{"id":323603,"date":"2026-02-06T15:16:06","date_gmt":"2026-02-06T15:16:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/323603\/"},"modified":"2026-02-06T15:16:06","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T15:16:06","slug":"im-62-and-retired-with-1m-and-no-debt-my-objective-is-income-a-financial-adviser-wants-1-25-but-im-wary-of-paying-them-regardless-of-performance-whats-my-move","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/323603\/","title":{"rendered":"I\u2019m 62 and retired with $1M and no debt. My objective is income. A financial adviser wants 1.25%, but I\u2019m wary of paying them regardless of performance. What\u2019s my move?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Question: <\/strong>\u201cI\u2019m 62 and retired with $1 million in savings and zero debt. My objective is income. When it comes to hiring a financial adviser, is 1.25% worth it? I\u2019ve spoken with a few firms who claim to have a personalized approach, but my concern is they\u2019ll use a cookie-cutter approach and collect a fee off the top, regardless of performance. How do I hold them to their word? Am I going to have to manage them and their fees while they manage my money? What should someone in my position do given the savings I have?\u201d<\/p>\n

Answer: <\/strong>While a financial adviser could be helpful to you, this one is likely too expensive. (You can find a financial adviser at CFP Board, NAPFA or by using this free tool to get matched with fiduciary advisers<\/a>, from our ad partner SmartAsset.) And, you don\u2019t have to accept an assets under management fee structure (in which you do pay regardless of performance) either.<\/p>\n

For the size and likely simplicity of your account, 1.25% of assets under management appears very high, says Robert R. Johnson, professor of finance at Heider College of Business at Creighton University. The industry average is around 1%, and plenty of advisers charge less. \u201cIf you want ongoing advice and investment management, many firms offer the same services for 1% or less at a $1 million portfolio value,\u201d says Johnson.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirms also use flat-fee models for this service, typically ranging from $6,000 to $12,000 per year that may end up being more cost effective,\u201d says Jonathan Vance at Vance Financial Planning. <\/p>\n

That said, \u201cit\u2019s important to differentiate price from value. 1.25% can be very expensive if all your adviser is doing is putting you into a premade portfolio that isn\u2019t performing much differently than an index like the S&P 500,\u201d says fiduciary wealth adviser Jordan Mangaliman at GoldLine Wealth Management.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But it may be worth it if your adviser is doing far more than just investment management. \u201c1.25% is worth it if your adviser is going to help you with your overall retirement planning like lowering your lifetime taxes, advising you on which health insurance options to take, helping you get the most out of Social Security and making sure your estate planning is complete, in addition to managing your investments,\u201d says certified financial planner and chartered financial analyst Jeremy Keil at Keil Financial Partners.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In other words, it\u2019s essential to understand exactly what services you\u2019re getting for that fee. \u201cTo hold an adviser accountable, you must first understand what they\u2019re promising. Many Registered Investment Advisers (RIAs) provide value beyond portfolio management. For retirees, this might include navigating distribution rules, tax planning and maintaining a retirement income plan,\u201d says Vance. <\/p>\n

Have an issue with your financial planner or looking for a new one? Email questions or concerns to picks@marketwatch.com<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In an AUM model, you do pay regardless of performance. So you may want to consider advisers who work on an hourly or per-project basis.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The good news is that you have options. \u201cIf you only want a road map without an ongoing relationship, you can engage an adviser for a project-based financial plan, usually $2,500 to $5,000 and implement the recommendations on your own,\u201d says Vance. <\/p>\n

Some CFPs also offer hourly services which range from $200 to $500 per hour. These advisers can be retained for as few or as many hours as needed to answer specific questions or create a personalized plan.<\/p>\n

How to hold an adviser to their word \u2014 and whether you need to manage an adviser<\/p>\n

