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How to Find a Fee-Only Financial Advisor

Last updated: May 1, 2026

To find a fee-only financial advisor, start with the SEC's free public database at adviserinfo.sec.gov (opens in new tab). Every registered investment adviser is listed there, including their fee structure, registration status, and disciplinary history. No directory charges for placement. No ad results. This article covers how to search it, what to verify, and the questions worth asking before you hire anyone. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.

The Basics

Start With the Term

Fee-only and fee-based sound almost identical. They mean very different things.

A fee-only financial advisor earns revenue exclusively from client advisory fees. No commissions. No product sales. No third-party payments of any kind. If money flows to the advisor from any source other than the client, the advisor isn't fee-only.

Fee-based sounds like the same thing but isn't. A fee-based advisor charges a client fee and can also earn commissions when selling certain products. Google doesn't distinguish between the two when you search "financial advisor," so both show up in the same results and you're left to figure out which is which.

Why does this matter? An advisor who earns commissions has a financial reason to recommend some products over others, regardless of which one is better for you. That doesn't make the recommendation wrong. But it's a real conflict. A fee-only structure removes that particular source of friction, not every conflict, but the most common ones. A registered investment adviser owes a fiduciary duty to act in your interest and to disclose any remaining conflicts in writing.

Portfolio management, $100 minimum, no advisory commissions

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Narstar charges 0.60% to 1.60%/yr. Three model portfolios for dividend income, long-term growth, or speculative goals. No advisory commissions, no product sales. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.

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Verification

What to Verify on IARD

Four things to check. None of them take more than two minutes.

CRD number. Every registered investment adviser has a Central Registration Depository number. Ask for it. Any advisor who's reluctant to give you theirs is a red flag. Enter it at adviserinfo.sec.gov (opens in new tab) and confirm the record matches what you were told.

State registration. Confirm the adviser is registered in the state where you live. An adviser who isn't registered in your state can't legally provide you investment advice, with limited exceptions. The IARD record shows every state where the adviser holds a registration.

Form ADV Part 2A (opens in new tab). This is the adviser's regulatory brochure. It's filed with the SEC or state regulator and available in full on IARD. Read the fees and compensation section. It describes how the firm is paid, discloses any broker-dealer affiliations, and lists referral compensation arrangements. If it mentions commissions or third-party payments, the firm isn't fee-only. That section tells you more than any marketing page ever will.

Disclosure events. The IARD record shows regulatory actions, customer complaints, and legal proceedings on the adviser's record. For individual representatives, FINRA BrokerCheck (opens in new tab) provides a similar report with employment history and licenses. One old complaint doesn't disqualify anyone. A pattern of complaints is different. Anything involving fraud or misappropriation is a different conversation entirely.

Due Diligence

Questions to Ask

Ask these directly. If the answers aren't short and verifiable, that tells you something too.

Do you receive any compensation other than my advisory fee? A fee-only adviser's answer is a flat no. Any qualification ("sometimes," "only on certain products," "through our affiliated entity") means the adviser isn't fee-only. No gray area here.

What is your CRD number? This lets you pull the public record yourself. If the adviser doesn't know it or won't give it to you, that's a problem.

Are you registered as a broker-dealer or affiliated with one? Fee-only advisers are registered investment advisers only. Dual registration (both RIA and broker-dealer) means the adviser can switch between fiduciary duty and the lower best-interest standard depending on the transaction. Worth understanding before you sign anything.

What is your account minimum? Many fee-only advisers require $50,000 or more to open an account. Nothing wrong with that, but ask before spending time on a call. Sky-high minimums knock out a lot of people and there's no point discovering it halfway through the process.

How are fees calculated and when are they billed? A percentage of assets under management, billed quarterly, is the most common structure for portfolio management. Hourly and flat-fee structures exist for planning-only engagements. All of it should be spelled out in the advisory agreement.

Narstar is fee-only and state-registered in Utah (CRD #337496) and conditionally registered in Texas. We manage three model portfolios starting at a $100 minimum. No commissions, no exit fees, no product sales. Want to verify any of this? The public records are the right place to start. Want to talk? The contact form below is the fastest way to reach us. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.

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Questions About Finding a Fee-Only Advisor

If you want to verify Narstar's registration, the links are in the footer. If you have a question about the process or want to know whether we are the right fit, send it below. We reply within two business days.

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