Fee-only (us)
- Paid only by the client, full stop
- Fiduciary standard on every account
- No commissions or product incentives
- Fee visible on every statement
The fiduciary promise
Whose side is your advisor on?
In most of the financial industry, that question has a complicated answer. Ours is one sentence: we are paid only by you. This page spells out what that means in practice, including the conflicts of interest that remain, disclosed in plain English.
Six commitments, in writing
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We act as a fiduciary on every account, for every client, at all times. We'll put that in writing.
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We are paid only by you. We accept no commissions, referral fees, revenue sharing, or product incentives from anyone.
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We recommend no house products, because we have none.
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Your assets are held at an independent custodian, titled in your name. We never take custody.
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You can see every dollar of our fee on your statement, and you can end the relationship with 30 days' notice. No termination fee.
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When our interests could differ from yours, we'll name the conflict out loud and show you the math both ways.
Every client signs an agreement containing these commitments, and our regulatory brochure (the plain-language document every registered adviser must keep current) restates them. Ask for it in your first meeting; we hand it over before you've finished asking.
The vocabulary problem
“Fee-only” has exactly one honest meaning. The near-misses are the trap.
“Fee-only” and “fee-based” differ by one word and an entire business model. Here's the landscape, stated as neutrally as we can manage:
Fee-based
- Charges fees and can earn commissions
- May switch between advice and sales roles
- Insurance or fund sales can pay extra
- Pay from each source rarely itemized
Commission
- Paid by product providers per sale
- Often held to a lower standard than fiduciary
- Advice is free because the product isn't
- Costs live inside the product, out of sight
None of this makes commissioned professionals bad people. Many are excellent. It makes their incentives different, and incentives are the one thing clients can't supervise.
Disclosed, not buried
The conflicts we still have. Yes, even us.
A firm claiming zero conflicts of interest is advertising, not disclosing. Fee-only removes the worst ones. These remain, and here is how we police them:
The conflict
Our fee is a percentage of the assets we manage. So advising you to roll a 401(k) over to us raises our fee.
How we handle it
Every rollover recommendation comes with a written analysis both ways: the costs, investment options, and protections of staying put versus moving. Sometimes the answer is 'leave it where it is.'
The conflict
A fee based on assets could bias us against advice that shrinks the portfolio, like paying off a mortgage, making large gifts, or buying an annuity.
How we handle it
We model those decisions in your plan on their own merits and document the recommendation. Our advisors are salaried with no asset-gathering bonuses, so the math is the only scoreboard.
The conflict
We benefit when you remain a client, which could tempt any firm toward keeping things complicated.
How we handle it
Quarterly billing in arrears, no lock-ins, no termination fees, and a yearly 'would we rehire us?' review where we put the relationship, and simpler options, on the table.
The complete fee schedule these promises attach to is public. Read how we charge, down to the dollar, before you ever sit across a table from us, or check how to look up any adviser's record.
The first step is free
Interrogate us in person
Bring this page to your introduction and press on every line. Advisors who welcome that conversation are the ones worth having it with.