Advisory Fees
Blue Water charges an initial financial planning fee that ranges from $1,850 - $2,500, depending upon complexity.
Advisory fees are based on the average daily balance of your portfolio. They are paid on a quarterly basis and in arrears, meaning the fee is paid after the service. The first quarter is prorated.
| Portfolio Value | Annual Advisory Fee |
|---|---|
| First $1,000,000 | 0.80% |
| Next $2,000,000 | 0.65% |
| Next $2,000,000 | 0.50% |
| Next $5,000,000 | 0.30% |
| $10,000,000+ | 0.15% |
| Flat fees are also available | Negotiable |
| Minimum Quarterly Fee | $2,000 |
Blue Water does not take custody of any of your assets. We use Charles Schwab as our independent custodian.
FAQs
Can you provide an example of the advisory fees?
- If your portfolio had an average daily balance of $2,000,000, the 1st $1M would be at 0.20% (1/4 of the annual 0.80%) and the 2nd would be at 0.1625%. The quarterly fee in this case would be $3,625.
What types of clients would be a good fit to work with you?
- We feel we provide great value for people who are:
- nearing, or in retirement with an investment portfolio of $1,000,000+, or
- higher income / higher savers with a portfolio of $750,000+
- Someone who is looking for a more competitive overall fee as a lot of advisors use more expensive investment options and charge 1% or higher.
What about 401(k) plans?
- These are included in our management. We use account aggregation software to work with accounts not held at Schwab.
Do you ever just do a one-time financial review?
- We prioritize our time for our current clients, so we would say “Occasionally”. If so, it would primarily be for a smaller project like a portfolio review or insurance analysis. We generally only do a full financial plan for ongoing clients as those are more time-consuming. Hourly rate: $350. We can provide a quote on time.
Are there any other fees I should know about?
- We are not attorneys, so if you need a Trust or other estate planning documents drawn up, we’ll refer you to an attorney.
- While we can provide tax planning services, we do not prepare the actual return. We’ll refer you to a CPA / tax preparer if you need tax preparation.
- For the most part, there are no transaction fees. A few mutual funds have transaction fees ($7 - $15), but these aren’t used too often. The custodian is paid this transaction fee.
- There are no upfront or deferred sales charges. However, each fund charges an expense ratio, which is priced into performance. This is how the fund companies are paid. We try to keep these as low as possible. Most portfolios are under 0.20% in cost.