Michael Beloff Built $125M Special-Needs Practice

Michael Beloff left a corporate law career after his son received an autism diagnosis and retrained as a financial advisor 25 years ago. He founded Belvedere Wealth Partners in Stamford, Connecticut eight years ago. The firm is part of Stratos Wealth Partners in the LPL Financial network and manages about $125 million for roughly 100 clients.

About two-thirds of those client households include a family member with a developmental disability, Beloff estimates. He developed the focus by offering free workshops on guardianship, benefit eligibility, legal documents and housing to local nonprofits, and by building an email list of nearly 2,000 families to share resources and a monthly newsletter.

Beloff approached community organizations directly and volunteered on boards for roughly two decades to establish relationships and generate referrals. Many families who attend workshops do not engage an advisor immediately; Beloff tracks contacts over many years and often sees clients reach out when their children approach key ages such as 18 or 22, when benefit rules and adult services become more relevant.

To serve families at different stages, Beloff offers flexible fee arrangements. Households that do not meet asset minimums for full advisory relationships can hire him on an hourly basis under a financial planning contract. Those shorter, lower-cost engagements provide specific planning actions and can lead to longer-term advisory relationships as family finances change.

Planning needs vary by level of disability. Public benefits require a specific definition of disability to qualify for programs such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income. These programs typically cover basic day programming and housing supports but not discretionary expenses. Families commonly use special needs trusts to preserve eligibility for public benefits while providing funds for quality-of-life spending.

Beloff emphasizes coordination with estate attorneys and attention to state differences in benefits. He notes that services and eligibility can change if a family moves between states and that estate divisions may need to be unequal to provide ongoing care for a relative with disabilities.

Beloff remains active on his local social service agency board and on state and national committees related to developmental services. He advises other advisors seeking a niche to work directly with community groups, create specific educational content and volunteer in the networks that serve those families.

Beloff recalled his outreach approach: “I called every nonprofit in my area and asked, ‘Do you bring in speakers? Can you bring in an audience? I don’t charge. I’m giving this information for free.'” Those early events, he says, supplied steady referrals over time.