Start with the job, not the adviser

A large balance does not automatically make your circumstances complex. Equally, a modest number of accounts can hide difficult decisions.

Before comparing firms, write down the job in plain language. For example:

  • "We need to know whether we can retire in three years without selling the family home."
  • "My remuneration includes shares, bonuses and salary, and our current professional advisers see each part separately."
  • "We have investments across super, a trust and personal names, but no shared strategy."
  • "We want to help our children and leave a legacy without weakening our retirement."
  • "Most of our wealth is connected to the business, and we need a personal plan before exit."

This turns an adviser search into a fit assessment. You can test whether the firm has the capability, service model and professional network to do the work.

The 12 questions worth asking

Question What a strong answer should make clear
1. Are you registered and authorised to provide the advice I need? The adviser's current register status, licensee and authorised product areas. Verify this yourself on the Financial Advisers Register.
2. Which clients and decisions do you work with most often? Relevant experience without vague claims or an attempt to treat every client as a specialty.
3. What would be inside and outside the advice scope? Clear boundaries around financial advice, tax, accounting, law, valuation and administration.
4. How will you understand our complete position? A discovery process that covers goals, family, income, assets, liabilities, structures, risks and future spending.
5. How do you decide whether advice should be one-off or ongoing? A rationale based on the decisions required, not an automatic ongoing package.
6. What will we receive? The strategy, written advice, modelling, implementation help, reviews and access that are actually included.
7. How are fees calculated? Dollar amounts, timing, what is included, what can change and any separate product, platform or investment costs.
8. How do you select investments and products? A repeatable process, the range considered, risk controls, costs and how recommendations connect to your goals.
9. What conflicts, commissions or commercial relationships should we understand? Direct disclosure and a clear explanation of how these matters are managed.
10. How will you work with our accountant and solicitor? Consent, information sharing, role boundaries and a process for resolving different assumptions.
11. Who will look after us, and what happens when that person is away? Named responsibilities, communication expectations and continuity arrangements.
12. How can we change or end the service? Notice requirements, outstanding work, investment access and any costs of leaving.

Do not grade answers only on polish. A careful adviser may need to understand your circumstances before defining the final scope. What matters is whether the answer is specific, transparent and capable of being verified.

Four fit tests for established wealth

1. Can they connect the structures?

When wealth sits across super, personal accounts, trusts, companies, property or a business, the advice cannot be a set of isolated product recommendations. Ask the adviser to explain how they form one view of the balance sheet, cash flow, ownership and future liabilities.

2. Can they explain trade-offs without pretending there is one right answer?

Established households often face competing good uses for capital: contribute to super, reduce debt, invest outside super, retain liquidity, help family or bring retirement forward. The adviser should show what changes under each option and identify which assumptions carry the most weight.

3. Can they work within a professional team?

A financial adviser does not replace an accountant or solicitor. The value lies partly in recognising when tax or legal advice is needed, supplying the relevant financial context and keeping the recommendations aligned.

4. Is the service proportionate?

More service is not automatically better. A household preparing for retirement across several structures may need sustained work. Someone seeking a second opinion on a contained decision may need a narrower scope. Ask what creates the need for ongoing advice and what would allow the relationship to become lighter.

Documents to request before deciding

Ask for or locate:

  • the firm's Financial Services Guide;
  • the adviser's Financial Advisers Register record;
  • a written description of the proposed scope;
  • the fee proposal in dollars;
  • details of services and review frequency;
  • disclosure of relevant commissions, referral arrangements and product costs;
  • information about complaints and how to end the service.

Read the documents against what was said in the meeting. If the scope, fee or responsibility is unclear, ask for it to be explained before agreeing.

Warning signs

Pause when:

  • a product or transfer is discussed before your goals and existing position are understood;
  • investment performance is presented without appropriate time periods, risk and comparison context;
  • the firm cannot explain who is responsible for tax or legal questions;
  • urgency is used to prevent comparison or proper review;
  • the adviser discourages you from checking registration or reading the written documents;
  • the proposed strategy is hard to explain in plain language.

A simple comparison scorecard

Score each firm from 0 to 2 on the following areas, where 0 means unclear, 1 means partly answered and 2 means clear and evidenced:

  1. Registration and authorisation
  2. Relevant client and decision experience
  3. Complete discovery process
  4. Advice-scope clarity
  5. Fee and cost transparency
  6. Investment and product process
  7. Professional coordination
  8. Communication and continuity
  9. One-off versus ongoing rationale
  10. Exit terms

The score is not a mechanical winner. Use it to reveal unanswered questions and compare substance more consistently.

When personal advice may help

Personal advice becomes more useful when a decision affects several parts of your financial life, has material tax or liquidity consequences, is hard to reverse or depends on uncertain future spending.

Retirement, concentrated employer equity, a business exit, an inheritance and intergenerational support often meet several of those tests.

The right adviser should make the complexity easier to see. They should not create complexity to justify the engagement.

Speak with Profile

Profile Financial Services provides personal financial advice for professionals, families, business owners, pre-retirees and retirees across NSW and remotely.  

The first conversation with a member of our team of Sydney-based expert financial advisers is an opportunity to understand the decisions you face and whether our service is a suitable fit.

Speak with an adviser