Clear, Transparent Pricing. No Surprises.

Because your income is a better indicator of planning complexity than your assets. A client earning $80K with $5K in savings has complex needs - debt management, tax optimization, career planning - that asset-based pricing wouldn't reflect. By tying the planning fee to income, everyone gets access to the same quality of advice regardless of where they are on their wealth journey.

Yes. Your planning fee is an annual fee, but you can choose to pay it monthly for convenience. The amount is the same either way - it's simply a payment preference, not a different fee structure.

If you hold investments with DesignWealth, we're compensated through a fee-based account charge of 1% of your account value per year, plus GST, whether or not you also engage us for financial planning. The funds we use are Series F, which pay us no advisor compensation at all, so this is charged to your account directly rather than being embedded in the fund. It applies each year on the value of your account, whether it rises or falls. It comes out of your investment account rather than your bank account, so it doesn't affect your monthly cash flow, and it appears on your annual statement in dollars under its own line. It's a real cost and we're direct about it, because it carries real value: it is part of what lets us keep the planning fee as low as it is, and it funds the ongoing due diligence we do on every investment we recommend. Your planning fee and your account charge are separate: each pays for distinct work, and each stands on its own.

You could, and it would cost you less. A broad global equity index ETF costs a fraction of any advised option, and if you can hold it through a 30% decline without selling, that is a perfectly sound way to invest.

The cost that never appears on a fee schedule is the one that shows up in behaviour. In more than 30 years we have watched what happens to portfolios in the months after a market falls hard, and the damage almost never comes from the investments themselves. It comes from the decision to sell, made at the worst possible moment, by someone with nobody to call.

That is what the investment fee buys. Not fund picking. Someone who knows your situation, answers the phone in March, and gives you a reason to do nothing. If you have never been through a real decline, it is hard to know which kind of investor you are, and most people find out the expensive way.

If you already know you are the kind who holds, buy the index fund. We would rather tell you that than charge you for something you do not need.

Investment-only platforms are a valid option for clients who simply want investment execution - and DesignWealth offers investment guidance as a standalone service too, with no plan required. Where DesignWealth adds value is for clients who want their investments coordinated with a financial plan: tax strategy, cash flow analysis, insurance integration, and a team that knows your full picture. Our standalone investment guidance is compensated through a 1% fee-based account charge plus GST, which puts your total investment cost close to what you would pay at a traditional advisor. The difference is that you can see it.

When you implement insurance through DesignWealth, we're paid a commission by the insurance provider, not by you directly. It's the standard way insurance advice is compensated. The work is front-loaded - we're not compensated until your coverage is approved and in force, so the analysis costs you nothing if you decide not to proceed. We tell you about any coverage we recommend and why, and our planning advice doesn't depend on whether you choose to implement insurance through us.

Financial planning fees are generally not tax deductible for individuals in Canada. Some investment-related fees on non-registered accounts may be deductible in specific circumstances. We recommend speaking with your accountant to understand what applies to your situation.

If you're not satisfied with your financial plan within the first six months, we'll refund your planning fee in full - no questions asked. This applies to the planning fee only (not investment or insurance product costs, which are handled through standard industry processes). We believe if you don't see the value, you shouldn't pay for it.

Yes. Through two ways, and you benefit from whichever is more favorable. Tenure: after 10 years your planning fee drops to 1.00%, after 15 years to 0.75%, after 20 years to 0.50%, and at 25+ years it's waived entirely. Assets: at $500K+ in investments held with us, your planning fee drops to 1.00%, at $850K+ to 0.75%, and at $1.2M+ it's waived.

Yes. You can cancel your planning engagement with 30 days notice. The planning fee is structured annually - if you pay monthly, those payments are a convenience we extend, and any remaining months in your current annual period will be collected on cancellation. You keep your financial plan and all materials we have created for you. We want you to stay because the value is undeniable, not because you are locked in.

We adjust your planning fee accordingly at your annual review. If you get a raise or take a pay cut, your fee scales with you. This ensures you're always paying a fair amount relative to the complexity of your financial situation.