Financial Advisors

Altfest Personal Wealth Management, founded in 1983, is a pioneer in the fee-only Wealth Management movement. Fee-only means that the firm receives fees only from its clients and not from commissions and the sale of products, which can otherwise lead to conflicts of interest. The firm provides clients with investment management, retirement planning, insurance, tax and estate advisory. Altfest Personal Wealth Management is dedicated to putting clients’ interests ahead of its own, hiring highly talented people who work as a team to develop the best strategies for clients. We utilize internal experts that specialize in a variety of technical areas and client segments, and are dedicated to providing a personal, warm, caring atmosphere and a high level of service for clients. We are committed to introducing innovative methods to the profession that increase the value we provide to clients. Altfest Personal Wealth Management has again been named one of AdvisoryHQ’s “Top Rated Financial Advisors in New York City” in 2019. Additionally, the firm was named in The Financial Times “FT300” – a listing of the nation’s top 300 Retirement Investment Advisors for 2017. The firm is proud to be honored by @InvestmentNews as one of the “75 Best Places to Work for Financial Advisers” nationwide in 2019. #INbestplaces #financialadvice #bestplacestowork Lewis Altfest, Ph.D., CFA, CFP® founded the firm after leaving Lord Abbett & Co, a large mutual fund company with over 100 billion in assets under management, where he was a Partner and Director of Research. Lew has been named to Barron’s “Top 100 Independent Advisors” as well as Barron’s state-by-state listing of “America’s Top 1,200 Financial Advisors” as #51, among many other acknowledgements. Karen C Altfest, Ph.D., CFP® joined the firm in its early years and has had a strong impact on its growth. Karen oversees the firm’s marketing activities and has made a profound impact by dedicating herself to the empowerment of women. In 2019 Forbes named Karen as one of the nation’s “Top 250 Women Wealth Advisors”, placing her in the top 10%. Karen was included in this list in 2017 and 2018, as well as Forbes‘ list of “Best-In-State Wealth Advisors”. Andrew Altfest, MBA, CFP® joined the firm in 2003 and has consistently driven financial planning strategies for the firm. He is an active member of the firm’s Investment Committee and the Portfolio Action Group. He was recently named a “Best-In-State Wealth Advisor” in New York City by Forbes in their 2018 and 2019 rankings and has been named among InvestmentNews’ 2018 list of “40 Under 40” in the Financial Advisory industry. Andrew was honored in Forbes’ inaugural listing of “America’s Top Next-Generation Wealth Advisors” in 2017, ranking in the top 15%. Andrew was also honored by being included in Financial Advisor Magazine’s “Due Diligence/Research Manager All-Star Team” in 2012 and 2013. The firm's culture is very collegial with a family atmosphere where we care for our employees. Our team is very analytical, hardworking and yet looks to develop new ideas that will help it sustain and accelerate our growth into the future. Altfest Personal Wealth Management is an Equal Opportunity Employer.