Nobody gets into trouble by asking too many questions about fees. People get into trouble by asking none.
Here's how we charge, why we charge that way, and — more useful — how to evaluate anyone's fee, including ours.
The three structures
Different situations call for different arrangements, so we use three:
A percentage of managed assets. For clients whose accounts we manage directly, day to day. The fee scales with the account, we're paid to watch and act, and our incentive is your account growing — same direction as yours.
A flat monthly planning fee. For people who want ongoing advice — on everything from a 401(k) we don't manage to a business decision to a house purchase — without moving accounts anywhere. You know the number. It doesn't change when the market does.
A project fee. For a defined piece of work with a beginning and an end: a retirement readiness review, an inheritance decision, a one-time second opinion. One scope, one price, done.
We'll tell you which one fits before you commit to anything, and sometimes the honest answer is the cheapest one. A person who needs a two-hour project doesn't need a monthly relationship, and we'd rather tell you that now and be the ones you call later.
What a fee should buy
A fee is fair when you can name what you get for it. Not in vague terms — in specifics. What happens to your accounts on a normal Tuesday? How often do you hear from your advisor without asking? Who notices if something in your portfolio changes in the middle of a quarter, and how fast?
For our managed clients, the answer is: every holding rechecked every market day, a written note every Monday about what we saw, and a call when something needs a decision. That's what the fee buys. You can judge whether it's worth it — but at least you know exactly what "it" is.
Questions that work on anyone
Take these to any advisor meeting, including one with us:
What will I pay, in dollars, in a typical year — all in, including fund expenses? What do you do for that, on a schedule I could verify? Are there things you get paid for that I don't see directly? If my situation is simple, will you tell me, or does everyone end up in the same program?
Every one of those has a plain answer. Advisors who give plain answers to fee questions tend to give plain answers to everything else. That correlation is one of the most reliable things we know about this business.
If you want to hear our answers face to face, book 30 minutes. Bring your current fee schedule if you have one — we're happy to help you read it, whatever you decide.
The information in this article is general in nature and is not intended as specific investment or tax advice. Advisory fees and services vary by program; details are provided in the applicable agreements and disclosures.