To hold an adviser to their word, make sure there are no long-term contracts in place. \u201cMost advisers bill on a quarterly or monthly basis. You can review your relationship on a quarterly basis and see if you feel you are getting value for what you\u2019re paying. If you feel like you\u2019re being heard, are making progress and the investments are solid, you can choose to stay with the adviser. If you feel you aren\u2019t getting the value you were hoping for, you can choose to end your relationship with them,\u201d says Mangaliman.<\/p>\n

Information from your adviser\u2019s website or initial conversations should reveal the frequency at which services are delivered, says Vance. \u201cIt\u2019s common to have two to three structured meetings per year along with email and phone support between them,\u201d says Vance.<\/p>\n

You shouldn\u2019t have to manage your manager. \u201cWhether it\u2019s rebalancing a portfolio or being aware of new tax laws that impact your plan, you should expect the adviser to be proactive. If you find yourself having to manage things on your own while your adviser simply agrees with you, you aren\u2019t getting what you paid for,\u201d says Vance. You can find a new financial adviser at CFP Board, NAPFA or by using this free tool to get matched with fiduciary advisers<\/a>, from our ad partner SmartAsset.<\/p>\n

What to look for in a new adviser<\/p>\n

Interview a few different advisers. \u201cIf they ask questions about what you want, instead of pitch how great they are, then you\u2019re on the right track. If they say something like, \u2018You don\u2019t pay me, the annuity company pays me,\u2019 then run away. If you get the sense that all they do is focus solely on investments and not your noninvestment financial questions, then 1.25% is too much,\u201d says Keil.<\/p>\n

When interviewing prospective advisers, ask them for references from clients who are in similar situations to you. \u201cIt sounds like you\u2019d prefer a flat-fee adviser or a DIY retirement planning software and not a full-service financial adviser. Check out Flat Fee Advisors to find an adviser who won\u2019t charge you more just because you have a lot of investments saved up,\u201d says Keil.<\/p>\n

For someone age 62 with $1 million in savings and zero debt, Mangaliman says the first thing you should do is write out what you want to accomplish. \u201cThis is known as goal-based planning. This can be retirement income goals, travel goals, legacy goals and more. Prioritize your retirement goal and make sure your portfolio reflects stable income first. Whatever you\u2019re not using for income should be allocated to an emergency fund and for more growth,\u201d says Mangaliman. You can find a financial adviser at CFP Board, NAPFA or by using this free tool to get matched with fiduciary advisers<\/a>, from our ad partner SmartAsset.<\/p>\n

Have an issue with your financial planner or looking for a new one? Email questions or concerns to picks@marketwatch.com<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Questions edited for brevity and clarity. By emailing your questions to The Advicer, you agree to have them published anonymously on MarketWatch; they may appear anonymously in other media and platforms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Question: \u201cI\u2019m 62 and retired with $1 million in savings and zero debt. My objective is income. When…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":323604,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[177],"tags":[2552,8139,85029,79,41573,41570,13782,41560,41565,6567,6738,18,41571,47522,14480,18131,23114,19,41586,3442,41557,17,234,235,19363,41589,41574,41575,41590,41576,10654],"class_list":["post-323603","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-personal-finance","tag-analysis","tag-banking","tag-banking-credit","tag-business","tag-ce-industry-news-filter","tag-content-types","tag-corporate","tag-corporate-funding","tag-corporate-industrial-news","tag-credit","tag-earnings","tag-eire","tag-factiva-filters","tag-financial-investment-services","tag-financial-performance","tag-financial-services","tag-financing-agreements","tag-ie","tag-industrial-news","tag-investing","tag-investing-securities","tag-ireland","tag-personal-finance","tag-personalfinance","tag-securities","tag-selection-of-top-stories","tag-selection-of-top-stories-trends-analysis","tag-suggested-reading-industry-news","tag-suggested-reading-investing","tag-suggested-reading-investing-securities","tag-trends"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323603","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=323603"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323603\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/323604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=323603"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=323603"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=323603"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}