Flat-Fee Investment Management
Fair, transparent pricing. No conflicts. Aligned incentives.
At White Coat Planning, we believe investment management should be straightforward and conflict-free. That's why we use a flat-fee structure instead of the traditional AUM (Assets Under Management) model.
Investment management starts with comprehensive financial planning first, because a good plan should drive your investment strategy — not the other way around.
The Problem with the Financial Industry
The AUM Trap
Traditional firms use an Assets Under Management (AUM) fee structure. This means they charge you a percentage of your portfolio every year — typically 1% or more.
As your portfolio grows, their fees grow proportionally — even if the work stays exactly the same.
The Math:
We don't think that's fair.
The Flat-Fee Solution
You pay for our advice and expertise with predictable costs as you save more.
We have no incentive to push you into managed accounts.
The Math:
Pay for the advice, keep more of the growth.
Our Investment Philosophy
Any investment philosophy must address four key areas: asset allocation, costs, security selection, and market timing.
Asset Allocation
There are many asset allocations that can result in reaching your goals. We will help you establish and maintain a reasonable allocation based on your specific goals, stage of life, and risk tolerance. As your goals and life evolve, we will guide you through when and if to adjust your allocations. We believe that simplicity beats complexity, so most of our clients will hold 3-7 asset classes.
Cost
When it comes to investing, you get what you don't pay for. Investment costs come from the fees you pay your investment advisor and the fees associated with the underlying funds you invest in. At White Coat Planning, we strive to keep both of those costs low. Whether or not you opt for our investment management service, we will recommend investments with low fees and strategies that minimize taxes.
Security Selection
We don’t know who the winners and losers will be and neither does anyone else. No one has a crystal ball. With this pragmatic humility, we believe diversification is critical to long-term investing success. We recommend broad based index funds that own thousands of stocks and bonds in the United States and across the world.
Market Timing
We don’t know when the winners will win or when the losers will lose and neither does anyone else. No one has a crystal ball. With this approach, we believe buy-and-hold investing is critical to long-term investing success. We will help you to automate your investments so that emotions are mitigated, decisions are reduced, and risk is minimized.
Work with an advisor who puts your interests first.
Cost of Investment Management
We charge based on the total value of all assets under advisement. This includes assets we manage directly and those we provide guidance on (i.e., 401(k)s, HSAs, 529s, passive real estate, etc).
What This Means in Practice
$4 Million Assets
0.37% Equivalent AUM
$8 Million Assets
0.25% Equivalent AUM
$20 Million Assets
0.15% Equivalent AUM
Notice how the effective rate decreases as your assets grow. This is the opposite of traditional AUM pricing, where you pay more as your portfolio increases — even though the work stays largely the same.
Fees are billed separately from financial planning services and may increase periodically with inflation.
Note that these are ongoing annual fees after the initial one-time $4,500 comprehensive planning fee.
Stop overpaying for investment management.
Why Our Investment Management Fees Work Differently
We charge flat annual investment management fees.
Those fees increase at different levels of wealth because high net worth households have more complex financial lives, require additional planning time and coordination, and carry greater fiduciary and operational responsibility.
This structure allows us to serve those clients well while remaining aligned and transparent. We will always total the dollar amount of every fee you pay and provide an annual written disclosure.
You will never have to guess what you are paying or why.
Why Fee-Only Pricing Matters
Fee-only means we are paid only by you, and only for the advice and service we provide. There are no commissions, no product incentives, and no secondary sources of compensation.
Our planners do not earn money by selling insurance products or investment funds. Instead, we are compensated through clearly disclosed fees — similar to how you pay your accountant, attorney, or physician.
A fee-only structure removes the most problematic conflicts and incentives in the financial services industry. We have built White Coat Planning to put clients first, allowing us to provide objective financial advice that truly serves your best interests.
Other Fees You Should Know About
Transparency is at the core of what we do. Here are the third-party fees that may apply when we manage your investments.
Platform Fee
0.10% on AUM
Our investment platform charges a 0.10% platform fee on assets we manage directly. This fee covers custody, trading, reporting, and account administration.
Important:
This fee only applies to Assets Under Management (AUM), not Assets Under Advisement (AUA) like 401(k)s, which we provide guidance on but don't directly manage.
Fund Expense Ratios
<0.10% on AUM
Mutual funds and ETFs charge internal fees called expense ratios. We use low-cost index funds with expense ratios typically under 0.10%.
Why it matters:
Lower expense ratios mean more of your money stays invested and compounds over time. Every basis point matters.
Additional Services
If your plan requires specialized services outside our standard scope — such as complex business valuations, in-depth tax preparation, or legal estate planning — we'll discuss those fees separately and always get your approval first. No surprises.
Ready to optimize your portfolio?
Ready to Take Control of
Your Financial Future?
No obligation. No sales pressure. Just honest conversation.
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