What Is a Financial Advisor Worth?
Most people evaluate a financial advisor the same way they evaluate a stock — will it give me a return? Will they beat the market? Will they make me more than they cost?
But think about the last vacation you took. You didn't go to Hawaii because you expected it to make you money. You went for the memories, the experience, the feeling of being fully present with the people you love. And it was worth every penny.
What if you thought about a financial advisor the same way?
Why Qualitative Matters:
The real value of a financial advisor isn't just in the numbers — and yes, the numbers matter too. But the greater benefit is what good advice actually lets you do with your life. Rather than wondering endlessly if they will make your portfolio bigger than you could on your own, the better question is: could they actually help you enjoy your life more? If an advisor gave you permission to spend and enjoy your life significantly more each year for the rest of your life, how much would that be worth to you?
Permission to Retire:
I want to start by telling a story. Before I share this story, I want to be clear that many clients have similar experiences — and for privacy's sake, this is a hypothetical based on common situations we see:
A married couple walks into my office. They have been married for many years, worked hard, saved well, and never actually looked cumulatively at the money they had. Before coming in, they started crunching the numbers and came to the meeting with an idea of what retirement would look like and how many more years they needed to work. As I began to look at their overall picture, it became clear that they had enough to retire today, living on more than what they currently made, and end their lives with more money left over than they knew what to do with.
As we spoke with them, you could see a tangible sigh of relief. They realized for the first time that retirement was just over the horizon. This gave them peace of mind to be able to retire soon after that. Now that they knew they wanted to retire, we were able to help organize their assets to maximize their gains. Today, they are living their best life, enjoying retirement.
Although this isn’t the story of every client we meet with, it is a story we have seen many times. Now, these clients may be paying a fee, but the value of having the peace to retire 4 or 5 years earlier than expected — and the memories they have gotten to make — cannot be put into a price tag.
Permission to Spend:
I will keep this one brief since it is similar to the above, but the distinction is important. Some people know they can retire now or are already retired but put unnecessary limitations on how much they can spend. Retirement is a major shift from your working years. In your working years, you get accustomed to seeing your nest egg grow and adding to it each year. In retirement, getting used to drawing from your hard-earned money each year can feel daunting.
We have seen some retirees spending so little that by the time they pass, their portfolio will have doubled, tripled, or more. Some of these clients have no desire to leave an inheritance or no one to leave it to, but fear of spending is keeping them from enjoying their lives. The cost of this is not monetary; instead, the cost is regret.
Ask yourself this question: At the end of my retirement, if I see my portfolio bigger than ever, will I think to myself, “Look how good I have done, my portfolio is larger than ever!” or will I be thinking, “I wish I would have taken that extra trip with my grandkids. I wish I would have helped my kids buy that house. I wish I would have enjoyed more rather than worrying.”
This is the real value an advisor brings.
Protecting the “Other” Spouse:
When we talk about beneficiary insurance, we are not talking about a product but a process. Many times, we see one spouse handle the finances in a family, with the other spouse taking a more hands-off approach. This can be problematic if the more financially savvy partner passes first. If the couple doesn’t work with an advisor, the surviving spouse often gets thrown into a crash course on finances while trying to grieve the loss of a loved one.
A good advisor helps solve this problem. When an advisor knows the client's situation and has at least some relationship with both spouses, they can hold the survivor's hand through both the process of taking over the finances and grieving their loved one. We have seen that this sense of security often means everything to the surviving spouse.
Conclusion:
At the end of your retirement, you won't be thinking about your portfolio balance. You'll be thinking about the trips you took, the people you helped, and the moments you let yourself actually enjoy. A good financial advisor doesn't just manage your money — they give you permission to live your life.
You may ask what an advisor is worth; I ask what peace of mind is worth.
OneAscent Financial Services, LLC (“OAFS”), d/b/a The Cornerstone Financial Group, is a registered investment adviser with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. OAFS does not make any representations or warranties as to the accuracy, timeliness, suitability, completeness, or relevance of any information prepared by OAFS or any unaffiliated third party. OAFS is neither an attorney nor accountant, and no portion of the presented content should be interpreted as legal, accounting, or tax advice. All such information is provided solely for convenience purposes only and all users thereof should be guided accordingly.