Jim Corbeau, MBA, CFP^®, CDFA

Background

I grew up near Santa Cruz, California. My parents were immigrants from the Netherlands, who came to America in the early 1960s looking for opportunities not available in post-war Europe.

Growing up as a typical California “beach kid”, I surfed, swam and played water polo. Thanks to swimming – and my ability to do well on “fill in the bubble” standardized tests – I was admitted to the University of California, Berkeley after high school.

At Cal, I began studying Nuclear Engineering, but fairly quickly switched to Political Science and Economics. At the same time, I competed for the men’s swim team collegiately and represented the Netherlands internationally. Swimming gave me the opportunity to develop lifelong friendships and to travel the world.

Shortly after finishing my undergraduate studies, I completed a Masters in Business Administration degree at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, with a dual major in Finance and International Business.

I then moved to Europe and spent a decade working as a merchant banker, advising companies and high net worth investors on a range of financial matters. The work was fulfilling and challenging, and the clients and colleagues wonderful to work with, but the non-stop global travel was unsustainable.

As a result, my wife and I decided to return to California. I completed a certificate program in Financial Planning, and then opened my own independent, fee-only financial advisory practice, Maas Capital. I’ve always believed that people are best served by an advisor who’s experienced, credentialed, and fully committed to doing what’s best for the client.

After a few years in California, our family moved up to Oregon, where we’ve been ever since. We have three kids, two of whom are in college, and one who’s just graduated (“Hook ’em!”). As a proud parent, I can say that all three are excellent students, great athletes (the oldest even competed at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics…), and even better young people.

In 2013, my business partner Terry Donahe and I merged our advisory practices to form Springwater Wealth. We have offices in Portland and Santa Cruz, California, and serve an amazing group of clients across the West Coast and around the world.

I’m a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional, and a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst^®. I’m also a member of several professional organizations, including the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA), the highly-regarded association of fee-only financial advisors.

I’m a lifelong learner and intellectually curious. Our family has always been education-oriented – my wife, sister, mother and mother-in-law are or were all teachers. I’ve taught the rigorous Investments course for the Personal Financial Planning certificate program at the University of California, Santa Cruz-Extension, and I also present fairly regularly to the public and to professional groups on a range of investment- and planning-related topics.