Question 1

Why should I hire a fiduciary?

Accepted Answer

Simply put, as a fiduciary wealth advisory firm, we are bound by an unwavering commitment to act in your best interests at all times. We believe this should be standard for our profession. Unfortunately, we are in the minority at this time.

Question 2

Why should I hire a fee-only advisor?

Accepted Answer

You want an advisor who is free of conflicts and isn’t pushing products. As a fee-only firm, we sit on the same side of the table as our clients. When you do better, we do better. We don’t collect commissions on insurance, annuities, trades, or certain share classes of mutual funds. Again, we find ourselves in the minority as fee-only advisors. Only 2% of advisors are true fee-only fiduciaries.

Question 3

Why not hire an advisor who is not a fee-only fiduciary?

Accepted Answer

Your interest and the advisor’s interests are at times at odds. They sell investment and financial products to you that only pass the suitability standard of care (meaning the investment or product fits your investor profile, but it may not be the best option for you), and in doing so the advisor may receive a significant commission. Rarely do they practice truly comprehensive financial planning. There is a big difference when it comes to the suitability and fiduciary standards of care. We think clients deserve the latter.

Question 4

Why hire a CFP® professional?

Accepted Answer

Only about 25% of financial advisors are CFP® professionals. CFP® professionals must: 
✓ Complete a comprehensive education course with a CFP® Board registered program encompassing the following:
	•	Financial Planning Roles and Responsibilities
	•	Insurance, Annuities and Risk Planning
	•	Economics, Investments and Portfolio Management
	•	Income Taxation
	•	Retirement Planning
	•	Estate Planning
	•	Behavioral Finance and Interpersonal Communication
	•	Professional Conduct and Fiduciary Responsibility
✓ Hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited university
✓ Acquire 6000+ hours of financial planning experience
✓ Pass a 6-hour exam with a pass rate that averages 63% over the past 10 years
✓ Complete 30 hours of continued education every 2 years
✓ Adhere to the CFP® Board’s strict Standards of Professional Conduct

Question 5

Why hire a CPA?

Accepted Answer

Only 16% of CFP® professionals are also Certified Public Accounts (CPAs) and are truly tax fluent. There is a lot of interplay between taxes and financial planning. The best advice is going to come from an advisor that can see the whole picture. A lot of money can be left on the table when taxes are not accounted for. CPAs must:

✓ Display a comprehensive knowledge base to and pass the following 4 four-hour exams in an 18-month window:
	•	Auditing and Attestation - covering auditing, attestation, planning and reviewing engagements, internal controls, compliance, regulations, ethics, and more
	•	Business Environment & Concepts – covering business structure, corporate governance, financial management, strategic planning, information technology, economic concepts, ethics, and more
	•	Financial Accounting and Reporting – covering financial statements, select accounts and transactions, financial reporting for state and local governments, non-profits, and for-profit entities, and more
	•	Regulation – covering ethics, business law, property transactions, taxation of individual and entities, and more
The tests are notoriously difficult with average exam pass rates of 45-55%	
✓ Hold a bachelors degree
✓ Attain 150 college credits (almost an additional year of college)
✓ Attain 2000+ hours in public accounting experience
✓ Complete 120 hours of continuing education every 3 years
✓ Adhere to strict ethical standards set forth by the CPA Code of Ethics

Question 6

Why is your client to advisor ratio so low?

Accepted Answer

We are intentionally aiming for a maximum of 65 client households per advisor. We want each client to feel the time and attention necessary to build a relationship founded on trust. This is vastly different from the large wire houses, where individual advisors regularly “serve” hundreds of clients.

Question 7

Where will we meet?

Accepted Answer

We office out of the Edina OffiCenter located at 5200 Willson Rd, STE 150, Edina, in Edina Minnesota. However, we have access to 5 other OffiCenter workspaces spread across the Twin Cities metro area. We also meet with clients virtually (via Zoom or Google Meet) and at their homes upon request.

Question 8

When can we meet?

Accepted Answer

We meet with clients Monday through Friday, and during evenings and weekends by request.

Question 9

What is your fee?

Accepted Answer

Many advisors charge well over 1% and often fail to deliver proportional value in planning. While we are not the least expensive option, we are committed to providing outstanding value at a fair price.

We do not have a strict minimum, but our typical clients have saved $500,000 or more, or earn a combined income of at least $250,000 annually.

Our fees are structured as a percentage of assets under management, starting as low as 0.50%, or as a flat quarterly fee, tailored to the scope and complexity of your financial situation.

For a detailed quote on our ongoing service fees, please contact us directly.

Question 10

Where is my money held?

Accepted Answer

We custody client assets with trusted long-standing institutions, Charles Schwab and Fidelity Investments. Our advisors never have custody or access to your accounts.

Question 11

Who is Guardian Wealth Advisors?

Accepted Answer

Guardian Wealth Advisors serves as an administrative partner to our firm, assisting with compliance, billing, and relationship management with our custodians (Fidelity and Charles Schwab) and Aptus Capital Advisors. Additionally, they provide key software that we use for our business and to service our clients. This frees up our advisors’ time to do what we do best, meeting with and guiding our clients in their financial decisions.

Question 12

Who is Aptus Capital Advisors?

Accepted Answer

Aptus Capital Advisors serves as our delegated investment manager, functioning akin to an in-house investment team. They formulate the investment strategy, execute trades, and other related tasks under our oversight. Collaboratively, we develop a tailored investment strategy with you and engage Aptus to implement it. While we remain your primary point of contact, Aptus operates discreetly in the background.

Employing Aptus allows us to allocate more time to deliver proactive financial planning, which we know adds significant value to our clients. The management of investment portfolios demands considerable time and has largely become commoditized across the industry. We can’t do a better job than Aptus managing your portfolio, but we can proactively help you make more informed financial decisions.

Question 13

Why Can’t I Just Do It Myself?

Accepted Answer

Opting to manage your finances without professional guidance is much like setting out to captain a ship in unfamiliar waters. You might have access to maps and navigational tools, and you could certainly learn through trial and error, but the risks and uncertainty might not be worth it. Like navigating the open seas, managing your finances solo can be time-consuming, stressful, and fraught with potential errors due to a lack of expertise.

While some people can undoubtedly do it on their own, it comes down to how their time is best spent. We can’t sit in the stands at your child’s basketball game, but we can simplify your wealth management and free up some of your time, so you can.

Moreover, finances are inherently emotional. The challenge of making objective decisions increases when your own money is at stake. Emotional investing can lead to common errors such as buying high and selling low. This phenomenon is supported by DALBAR’s findings, which show that the average equity fund investor earned just 2.9% annually, compared to the S&P 500 index’s annual return of 7.5% over the same twenty-year period ending in 2020. This discrepancy is largely due to investor behavior. We strive to narrow this gap.

Frequently Asked Questions