Step Financial

We provide comprehensive financial planning, small business retirement plans and wealth management services for those who are ready to change their life for the better.

Our Registered Investment Advisory firm compensation is Fee-Only because we believe that our recommendations should always be in the client’s best interest.

Janet L. Larsen, CFP®

President and Founder

Janet served as the 2021 Chairman of the Financial Planning Association of California (FPA) after being the 2018 President of the Financial Planning Association of Orange County. FPA is the leadership and advocacy organization connecting those who provide, support and benefit from professional financial planning. It is the premier organization of Certified Financial Planners®.

At STEP Financial, Janet is responsible for creating financial plans and investment portfolios for Step Financial. She has over 20 years of experience working with investments. She is an emeritus host of the Investment Planning Knowledge Circle contributing to in-depth discussions of market conditions and investment strategies.

She received the Certified Financial Planner, CFP®, designation in 2008. She did graduate studies in Personal Financial Planning at UCLA passing with honors. Janet became a Certified Transitionist, CeFT®, receiving one of the highest cumulative scores, in 2016. She earned the Accredited Portfolio Management Advisor, APMA®, designation in 2015.

She is on the Executive Committee of the Financial Planning Association of California, an advocacy group that meets with California Regulators and Legislators representing financial planners and their clients in California. They promote financial literacy and serve as a trusted resource for legislators on personal financial problems and potential solutions.

Janet mentors women through the CFP® WIN program, which was established to encourage women to become Financial Planners. She teaches financial literacy webinars quarterly. She volunteers at pro bono financial planning days for the community and has assisted at Girl Scout Cookie Rallies.

Janet was featured in an article in the Wall Street Journal and has been quoted in TD Ameritrade magazine and other news articles.

Janet is married with three children and loves to spend time with her family and friends. She teaches a weekly yoga class to bring balance to her life. She loves the ocean, scuba diving and body boarding. She rates high on Geek tests; she likes to ride Segways, and has even has gone to a Star Trek convention. Upon graduation from college, Janet set a goal to continue learning and every year since she has take a class on everything from piano tuning to automotive maintenance to coaching group cardio-kickboxing. This is in addition to the annual 30 hours of continuing education to maintain her Certified Financial Planner(TM) designation.