What Do Wealth Advisors Do? A Simple Guide for Families and Business Owners
Wealth advisors help people see the full picture of their financial life. Instead of looking at one account or one decision at a time, a wealth advisor may help you connect your investments, retirement goals, tax considerations, business decisions, and plans for the next generation. If you have ever wondered what wealth advisors actually do day to day, or whether you need one, this guide is for you.
We will walk through the work a wealth advisor typically does, how that work may look different for families and for business owners, and what a working relationship can feel like over time.
What Does a Wealth Advisor Do, in Plain Terms?
A wealth advisor is a financial professional who looks at your whole financial picture and helps you make decisions that fit together. The work usually starts with listening. Before any recommendations, a wealth advisor will often want to understand your family, your goals, your concerns, and what a good outcome looks like to you.
The Core Responsibilities of Wealth Advisors
Learning your story: Gathering details about your income, savings, accounts, business interests, family, and priorities.
Building a plan: Organizing those details into a plan that connects short term needs with long term goals.
Managing investments: Building and monitoring a portfolio that reflects your goals, time horizon, and comfort with risk.
Coordinating with other professionals: Working alongside your CPA and attorney so tax and estate considerations are part of the conversation.
Reviewing and adjusting: Checking progress over time and updating the plan as life changes.
How Wealth Advisors Differ From Other Financial Professionals
Many people use the terms financial advisor and wealth advisor interchangeably. In general, a wealth advisor tends to take a broader, ongoing view. Some financial professionals focus on a single product or a single area, such as insurance or a specific investment account. Wealth advisors are more likely to look at how decisions in one area affect the others.
How Wealth Advisors Help Families
Families often come to a wealth advisor during a transition: a new child, a home purchase, an inheritance, kids heading to college, or a parent needing support. Each of these moments raises questions that touch more than one part of a financial life.
Common Family Planning Questions
"Are we saving enough?" A wealth advisor can help you look at how current savings may support future goals.
"How do we balance goals?" Paying for college, saving for retirement, and helping aging parents can compete for the same dollars.
"What happens if something happens to us?" Beneficiary designations, account titling, and estate documents may need to be reviewed with your attorney.
"How do we teach our kids about money?" Some families want help preparing the next generation for responsibility.
Planning Across Generations
Family wealth planning often looks beyond one lifetime. A wealth advisor may help you think through how wealth could pass to children or grandchildren and how trusts, if used, might be administered. These conversations are usually held together with your estate attorney.
How Wealth Advisors Help Business Owners
Business owners have a unique set of needs because their personal finances and their company are often closely tied together. A wealth advisor for business owners may help separate, organize, and connect the two.
Areas Business Owners Often Discuss
Company retirement plans: Comparing plan types for yourself and your employees.
Cash flow and reinvestment: Thinking through how much to keep in the business versus personal savings.
Concentration in the business: Considering how much of your net worth is tied to one company.
Exit and succession planning: Looking ahead to a sale, transition, or handoff to family members.
Tax coordination: Working with your CPA so business and personal tax decisions are considered together.
What a Relationship With a Wealth Advisor Can Look Like
A wealth advisor relationship is usually ongoing rather than a single transaction. Here is a general picture of how it may unfold.
Getting Started
The first meetings are often about discovery. You share your goals and documents, and the advisor asks questions. Some firms offer a snapshot or assessment at this stage so you can see where you stand.
Building and Implementing the Plan
Next, the advisor organizes what they learned into a plan. That may include investment recommendations, retirement projections, and a list of items to discuss with your CPA or attorney.
Ongoing Monitoring and Reviews
Over time, your wealth advisor may meet with you regularly to review progress, discuss changes in your life, and update the plan. Ongoing monitoring can help you see when it may be time to adjust.
Do You Need a Wealth Advisor?
Not everyone needs a wealth advisor, and that is fine. You might consider one if several of these sound familiar:
You have accounts in several places and are not sure how they fit together.
You own a business and want personal and business decisions coordinated.
You are approaching retirement and want to understand your income options.
You have received or expect to receive an inheritance.
You want your CPA, attorney, and investment advisor working from the same information.
For a local look at how planning works in north central Ohio, see our article on wealth management and financial planning in Mansfield, Ohio.
How Pinnacle Advisors Approaches Wealth Advising
Pinnacle Advisors describes itself as "a family-owned and operated Wealth Management firm that has been dedicated to shaping the financial success stories of individuals and families." The firm's mission is to "help individuals and families achieve financial success by providing comprehensive wealth management services in collaboration with their current advisors."
Programs for Families and Business Owners
Pinnacle offers several Wealth Management Programs:
Lifetime Wealth Management Program: Dedicated to creating unique roadmaps based on each family's story.
