You handle the legal & tax components.
We handle the Financial Management
A collaborative partnership designed to help CPAs, Estate Attorneys, and Divorce Attorneys be more effective with their clients.
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Our Philosophy:
Your EXTENDED
Family Office
High Net Worth (HNW) and Ultra-High Net Worth clients require more than isolated advice. They need a team.
We act as the quarterback of our clients’ financial lives, ensuring the tax strategies you design and the estate plans you draft are thoughtfully implemented within the portfolios we manage.
We are looking to build relationships with professionals who share our common interest & fiduciary standards.
HOW WE WORK TOGETHER WITH TAX PROFESSIONALS
Cash Flow Management
We align personal liquidity wants with business cash flow needs, helping maximize deductions and minimize out-of-pocket expense by speerheading mid-year tax projection check-ins and arranging pre-year-end strategy calls.
Succession Planning
Our collaboration really shines when presenting Roth conversions, Tax-loss harvesting & gain deferral, Entity planning, Charitable gifting and helping to prepare for Liquidity events.
HOW WE WORK TOGETHER WITH ESTATE ATTORNEYS
Architect Alignment
We align with you as the architect, limiting our input to planning observations, and focusing on implementation tracking trust funding, maintaining titling and beneficiary consistency, and flagging outdated assumptions.
Complete Inventory of Assets
We identify and consolidate all stray accounts, delivering a clean, comprehensive financial snapshot that details account types, current market values, cost basis, ownership structure, beneficiary designations, and liquidity.
Leaving a legacy
We educate the next generation and align assets with the language in the trust, ensuring wealth transfers exactly where intended by helping families live by the rules you draft.
HOW WE WORK TOGETHER WITH DIVORCE ATTORNEYS
Settlement Analysis
We help you and the client understand the long-term financial impact of different settlement options (e.g., keeping the house vs. the retirement account).
Post-Divorce Transition
We look beyond the current market value to analyze the tax implications and liquidity of every asset. By providing a clear picture of the “after-tax” reality, we help lower the emotional temperature of negotiations and facilitate a fair, transparent division of wealth.
Seperate Assets
We analyze after-tax realities to lower tension and ensure a fair division of wealth. We pressure-test settlements to ensure they actually support the client’s long-term lifestyle and we manage the full transition—consolidating accounts to build a confident new future.
MEET YOUR TEAM
Steven Bernstein
President, Stonewater Financial
With over two decades of expertise in wealth management at premier financial institutions, I established Stonewater Financial. As we approach our firm’s eighth anniversary, I take immense pride in our dedicated team, the enduring relationships we’ve cultivated, and the consistent successes we’ve achieved and continue to pursue.
At Stonewater Financial, we build and manage custom financial plans that suit each individual’s unique situation. This plan is not just about what money goes where.
It’s a roadmap for what to do in volatile markets, how to respond to changes in personal circumstances, and what kind of legacy you want to leave.
WHAT’S THE STONEWATER DIFFERENCE?
We Stay in Our Lane: We do not offer legal or tax advice. We rely on you for that. We simply ensure your advice is reflected in the client’s financial behavior.
Fiduciary Standard: We act in the client’s best interest, always.
Referral Reciprocity: We are actively looking for trusted specialists to refer our existing HNW clients to when complex tax or legal needs arise. Selective on who we partner with to retain credibility and reputation.
OUR VALUES
Integrity
Comprehensiveness
Transparency
HOW TO GET IN TOUCH WITH US
Email Us
Call Us
We are here to help.
1800 Century Park East, Suite 210, Los Angeles, CA 90067
Steven Bernstein is a registered representative with, and securities and advisory services offered through LPL Financial, a registered investment advisor, Member FINRA & SIPC.
California Insurance License #0G51436. The LPL Financial registered representative(s) associated with this website may discuss and/or transact business only with residents of the states in which they are properly registered or licensed. No offers may be made or accepted from any resident of any other state.
Check the background of investment professionals associated with this site on FINRA's BrokerCheck.
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