Many advisors I converse with have purchasers who need extra personalised funding suggestions. Mutual fund and exchange-traded fund (ETF) portfolios primarily based on a broad funding goal and danger tolerance received’t minimize it. That’s after I recommend a direct indexing resolution as a substitute. It’s a extremely customizable funding technique that permits advisors to handle portfolios in a fraction of the time it as soon as took, permitting them to construct scale and effectivity—and finally profitability—into their follow.
What Is Direct Indexing?
Direct indexing options are complete methods aimed toward serving to advisors handle shopper investments with better precision, confidence, and after-tax alpha. They’re forms of individually managed accounts (SMAs) that put money into the person securities of a broad market index, such because the S&P 500. Shoppers can see which securities they’re invested in, whereas advisors can exclude sure tickers, sectors, or industries. This permits better customization and alignment with objectives, a function that’s unavailable in pooled autos resembling mutual funds or ETFs.
Hear from my colleague, Sarah Quinn, about the advantages Commonwealth’s Personalised Indexing resolution can deliver to your purchasers and your small business.

The Direct Indexing Distinction
One of many largest benefits of direct indexing is that the majority know-how platforms operating this technique can routinely harvest tax losses, a course of that’s tough to realize at scale when completed manually. In contrast to mutual funds or ETFs, which permit particular person traders to tax-loss harvest solely in a down market, with direct indexing you’ll be able to harvest losses in any underperforming safety with out considerably altering the portfolio’s allocation. Contemplating that, on common, 43 p.c of shares within the Russell 3000 Index had detrimental returns yearly between 2013–2023,* this will present substantial tax financial savings to purchasers.

Different tax methods usually used with direct indexing embody:
-
Tax transitioning. Transfer securities right into a mannequin in-kind, after which systematically promote belongings and purchase into the mannequin over time with out exceeding a capital positive factors price range.
-
Tax overlay. Search to attenuate the tax affect on a shopper’s portfolio by leveraging methods resembling tax-loss harvesting, acquire/loss matching, and deferring short-term positive factors.
The Ideally suited Consumer Profile
The wide-ranging advantages of direct indexing make it a viable funding technique for purchasers with various objectives throughout the wealth spectrum. However, to present you an concept of who could profit most, I’ve gathered a couple of eventualities from advisors I’ve labored with not too long ago:
Commonwealth’s Managed Accounts Answer
Right here at Commonwealth, our Funding Administration and Analysis staff manages our Most well-liked Portfolio Companies (PPS)® Choose platform, providing greater than 100 portfolio fashions. You may select from a various vary, together with energetic, passive, revenue, various, tax-aware, sustainable, and 10 direct-indexing options. This allows you to create the proper portfolio on your purchasers whereas saving priceless time by outsourcing administrative duties, resembling due diligence, buying and selling, and rebalancing.
Do Extra for Your Shoppers in Much less Time
Your purchasers are the lifeblood of your agency. To remain aggressive, you’ll seemingly have to transcend the normal function of funding supervisor to offering monetary, property, retirement, and tax planning providers as properly. This will add vital time to your day if not managed correctly. By tapping into revolutionary methods like direct-indexing options, you’ll ship a greater expertise for purchasers whereas guiding them on their journey to monetary freedom. And, you’ll acquire again priceless time wanted to tackle further purchasers and develop your small business.
* Supply: Orion.
Investments are topic to danger, together with the lack of principal. Some investments and techniques should not appropriate for all traders, and there’s no assure that any funding objective might be met. Previous efficiency isn’t any assure of future outcomes.
PPS Choose Personalised Indexing methods enable purchasers to create custom-made portfolios that search to intently monitor a market index whereas tailoring the investments to their distinctive preferences primarily based on elements resembling danger tolerance, time horizon, and tax concerns. These methods embody tax-loss harvesting, which seeks to cut back taxes by promoting an funding at a loss to offset capitals positive factors or abnormal revenue. The unique holding is changed with one other safety (“substitute safety”) designed to take care of the portfolio’s publicity to the market.
PPS Choose Personalised Indexing methods are topic to sure dangers, together with portfolio monitoring error, which is a portfolio’s deviation from the efficiency of the goal market index. This may be brought on by the technique’s consultant sampling methodology and shopper portfolio customization. Tax-loss harvesting can have unintended tax penalties and there could also be larger charges or prices related to a substitute safety. There is no such thing as a assure {that a} favorable tax final result might be achieved.
This materials is offered for informational functions solely and doesn’t represent tax recommendation. Please seek the advice of a tax or authorized skilled concerning your particular person circumstances earlier than deciding to take a position. Commonwealth doesn’t present tax or authorized recommendation.