Choosing the Right Wealth Advisor, Part 1: Getting to Know the Person Behind the Advice

Choosing a wealth advisor is a high-stakes decision, and trust plays a central role. According to research from the CFA Institute, investors tend to trust their advisors more when they are educated about what matters.1 In other words, confidence doesn’t come from credentials alone, it comes from understanding.

This is the first article in a three-part series focused on educating investors about how to choose a wealth advisor. Here are some important areas of inquiry to help you pursue a relationship based on clarity and trust:

Fee schedule

An advisor should be transparent about how they charge for their services. This includes management fees as well as ancillary fees for product commissions, account maintenance fees, money movement, and trading fees, and underlying investment costs for mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), or sub-investment managers. 

Services included

What services are included in that fee? Are tax planning, tax preparation, estate planning, or trustee services offered? Do they cost more? When interviewing advisors, understanding their depth of service and pricing is pivotal. You should feel comfortable that they can meet your needs as your financial life evolves and changes over time.

Professional certifications

While there are a number of valid credentials for advisors, two widely recognized designations are CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® and Chartered Financial Analyst®. Not only will an advisor with one of these designations have undergone rigorous training, they’ll also need ongoing education to maintain them. 

References

Ask the advisor about the types of clients they work with. If their description doesn’t match your situation, it could be a red flag. Ask if you can talk to a client that they currently work with to get an outside perspective on their service and value.

Investment philosophy

A good wealth advisor has a clear investment philosophy that they can explain to you. In our opinion, you should be wary of anyone who guarantees quick returns or can’t explain their philosophy in a way you can understand. 

When interviewing advisors, think about your unique needs. Some may have minimum balance requirements. Others may have expertise in specialized areas you need, like managing the sudden wealth from an inheritance or dealing with the complexities of executive compensation. 

Finally, never overlook the value of strong rapport. Your communication should feel open and comfortable. After all, you will hopefully be collaborating to achieve your goals and dreams for years to come.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

CONTENT DISCLOSURE

Corient refers to the separate but affiliated entities under common control of Corient Holdings Inc. These entities include but are not limited to Corient Private Wealth LLC, Corient IA LLC, Corient Family Office LLC, Corient Tax LLC, Corient Trust Company LLC and Corient Aviation LLC. Each service may be provided under separate agreements and separate fees may be charged for family office services, wealth management services or any other service provided by a Corient affiliate and/or third party. Additional fees and charges may be applied for other services or products Corient, its affiliates or unaffiliated third-parties provide to clients. Additional fees, such as custodial fees, fund expenses and third-party investment manager fees, may also be applied to client accounts. 
This information is for educational purposes and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied upon for, accounting, legal, tax, insurance, or investment advice. This does not constitute an offer to provide any services, nor a solicitation to purchase securities. The contents are not intended to be advice tailored to any particular person or situation. We believe the information provided is accurate and reliable, but do not warrant it as to completeness or accuracy. This information may include opinions or forecasts, including investment strategies and economic and market conditions; however, there is no guarantee that such opinions or forecasts will prove to be correct, and they also may change without notice. We encourage you to speak with a qualified professional regarding your scenario and the then-current applicable laws and rules.

Different types of investments involve degrees of risk. The future performance of any investment or wealth management strategy, including those recommended by us, may not be profitable or suitable or prove successful. Past performance is not indicative of future results. One cannot invest directly in an index or benchmark, and those do not reflect the deduction of various fees that would diminish results. Any index or benchmark performance figures are for comparison purposes only, and client account holdings will not directly correspond to any such data.

CFA® and Chartered Financial Analyst® are registered trademarks owned by CFA Institute. Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board) owns the CFP® certification mark, the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® certification mark, and the CFP® certification mark (with plaque design) logo in the United States, which it authorizes use of by individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements.

Advisory services are offered through Corient Private Wealth LLC, a registered investment adviser (“RIA”) regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The advisory services are only offered in jurisdictions where the RIA is appropriately registered. The use of the term “registered” does not imply any particular level of skill or training and does not imply any approval by the SEC. For a complete discussion of the scope of advisory services offered, fees, and other disclosures, please review the RIA’s Disclosure Brochure (Form ADV Part 2A) and Form CRS, available upon request from the RIA and online at https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/. We also encourage you to review the RIA’s Privacy Policy and Code of Ethics, which are available upon request. 
Our clients must, in writing, advise us of personal, financial, or investment objective changes and any restrictions desired on our services so that we may re-evaluate any previous recommendations and adjust our advisory services as needed. For current clients, please advise us immediately if you are not receiving monthly account statements from your custodian. We encourage you to compare your custodial statements to any information we provide to you. 

5221548 – February 2026