116 | Hiring a Plumber to Build a House

I'm elaborating on a good friend's riff that I read here.

Even if a plumber was the best contractor in the city, it would be weird if they said, “I’ll do the plumbing for $400,000 and, while I’m at it, I’ll build you a house for free.“

But that’s what happens every time we pay a fee for assets under management, but receive help on everything else related to money.

If it were just math, it wouldn’t matter.

But it’s not just math.

As Carl Richards would say, the way we bill tells a story.

And the plumber giving away free houses tells a story that makes the plumbing seem more important than the rest of the house.

If you want a house, you pay for the house and sub out the detailed work.

If you want help with your "money life", it probably makes the most sense to hire a contractor instead of a plumber.

Our fee is a simple, flat fee that is loosely based on complexity and ability to pay, but is never based on a percentage of assets under management.