FAQ

As a registered investment advisor (RIA), 7 Saturdays Financial is legally required to put client interests before our own, or the interests of our firm.

When you’re considering potential advisors, “fiduciary” should be the bare minimum. You should also understand how the advisor is paid and consider their credentials and the ethical standards they are required to abide by.

Just like you wouldn’t see a podiatrist for your heart issue, it’s important to find a financial advisor who specializes in helping people in your situation.

We do our best work with clients who are:

  1. Retired,
  2. Approaching retirement in a few years, or
  3. Entrepreneurs

If you’re not in one of these groups, no worries! Feel free to reach out so we can understand more about your aspirations and get you in contact with another great advisor from our professional network.

7 Saturdays Financial has 10+ five-star reviews, available at wt.reviews/allen-mueller

Great news! Although we are headquartered in the Dallas area and meet many clients locally, 7 Saturdays Financial leverages technology (virtual meetings, screen sharing, secure file transfer) to serve clients nationwide.

If you are comfortable with technology, geographic distance is not a problem.

For your safety and convenience, 7 Saturdays Financial uses Charles Schwab and Altruist as third-party custodians for our client investment and retirement accounts.

  • Schwab administers more than $9.8 trillion in assets for more than 36 million accounts.
  • Altruist is a growing, technology-focused custodian held to the same strict regulatory standards as other firms (Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard, etc.)

As trusted custodians, Schwab and Altruist safely hold your investment accounts and provide reporting to you and the IRS each year. Your accounts can be viewed at any time on the custodian websites or through RightCapital, our advanced planning software.

During the planning process, we will discuss which custodian will be the best fit for your needs.

It depends on your situation, but retirement planning is more complex than saving for it. You’ll need to decide when to claim Social Security, how much and which accounts to withdraw from tax-efficiently, whether Roth conversions make sense, and how to make your money last 30+ years. A retirement-focused advisor can help you avoid costly mistakes that are difficult to undo.

Most financial advisors charge about 1% of the assets they manage — so for every $1 million, that’s $10,000 per year. Some charge hourly rates ($200–$400/hour) or flat fees ($10,000–$20,000/year). At 7 Saturdays Financial, we charge a flat fee for comprehensive financial planning and investment management, so you know exactly what you’re paying regardless of your portfolio size. Our minimum fee is $12,000/year. We quote higher fees for situations with above-average complexity.

We believe that determining a financial advisor’s fee based on a percentage of assets is not logical. A better approach is to determine the cost (in dollars) based on the services provided and the complexity of the client’s situation – not portfolio size. Clients with larger account balances shouldn’t have to pay more simply because they have more. The flat-fee model also reduces some of the conflicts of interest embedded in legacy pricing models. 

Flat-fee is often a more economical option over the long term because the cost for advisory services does not grow along with the portfolio size. However, just like any professional service, it is reasonable to expect our fee to rise over time as inflation and the costs of doing business increase. 

To put it simply – we have no skyscrapers, no layers of middle management, and no primetime TV ads to pay for.

We prefer to focus on the steak, not the sizzle.

“7 Saturdays a week” is my favorite analogy for financial independence, the summit of the financial planning mountain.

It’s also known as “work optional”, or the ability to maintain your desired lifestyle without the need for earned income. Every day becomes a Saturday because you can choose how you spend your time based on what you value, rather than on what you need to do to make money. Many clients of 7 Saturdays Financial plan to make work optional in their 40’s and 50’s. 

Check Check Get Started!

More Questions About Financial Advisors

What is a fiduciary financial advisor?

A fiduciary financial advisor is legally obligated to act in your best interest at all times. This is the highest standard of care in the financial industry. Fiduciary advisors must put your interests ahead of their own, disclose any conflicts of interest, and provide advice that serves your goals — not their compensation. Not all financial professionals are fiduciaries. Brokers and many insurance agents operate under a lower “suitability” standard, which only requires that recommendations be suitable for you, even if better options exist. When choosing an advisor, fiduciary status should be the minimum requirement.

What is the difference between fee-only and fee-based advisors?

Fee-only advisors receive compensation exclusively from their clients — they earn no commissions from selling financial products like insurance, annuities, or mutual funds. Fee-based advisors, despite the similar-sounding name, operate under a hybrid model where they can be paid through both client fees AND commissions from product sales. When evaluating an advisor, fee-only status means fewer potential conflicts of interest since the advisor has no financial incentive to recommend products that pay them commissions. You can verify fee-only status through organizations like NAPFA (National Association of Personal Financial Advisors).

What is a flat-fee financial advisor?

A flat-fee financial advisor charges a fixed dollar amount for their services rather than a percentage of your assets under management (AUM). Clients pay a predictable annual fee based on the complexity of their financial situation and the services provided — not the size of their portfolio. This means someone with $500,000 and someone with $2 million could pay the same fee if their planning needs are similar. This pricing model eliminates the conflict of interest where advisors might benefit from keeping more assets under their management, and it can be significantly more economical for clients with larger portfolios.

What is retirement income planning?

Retirement income planning is a specialized area of financial planning focused on converting your accumulated savings into sustainable income during retirement. Unlike the accumulation phase (saving for retirement), retirement income planning addresses questions like: How much can I safely withdraw each year? Which accounts should I draw from first? How do I minimize taxes on retirement income? When should I claim Social Security? How do I protect against outliving my money? A retirement income planner helps create a strategy that balances current lifestyle needs with long-term financial security, accounting for inflation, healthcare costs, and market volatility.

How much do I need to retire comfortably?

There’s no single number — it depends on your spending, lifestyle, and income sources like Social Security or pensions. A common guideline is 25 times your annual expenses, but that’s just a starting point. What matters more is building a retirement income plan that accounts for taxes, inflation, healthcare costs, and your specific goals. A detailed projection based on your actual situation will give you a much clearer answer than any rule of thumb.

When should I start working with a financial advisor?

The best time is before you need one urgently — ideally 5 to 10 years before retirement. That gives you time to optimize Social Security timing, do Roth conversions while you’re in lower tax brackets, and adjust your investment strategy. But even if you’re already retired, it’s not too late to get a plan in place. Major life transitions like selling a business, receiving an inheritance, or going through a divorce are also good times to seek professional guidance.