About Me

Joe has more than 36 years of experience working with individual and institutional clients as a personal wealth manager. In 2000, he earned the Certified Investment Management Analyst℠ (CIMA®) designation through the Investment & Wealth Institute℠ at The Wharton School. He is also proficient in point-and-figure (PNF) analysis through NASDAQ/Dorsey Wright. Joe was recognized by Forbes as a Best-In-State Wealth Advisor in 2019–2022, 2025 and again in 2026, and he has been a Certified Kingdom Advisor® since 2011.

Joe began his career in Atlanta as a Public Finance Officer with NationsBanc Capital Markets Group before joining Grant Thornton as an Asset Specialist. In 1993, he returned to Charleston to work with Interstate/Johnson Lane, which later merged with multiple banking institutions. He eventually founded Nicholson Wealth Management Group, a boutique asset management firm, operating as a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA).

He holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the Darla Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the College of Charleston.

Deeply committed to community service, Joe has served as President of NAMI Charleston and as Treasurer of two nonprofits—the Alzheimer’s Association of the Lowcountry and Carolina Autism—both of which he helped found. He has also served on the board of the College of Charleston Alumni Association, as Treasurer of Coastal Crisis Chaplaincy, and currently serves on the advisory boards of Camp St. Christopher Camp and Conference Center and FreshStart Visions.

Joe is an active member of Kingdom Advisors, a nonprofit organization for Christian financial professionals, and his faith plays an instrumental role in both his personal and professional life. Originally from Greenville, South Carolina, Joe and his wife, Nicole, reside on Johns Island and have two children. Their daughter is a graduate of Clemson University, and their son is a graduate of the University of South Carolina’s Moore School of Business. They are members of St. Michael’s Church in Charleston and enjoy supporting Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University and Cursillo ministries.

Outside of work, Joe has a passion for Model A Fords and is a member of the Lowcountry Ford Model A Club. He can often be seen around town driving either his 1930 Ford Model A Town Sedan or his 1930 Ford Model A Truck to the office.

^{1 Advisors do not pay a fee for placement on the Forbes ranking of Best-In-State Wealth Advisors, which is independently determined by SHOOK Research.  The ranking is based on criteria learned through telephone, virtual and in-person due diligence interview, and quantitative data such as revenue trends and assets under management.  The algorithm additionally weights factors such as service models, compliance records and industry experience and focuses on those that encompass best practices in their approach to working with clients.  Rankings are based on the opinions of SHOOK Research, LLC and are not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client's experience.}