Financial Planning Questions Answered

No minimum. We work with young professionals at all stages of wealth-building. The most common client has a solid income, a few accounts, and a nagging sense that they should be doing more with their money. You do not need to have built significant assets already. In fact, the earlier you start, the more valuable comprehensive planning tends to be.

We charge a flat fee to cover onboarding and your financial plan implementation. After that, it is a monthly fee based on the complexity of your situation. If we manage your investments, a 1.00–1.50% annual fee applies to managed assets. The monthly fee is waived once you reach $100,000 in managed assets. There are no commissions and no other hidden costs. See the full breakdown on our fees page.

It is a 30-minute conversation with no sales pressure and no commitment. We will hear about your financial situation, your goals, and what has been on your mind. Chris will answer your questions honestly, including whether he thinks working together makes sense for your specific situation. You should leave with more clarity than you came in with, regardless of what you decide.

You can usually book a free intro call within a few days. After that, we schedule the discovery session within one to two weeks. Your complete financial plan is typically ready within 30 days of your intro call.

Nothing is required for the intro call. Just bring your questions and a general sense of what has been on your mind financially. For the discovery session, it helps to have recent pay stubs, account statements, a general sense of monthly income and expenses, outstanding debt balances, and your financial goals. We will send you a prep guide ahead of time so you know exactly what to gather.

A fiduciary is legally required to act in your best interest at all times, not based on what earns them the best commission. The lower industry standard is 'suitability,' which only requires a recommendation be appropriate, not the best option for you. As a fiduciary, Chris must prioritize your interests over his own in every recommendation. This is disclosed in our Form ADV Part 2. It is not a default in the industry. It is something he chose specifically.

A commission-based advisor earns money when they sell you financial products: insurance policies, annuities, and specific mutual funds. That creates a built-in incentive to recommend what pays them, not what is best for you. A fee-only advisor is compensated exclusively by client fees. No commissions, no product sales, no referral payments. You pay for advice, and that is the only way we earn money. The conflict of interest is eliminated by design.

No. Villaire Financial is a fee-only firm. We do not earn commissions on any investment, insurance, or financial product of any kind. We are compensated solely through the fees clients pay us directly. This is disclosed in writing in our advisory agreement and Form ADV Part 2.

Fee-only means we are compensated exclusively by client fees, never by commissions or product sales. Every dollar we earn comes directly from you, not from recommending a specific fund, insurance policy, or annuity. This eliminates the single biggest conflict of interest in the financial industry. There are no hidden revenue streams.

Yes. While we are based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, we serve clients across the United States via video calls, a secure client portal, and digital document signing. We currently work with over 85 households nationwide. Geography has not been a barrier for any client.

We meet at least twice a year for formal reviews. That cadence is the minimum, not the ceiling. If you change jobs, buy a home, have a baby, or face any major financial milestone, we schedule a meeting around it. You can also reach out anytime between meetings. There is no extra charge for that access.

Just reach out. Life changes, and your plan should keep up with it. Ongoing plan adjustments are included in your service fees. There is no extra charge to update your plan, answer a question, or review a financial decision you are facing. That ongoing access is the point of the relationship.

You can leave anytime. There is no long-term contract and no cancellation fee. If you decide to move on, we help transition your accounts and make sure you have everything you need. We would rather you leave on good terms than stay in a relationship that is not working.

Yes. We can manage your 401(k), 403(b), and other employer-sponsored retirement accounts as part of your investment management service. We review your available fund options, optimize the allocation, and make sure your workplace accounts work together with your other investments as one coordinated strategy.

We use eMoney as our client portal. It connects all of your accounts in one secure dashboard, tracks your spending automatically, and gives you a real-time view of your complete financial picture. You'll have 24/7 access to everything in one place.

Yes. Student loan strategy is one of the most common issues we help young professionals work through. The right approach depends on your loan types, employer, income, and goals. We evaluate PSLF eligibility, income-driven repayment plans, refinancing tradeoffs, and accelerated paydown strategies. For federal loans especially, getting this wrong can be expensive, so we make sure the decision is made deliberately.

This depends on your interest rates, tax situation, emergency fund status, and goals. The short version: high-interest debt almost always gets paid off first. For lower-rate debt like student loans or a mortgage, it often makes sense to invest and pay down debt at the same time, especially if you have an employer 401(k) match you are not capturing. We build a sequenced plan that handles both, in the right priority order for your numbers.

We custody client investments through Charles Schwab. Schwab is one of the largest and most reputable custodians in the country. Your assets are held in your name, in your own account, with full visibility at all times. We manage the strategy and execution; Schwab holds the assets.

Robo-advisors automate basic portfolio management and are fine for simple situations. But they cannot factor in your student loans, the 401(k) you have not optimized, RSUs vesting over the next few years, or a home purchase coming up. They do not coordinate debt paydown with investing or build a tax strategy around your specific numbers. That outcome does not come from an algorithm.

Yes. A 401(k) is a great starting point, but it is one piece of a larger financial picture. We review your fund options, optimize the allocation, and coordinate your 401(k) with your other accounts, your tax situation, your cash flow, and your retirement timeline. Many clients come to us with a 401(k) they have never looked at since they enrolled. We make sure it is working as hard as it should for you.

Tax planning only. That means working with you throughout the year to reduce what you owe: Roth conversions, tax-loss harvesting, HSA optimization, employer benefit decisions, and timing of income or deductions. We do not file your return. For tax filing, we recommend working with a CPA and can coordinate with them directly.