Enhanced Wealth Management Program: Specifically tailored to each business owner's story.
Compass Wealth Management Program: Focused on providing ongoing retirement projections and strategies.
Family Office Wealth Management Program: Addresses the unique needs and aspirations of ultra-high-net-worth individuals.
Working With Your CPA and Attorney
Through its Wealth Collaboration™ programs, Pinnacle brings your CPA and attorney to the table to provide holistic planning. The firm also offers the Wealth Scorecard®, real-time monitoring for real-life goals.
Who Pinnacle Advisors Serves and Where
Pinnacle works exclusively with individuals, business owners, and their families. The firm serves clients in Ohio, Florida, and across the nation, with its headquarters in Mansfield, Ohio, and offices in Mentor, Medina, and Columbus, Ohio; Sarasota/Bradenton and Tierra Verde, Florida; and Manhattan, Kansas. Learn more on Our Story.
Ready to Talk With a Wealth Advisor?
If you are curious how a wealth advisor may help your family or business, a conversation is a good first step. You can Schedule a Call, request a Free Assessment, or Download our eBook. Your needs lead the way. Start your snapshot.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a wealth advisor do?
A wealth advisor helps coordinate your investments, retirement planning, tax considerations, and estate planning goals within one ongoing relationship, often working alongside your CPA and attorney.
Is a wealth advisor the same as a financial advisor?
The terms overlap. In general, wealth advisors tend to take a broader, ongoing view of your finances, while some financial advisors focus on a single area such as investments or insurance.
How do wealth advisors get paid?
Compensation varies by firm. Some charge a fee based on assets managed, some charge flat or hourly fees, and some receive commissions. A firm's Form CRS describes how it is paid.
Do I need a lot of money to work with a wealth advisor?
Not necessarily. Many wealth advisors work with individuals and families at different stages. Ask each firm who it serves and whether it has minimums.
Can a wealth advisor help with my business?
Many wealth advisors work with business owners on company retirement plans, succession planning, and coordinating personal and business decisions with their CPA.
How often should I meet with my wealth advisor?
It depends on your needs and the firm's process. Many relationships include regular reviews, with additional meetings when major life or business changes happen.
This article is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be construed as personalized investment, legal, accounting, or tax advice. Pinnacle Advisors is an SEC registered investment adviser located in Mansfield, Ohio. The Company is neither an attorney nor an accountant, and no portion of this content should be interpreted as legal, accounting or tax advice. It should not be assumed that future performance of any specific investment or investment strategy or any planning or consulting services will be profitable, equal any historical performance level(s), or prove successful if Pinnacle is engaged. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal, and there are no guarantees that any strategy will achieve its objectives. Please review the Important Disclosure Information and Form CRS available on the Company's website.
IMPORTANT DISCLOSURE INFORMATION
Please remember that past performance is no guarantee of future results. Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and there can be no assurance that the future performance of any specific investment, investment strategy, or product (including the investments and/or investment strategies recommended or undertaken by Pinnacle Advisors [“Pinnacle”]), or any non-investment related content, made reference to directly or indirectly in this blog will be profitable, equal any corresponding indicated historical performance level(s), be suitable for your portfolio or individual situation, or prove successful. Due to various factors, including changing market conditions and/or applicable laws, the content may no longer be reflective of current opinions or positions. Moreover, you should not assume that any discussion or information contained in this blog serves as the receipt of, or as a substitute for, personalized investment advice from Pinnacle. To the extent that a reader has any questions regarding the applicability of any specific issue discussed above to his/her individual situation, he/she is encouraged to consult with the professional advisor of his/her choosing. No amount of prior experience or success should be construed that a certain level of results or satisfaction will be achieved if Pinnacle is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services. Pinnacle is neither a law firm nor a certified public accounting firm and no portion of the blog content should be construed as legal or accounting advice. A copy of the Pinnacle’s current written disclosure Brochure discussing our advisory services and fees is available for review upon request or at www.pinnacleadvisors.com. Please Note: Pinnacle does not make any representations or warranties as to the accuracy, timeliness, suitability, completeness, or relevance of any information prepared by any unaffiliated third party, whether linked to Pinnacle’s web site or blog or incorporated herein, and takes no responsibility for any such content. All such information is provided solely for convenience purposes only and all users thereof should be guided accordingly. Please Remember: If you are a Pinnacle client, please contact Pinnacle, in writing, if there are any changes in your personal/financial situation or investment objectives for the purpose of reviewing/evaluating/revising our previous recommendations and/or services, or if you would like to impose, add, or to modify any reasonable restrictions to our investment advisory services. Unless, and until, you notify us, in writing, to the contrary, we shall continue to provide services as we do currently. Please Also Remember to advise us if you have not been receiving account statements (at least quarterly) from the account custodian.
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