Meet Your Advisor

I’m Rob Bartels, the founder and principal of New Phase Financial, a mission-driven financial planning practice in San Diego. What’s the mission?  It’s to help family, friends and community navigate the shoals of financial complexity,  make better financial decisions, and live happier and healthier lives.   

For me, personal finance has never been about building the biggest bank account; it’s about figuring out how to both grow and use your money to reflect your goals and values. How so? Life presents us with a stream of financial decisions and trade-offs - getting married, having children, buying a home, paying off debt, saving for retirement, etc. – and the decisions we make have enormous impact on our families, our futures and our communities.  I started New Phase Financial to help clients to clarify their values and align them with life’s critical financial decisions. 

I am a Certified Financial Planner® and also have had a 30-year career in business management and education that took me around the world. Now based in San Diego, I received a Masters Degree in International Business from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), completed the Executive Financial Planner program at San Diego State (SDSU), and passed the Series 65 Exam.  I am registered as an investment advisor with the State of California, and am a member of the Garrett Planning Network and the National Association for Fee-Only Advisors (NAPFA). 

Perhaps most important, I’ve come through the school of hard knocks. Over a lifetime, my wife of 34 years and I learned to scrimp and save, bought and sold houses, funded college for our daughter, survived inflation/recessions/career changes, made good and bad investments, survived health scares (and the healthcare system!), and have helped our aging parents.  Whatever your financial situation, I have likely been through it myself! 

Finally, I am a teacher at heart and a serial learner.  I passionately follow the financial planning industry, daily scouring journals, podcasts, and new research, and talking with experts in search of data-driven insights and best practices I can share with clients.    

Let New Phase Financial help you navigate transitions in your financial life.  If interested, click here to read more and to schedule a free “get acquainted” call/Zoom. On the call, I’ll explain the planning process, fees and the expected outcome – and then you can decide if New Phase Financial is right for you.    

 My wife and I in the Grand Canyon