According to NAPFA, fee-only planners are compensated directly by their clients for advice, plan implementation and for the ongoing management of assets. They do not accept commissions. Advice-only goes beyond fee-only in that advice-only financial planners do not manage your assets for a recurring fee, either as a percentage of your asset value or on a monthly or annual retainer. A more detailed distinction between the two can be found on Advice-Only Financial.

As our clients’ fiduciary Empower Financial is obligated to put our clients’ interests ahead of our own interests at all times. Being an advice-only financial planner we have no conflicts of interest that could impair our ability to put your interests first. Our only source of compensation is the fees paid by our clients. We do not accept commissions or referral fees, nor do we sell investment products or charge other hidden fees.

We believe it is the fairest form of compensation for both, the client and the service provider. No matter the type of service (comprehensive financial planning or narrowly scoped planning like Roth conversion, or investment consulting), or the complexity of the task, it ultimately boils down to how much time we spend on your case. You are paying us only for the time we spend on the engagement. To make it more predictable, we give you an estimate of the number of hours an engagement might take at the outset.

All clients start off with a complimentary consultation, which is typically done over a phone call and lasts about 30 minutes. We try to understand why you are seeking to hire a financial planner and see if we are the right people to help you. We are also happy to answer any questions you might have about Empower Financial. If you’re interested in hiring our services after the call, we will sign an agreement and get started. The hourly rate and the tentative timeline are agreed upon prior to the signing of the agreement.

We are located in Sunnyvale, CA (San Francisco Bay Area) and are a registered investment advisor in the State of California. We can serve clients from other states as well - please contact us to learn more.

Absolutely! Most clients prefer meetings through online video conferencing.