John Balmer: Kingswood Advisor Faces $10 Million Complaint

Irvine, California financial advisor John Balmer (CRD# 4569902) recently received an investor complaint alleging that his conduct resulted in eight-figure damages. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority records show that he is registered as a broker with Kingswood Capital Partners and an investment advisor with DST Wealth Management.

Mr. Balmer’s BrokerCheck report discloses one investor complaint. Filed in December 2025, it alleges that as a representative of Kingswood Capital Partners, he participated in unspecified misconduct relating to the sale of Delaware Statutory Trusts (DSTs) and real estate investment trusts (REITs). The pending complaint alleges damages of $10 million.

A real estate investment trust, or REIT, is an investment vehicle that uses pooled funds from a group of investors to buy and operate real estate properties. REITs may be can be publicly traded or privately held. While they have the benefit of giving investors access to real estate investments—and the promise of steady income streams from them—non-traded REITs may be particularly risky for short-term investors and even long-term investors. Publicly traded REITs, which are generally traded on major stock exchanges, are often associated with liquidity and stable cash flows, but they are also affected by the ebb and flow of the markets, and like their non-traded counterparts, they may come with high fees. As Investopedia notes, REITs also have fairly low capital appreciation.

According to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, John Balmer holds 19 years of securities industry experience. Based in Irvine, California, he has been registered as a broker with Kingswood Capital Partners since 2023 and an investment advisor with DST Wealth Management since 2019. His past registrations include Benchmark Investments, Centaurus Financial, Anfield Advisors, Girard Securities, LPL Financial, Accelerated Capital Group, Peak Securities, InterSecurities, Citigroup Global Markets, Lincoln Financial Advisors, and the Lincoln National Life Insurance Company. His credentials include the passage of three securities industry qualifying exams: the Securities Industry Essentials Examination, or SIE; the Uniform Combined State Law Examination, or Series 66; and the General Securities Representative Examination, or Series 7. He is licensed in Arizona, California, Florida, North Carolina, and Texas. (Information current as of March 1, 2026.)

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