What does it cost?

I believe in fee transparency; you should know exactly what you are paying and what value you are getting in return for your fees. I’ve described below how I calculate my fees for a financial planning journey.

Due to COVID-19 much of my work is being undertaken remotely via telephone, email and video conference calls.  I do also undertake face to face meetings and I test regularly to ensure the safety of my clients.   Initially, you can schedule a 30 minute Discovery Call (at my expense) using the link at the bottom of this page and we can discuss your situation in a bit more detail.  I will ask you to complete a short form before our call so that the call will be focused on what you wish to achieve rather than me noting down your details and using the time inefficiently.

It may be the case that I can answer all of your questions at this Discovery Call or that I can divert you elsewhere if there is something you can do for yourself and we don’t need to formally engage for the delivery of regulated financial advice.

I will always tell you if I don’t believe you will receive sufficient value from engaging with me to provide a comprehensive financial planning service.

Following this Discovery Call, if there is value in working together, I will send you my Service Charter and my Fee Agreement describing the services I will provide and the costs involved.

When you engage with me as your Financial Planner, we will work together to construct a comprehensive Financial Plan.

This Financial Plan will cover cashflow modelling, a review of your existing assets and liabilities, protecting your income, reviewing lifetime mortgages, pensions, savings, investments, taxation, trusts, inheritance tax planning, funding for long term care, and specific recommendations for action as appropriate to your situation.

The recommendations within your Financial Plan will be tailored to your specific goals and objectives.

My fee for this Financial Planning exercise is based on a fixed project fee so no client is excluded from receiving advice as I do not have a minimum fee.    The fee will depend on how much administration, technical research and analysis and financial planning time your advice will need.

Any commission payable by protection providers or on lifetime mortgages is rebated directly to my clients or it can be offset against any advice fee.

Following our Discovery Call I will have a clear idea on what it is you wish to achieve and you will have a clear idea on the service I can provide to meet that need.  I will provide a Fee Agreement confirming what I will do and the fee the advice delivery will involve.

Where it makes sense to continue working together each year, I offer my clients an Ongoing Management Service. My fee for this service is fixed and is dependent on the complexity and how much time I estimate I will spend looking after your financial affairs in a typical year.

My Ongoing Management Service includes a review of your financial plan to ensure it remains on track, confirming your risk level remains suitable, reviewing the performance of your plans compared to your objectives, rebalancing investments to maintain the correct risk levels, reviewing tax considerations, updating your lifetime cash flow model, and considering important later life planning issues for the future.

As a regulated financial adviser, my fees are based on the time it takes to provide the advice, the complexity of your situation and the expertise and responsibility involved.

I operate a very simple transparent charging structure.  I do not like percentage charging models!

When I act on your behalf as an intermediary and intend to implement financial solutions, my fees are presently exempt from VAT. This means I do not usually have to make an additional charge of 20%.

If I do have to charge you for a service which is subject to VAT, I will inform you in advance.

I’m happy to visit you in your home, as appropriate, however there is a charge for a home visit to cover the cost of my time and the meeting and any follow up from that initial meeting.  This fee will be quoted to you during our initial conversation or on the Discovery Call.

Everyone is unique in respect of their circumstances, objectives, needs and wishes. It is important to us that we cater for each individual and their family in a personalised way but with a clear fee structure.

Regardless of whether you choose a product at the end of the process, our clients can be assured of the impartiality of our advice.