Working Together
Clear, transparent ways to engage.
However you choose to work with us, you'll know exactly what you're paying and exactly what it covers — agreed up front, before any work begins.
No surprises, no hidden costs.
Financial Planning
Three ways to plan.
All planning engagements are documented in a written engagement letter and billed separately from any investment management. A signed agreement is required before work begins.
Financial Planning Contract
Comprehensive Plan
$1,500min
Non-clients · flat fee · renewable annually
A complete written financial plan before committing to an advisory relationship. Starting at $1,500, with the fee subject to planner discretion based on your needs and complexity.
What's included
- Interactive financial planning portal & full financial picture
- Retirement income & cash-flow analysis
- Investment, risk & estate review
- Written plan + plan delivery meeting
Delivery
Written plan with objectives, observations, and recommendations — cash flow, retirement income, investment, risk management, estate, and other applicable topics.
Note: Fee may be waived or reduced for clients moving assets — ask at your review.
Consultation Agreement
Hourly Planning
$250/hr
Any client · per engagement · no renewals
For a specific planning question that doesn't require a full plan. Each engagement is independent — scoped, priced, and closed separately.
What's included
- Narrowed-scope analysis on a targeted need
- Materials presented + time accounting
- Digital copy of your completed financial plan
Delivery
Any materials presented plus an accounting of time. No formal plan document required.
Best for: Roth conversion analysis, Social Security timing, beneficiary review, or a specific one-time question.
Life Transition Planning
Transition Support
$750
New & existing clients · renewable 12 month term
Ongoing planning support around a major life change — retirement, divorce, loss of a spouse, or another significant transition. Contracted per period so planning is documented.
What's included
- Documented planning sessions & meeting notes
- Retirement income, Social Security & pension scenarios
- Cash flow modeling & portfolio transitions
- Each term contracted & closed separately
Delivery
Meeting notes and documented financial planning services.
Note: Fee may be waived entirely for clients moving assets — ask at your review.
Investment Management
What an advisory fee actually covers.
When you see a single advisory rate, it's easy to assume it all goes to your advisor. It doesn't. An advisory fee bundles several distinct layers — and only one of them is the planner's compensation. Here's how the cost breaks down.
The layers inside one advisory rate
Illustrative example — the components that together make up your total annual cost.
Always billed quarterly — and here's why
Advisory fees are charged quarterly, in arrears, based on your account value. Billing in arrears means you're charged on what the account was actually worth over the period — and if the account value falls, the fee falls with it. Your interests and ours stay aligned.
Why clients prefer this model
- Transparent pricing — every cost layer is visible, with nothing buried
- No transaction fees — trades within the managed account don't trigger per-trade charges
- Full flexibility — investment changes as your needs and the markets shift, with no penalty
- No upfront commissions — you aren't locked into products that pay the advisor at the point of sale
- Aligned incentives — when your portfolio grows, the fee grows; when it falls, so does the fee
The terms, plainly
- No contract — close the account at any time with no surrender period or lock-in
- Fee scales with the account — as a percentage of assets, it rises and falls with your balance
- Billed quarterly, in arrears — you pay based on actual value, not a projection
- Ongoing advice included — the planner-fee layer covers the relationship, not just the trades
- Full breakdown on request — we'll walk through the exact figures during your consultation
Insurance & Protection
When the right strategy isn't market-based.
Not every financial need is best solved by investing. Longevity, health events, and income gaps carry risks that a portfolio alone can't always address. Insurance-based strategies give certain parts of a plan a guaranteed foundation — so the assets that are invested can take on the right amount of risk without everything being exposed.
Protection
Life Insurance
Beyond income replacement, life insurance can provide tax-advantaged income to supplement retirement, create estate liquidity, and leave a legacy for family members or a meaningful cause. It's also a tool for business owners looking to protect and reward key people in their organization.
Care Planning
Long-Term Care
Extended care — in-home, assisted living, or memory care — is one of the largest unplanned expenses in retirement. Traditional LTC coverage reimburses care costs and is right for many clients. We work with a range of carriers and plan designs to find the right fit.
Alternative Care Funding
Asset-Based Care
For clients who prefer not to pay ongoing premiums — or who couldn't qualify for traditional LTC coverage — asset-based products combine life insurance and long-term care benefits on a repositioned asset. If care is needed, benefits are available. If not, the value passes to your beneficiaries.
Annuities
Income you can't outlive. Protection you can plan around.
For the right portion of a plan, annuities provide certainty that market-based assets can't. Principal protection, tax-deferred growth, and guaranteed income are the core reasons clients use them. The annuity landscape is broad, and not every product is built the same — we'll help you identify which type, if any, fits your specific situation and goals.
Commission-Based
Outside an advisory account
A one-time commission is paid by the carrier at issue, standardized by our broker-dealer. No incentive to favor one insurance carrier over another.
Fee-Based
Inside an advisory account
No upfront commission paid. The product falls under the same advisory fee as the rest of the managed account — and no surrender charge applies.
What to expect
Placing an annuity is more than signing a contract.
Every new annuity purchase and every replacement of an existing contract goes through a formal pre-approval review — a suitability process required by our broker-dealer before the transaction can proceed. This isn't paperwork for its own sake. It's a documented review that confirms the recommendation is appropriate for your age, income, net worth, investment objectives, and time horizon. Depending on the product structure, a surrender period may apply — typically 3 to 10 years — and we'll make sure the full timeline, free withdrawal provisions, and any associated charges are clearly explained before anything is placed.