Change is rarely comfortable or without emotion. 

Yet as much as we humans resist change, a big picture view reminds us that when change is intentional and well planned, the rewards can be enormous.

Dale Cebert started his private wealth advisory practice in 1998, masterfully molding it into a trusted firm known for putting clients first. Cebert Wealth expanded its client base to all 50 states and has offices in three Central Florida locations, including two in The Villages.

Over the last seven years, Cebert Wealth became the third largest Ameriprise franchise in the state of Florida.

“We’ve doubled our assets in the last five years,” says Dale Cebert. “When we joined Ameriprise in late 2018, we were at about $425 million in client retirement assets, and we grew that to $998-million-plus.”

In early February 2026, Cebert Wealth took their nearly $1 billion book of business, left Ameriprise and went to LPL Financial.

Client driven 

For Cebert Wealth, their clients’ future was worth all the time and effort such a change required.

“It took 28 years to build my practice. Changing broker dealers is a lot of work but we’re doing it for a lot of beneficial reasons,” says Dale.

The primary reasons were lower costs for Cebert Wealth’s clients and significantly expanded investment choices for their managed platform and insurance options.

When Dale and his team sat down to go over the numbers, they realized that the fee difference for their clients over the next decade was substantial. That alone helped make the move worthwhile.

Once Cebert Wealth received regulatory approval from the state of Florida, activity began transitioning to LPL Financial. As of mid-April, Cebert Wealth was still in transition with the broker-dealer move but was ahead of schedule from their expectations.

“You would like to have it all done at one time, but realistically, we know these things take time,” says Dale. “Our team is working diligently to expedite the process and get back to our normal function.”

Since its founding in 1989, LPL Financial has grown to be recognized as the country’s largest independent broker-dealer with over $1 trillion in advisory and brokerage assets.

“Ameriprise is a very good company. We enjoyed everyone we worked with there and appreciate the time we processed our business through them,” says Dale. “We thought we always had very good investment choices with Ameriprise. The reality is that now at LPL we have all those choices and then some, so there’s a lot more investment flexibility.” 

The change in broker-dealers does not have an impact on where clients meet with their advisors. Cebert Wealth still has all three office locations and is even in the process of adding a fourth location in Orlando.

The process of transitioning to another broker-dealer was a disruptive and time-consuming logistical undertaking for Cebert Wealth. But when you put clients first, as this team does, the end result is worth it. 

“We feel LPL is the partner that will help us achieve our goals in the most effective and efficient way possible for our clients’ futures,” says Dale. “We made this move because we believe the transition will enable us to continue providing an outstanding client experience and to build long-term relationships.”

Dale occasionally has clients ask how long he plans to continue in the business. He’s happy to put their minds at ease, noting, “I wouldn’t make a move like this if I didn’t plan to be around and participating in the benefits of this change for the long haul.” 

Economic Updates

Dale explains that in addition to investment options, LPL Financial offered enhanced flexibility when it came to educational events for clients. 

Cebert Wealth is now able to archive their weekly Economic Updates, which are held in person and online Wednesday nights at 6:30pm at their Brownwood Square Office.

These popular broadcasts give clients assurance and confirm accountability as they know their advisors are closely monitoring market fluctuations and being proactive to minimize downside.

“For years we’ve had clients ask if there was a way to watch the updates at another time than when we were broadcasting live,” says Dale. “We have clients in all 50 states, and not all were available at the times we were broadcasting. In the past we were only able to do them live. Now we can archive updates so clients can sit down to watch at their convenience.”

Initially, Economic Updates were done quarterly and in person, but everything changed during the pandemic.

“When the pandemic hit and we were no longer able to invite clients into the office, we immediately realized this was an important time to be in contact with them,” recalls Dale, who is the podcaster and the presenter of the weekly Economic Updates.

During the Covid-19 lockdowns, beginning in March 2020, Economic Updates became a regular occurrence. 

“We began doing them weekly and even did them three times a week when we couldn’t get together in person because of restrictions,” says Dale. “We realized how valuable this was to our clients and continued doing them twice a week. Now we’re able to record those events so clients can listen when it’s convenient for them not just when we’re broadcasting live.” 

Economic Updates can be easily accessed by clicking a link on the Cebert Wealth website. Ultimately, the updates can be emailed to clients.

“With everything going on in the world right now, markets have been very volatile and there is always economic news to talk about,” says Dale. “We monitor everything—from world events to market movements—and how they’re impacting areas where we have exposure within our portfolios. Our weekly updates are a tool that let us cover a lot of ground. They assure our clients that we’re paying attention to what’s going on. It’s a way to make sure we’re accountable to our clients.”

A distinctive part of the client experience at Cebert Wealth is that they have this weekly opportunity to hear what their advisors think about what’s going on in the world and what adjustments are being made to protect against uncertainty and give clients peace of mind.

Educational opportunities

Because knowledge is power, Cebert Wealth will also hold long-format educational events on topics that benefit clients, such as estate planning, tax planning, scam prevention, and more.

These events will offer more in-depth information than would be practical for the 30-to 40-minute Economic Updates.

“The long-format educational events and podcasting will be beginning this summer once our transition is complete and things are back to normal,” says Dale. “We can record and archive these for clients to watch any time.”

Thanks to 21st century technology, clients can be as engaged as they wish in learning about investment opportunities.

“We love seeing people in person face to face, but thankfully, with the benefits of modern technology, we have the ability to help more people beyond this radius,” says Dale. “We have clients we’ve worked together with for years but have never been in the same room together.” 

This active communication between clients and advisors makes Cebert Wealth unique. Some clients rarely check their statements; others only check periodically, but for those clients who are very interested and want to be educated on investments, the team is happy to meet that need. 

“We know what’s happening in the world and how we’re positioned in relation to that,” says Dale.
“We manage assets ourselves in house; nothing is subbed out to a third party. We know everything in our models, and our investment committee has chosen them, so everybody on the team knows what we own and why.”

Relationships matter

For advisors who truly care about clients, building long-term relationships is one of the most rewarding things about the investment business.

“You don’t get to manage $1 billion in assets by accident,” says Dale. “You do things over time to earn that responsibility, one client, one relationship at a time. Our clients are not just clients; they’re part of our extended family. We get to know their families and their histories.” 

Dale is humbled to realize that some of his current clients were his clients when he opened his first office in The Villages 28 years ago. He also has clients today who are the children or grandchildren of those earliest clients. 

“I have clients who I worked with before my daughter Shelby was born. She’s 27 now and I was excited to have her join our team last June,” he says.

 “I love the business; if I was planning on joining my clients on the golf course soon, I wouldn’t have done this transition,” says Dale. “Warren Buffett was 96 when he just stepped down from his daily responsibilities at Berkshire Hathaway, so having recently turned 60, I think I have a good long runway in front of me.” 

If you haven’t worked with Cebert Wealth before, you’re invited to visit the website. Tune in to a couple of Economic Updates or click on the link for an upcoming event and attend in person if you’re local. 

The more you learn about the team at Cebert Wealth, the more likely you are to join the many clients who trust them to plan and protect their investments.

Paid Promotional Feature

Photos: Nicole Hamel