 20 countries and have driven cross-country in the U.S. eight times.
