{"id":12512,"date":"2026-09-28T15:00:23","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T12:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/28\/financial-planning-roundup-strengths-and-weaknesses-of-advisor-fee-only-models\/"},"modified":"2026-09-28T15:00:23","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T12:00:23","slug":"financial-planning-roundup-strengths-and-weaknesses-of-advisor-fee-only-models","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/28\/financial-planning-roundup-strengths-and-weaknesses-of-advisor-fee-only-models\/","title":{"rendered":"Financial Planning Roundup: Strengths and Weaknesses of Advisor Fee-Only Models"},"content":{"rendered":"

For anybody considering hiring an advisor, it\u2019s important to know exactly what you want. That is, it\u2019s best if you<\/em> go shopping for an advisor who meets requirements that you have selected, rather than letting somebody come to you to sell you their services.<\/p>\n

One way in which advisors can be categorized is by what services they provide. At a very high level, the options would be:<\/p>\n

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  1. Advice-only (i.e., they provide advice but do not manage the portfolio),<\/li>\n
  2. Portfolio management with very limited advice, or<\/li>\n
  3. Comprehensive financial planning, together with portfolio management.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Financial planners\/advisors can also be grouped by designation (CFP, CPA, PFS, CFA, EA, etc.) or by areas of expertise.<\/p>\n

    Finally, it\u2019s important to have a good idea of what fee model(s) you\u2019d be willing to accept. Allan Roth recently wrote a piece discussing the pros and cons (from the client perspective) of the various fee-only (i.e., non-commission) models:<\/p>\n