One marker of wealth in America is an ongoing relationship with a financial adviser .
Certified financial planners and money managers tend to serve clients with considerable wealth to manage. The services are commonly associated with high net worth, which typically means more than $1 million in “investable” assets, not counting your home.
By the same token, many Americans with less wealth don’t want to spend money on a financial planner or wealth manager. They might not think their assets are complicated enough to justify hiring a professional.
“I think a lot of people feel like they don’t have either the money to spend or assets large enough to be managed by a financial planner,” said Kate Ashford , a wealth management specialist at NerdWallet.
Fortunately, options abound for free and low-cost financial advice, from one-off sessions with financial advisers to online libraries of financial tips and retirement planning calculators.
Before we show you the options, however, let’s take a step back and consider their limitations.
First off, remember the old axiom: You get what you pay for.
“Do people expect free medical care, free car repair, or free legal counsel? Generally, no − and for good reason,” said Monica Dwyer , a certified financial planner in West Chester, Ohio. “The quality of advice tends to reflect its cost.”
One problem with free, off-the-shelf financial advice is that it is fundamentally generic rather than tailored to your finances.
Another problem: Your financial needs change over time. A session with a financial planner today may not speak to your finances a year or two from now.
With those caveats out of the way, here are seven options for free or low-cost financial advice:
Consult your broker or retirement plan administrator
Many online brokerages and 401(k) administrators, including Fidelity, Vanguard and Charles Schwab, offer free or low-cost help for investors and retirement savers.
Fidelity, for example, offers access to licensed financial advisers with no fee, and any subsequent fees based on products or services are chosen by the investor. Fidelity Go offers money management through a "robo-adviser" (see below) with a 0.35% annual fee for balances over $25,000.
Schwab offers a "robo-adviser," Schwab Intelligent Portfolios , with no fee. Schwab also offers a no-cost digital financial plan and a host of free calculators that cover retirement savings , college savings and other topics.
Check with your bank
Many banks and credit unions offer free financial advice and financial planning resources, often available to anyone.
Bank of America, for example, collects financial guidance on a Better Money Habits site. CapitalOne offers a Financial Success Hub . USAA offers Your Financial Readiness and a storehouse of financial advice . Citi offers a library of financial planning tools .
Ashford of NerdWallet notes that SoFi, the online bank, offers a $10 monthly membership service called SoFi Plus that allows unlimited access to financial planners.
Ask your employer
Many large companies offer free financial advice to employees, often in partnership with a 401(k) provider, as part of their benefits package.
Get pro bono financial planning
For low-income Americans and underserved groups, the Financial Planning Association offers a pro bono financial planning service.
Set up a free meeting with a financial adviser
Many financial advisers will schedule an initial session with a potential client at no cost. It’s a good place to start, and you can decide whether to proceed into a full-fledged relationship.
“We offer a free initial consultation, and I – along with most financial planners I know – want to help as many people as we can,” said Jonathan Swanburg , a certified financial planner in Houston. “So, we will talk to lots of people who never pay us any money.”
But there’s only so much you can accomplish in a single meeting. Dwyer, the Ohio CFP, says it’s a waste of time for investors to meet with an adviser “with no intention of ever engaging them.”
“Financial guidance is not a one-time event. Markets shift, tax laws change, and life circumstances evolve. A snapshot of advice, even from a brilliant adviser, is only as useful as the moment it was given.”
Get a 'robo-adviser'
You might wince at the idea of entrusting your finances to an algorithm. But "robo-advisers" have become an established financial planning and investment tool.
Robo-advisers are generally automated services with minimal human oversight, according to Investopedia . The adviser might query you on your finances and goals, then make investment choices on your behalf.
They’re generally inexpensive and open to investors of any means. Both NerdWallet and Bankrate offer curated lists of best robo-advisers.
The service probably works best for people with relatively straightforward investments and goals.
“A robo-adviser isn’t going to tackle nuance,” Ashford said.
Consider a flat-fee adviser
Your relationship with a financial adviser doesn’t have to be forever. You can pay them by the hour or with a flat fee.
When an adviser works on a one-off project, such as writing a retirement plan, “the fees can range from $2,000 all the way up to $15,000,” said Ryan Sterling, CEO of NerdWallet Wealth Partners , a financial advisory firm. Hourly rates might range from $150 to $1,000, he said.
The advantage to paying a financial planner a flat fee is that you limit your outlay. For someone seeking basic investment advice, it might be a perfect fit.
“If all I need is, ‘Do I have the right stock-bond mix,’ there are probably a lot of fee-based advisers who can answer that for you,” said Peter Lazaroff , a certified financial planner in St. Louis.
The problem with a one-off financial planning meeting, Sterling said, is that your financial needs evolve over time.
“I can charge $5,000 for a onetime plan,” he said, “and I know with a high degree of certainty that it’s probably going to be obsolete in six to 12 months.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 7 free or cheap financial advice options to help you manage money
