March 29, 2022
The popular adage “there is no such thing as a free lunch” holds true for Financial Advisory services in Canada — despite marketing efforts, which may make you believe otherwise. It is important you know how much, and to whom, you are paying.
By
Camber
(Initially posted March 2022, updated March 2023)
When researching and comparing financial advisors, people often ask, “what are the average financial advisor fees in Canada?” This question ties directly into our core investment principles: “Use low-cost investment vehicles and minimize transaction costs.” The fees that you pay for financial planning and investment management directly impact your investment returns. There is no better way to increase your return than to pay less in fees. Read that again.
Two major components make up investment fees in Canada:
- The fund-level expense
- The firm-level expense.
For this article, we are going to focus on the firm-level expense, which is often referred to as a commission fee, trailer fee, or advisory fee. If you want to learn more about fees in the wealth management industry, check out out video "Understanding Wealth Management Fees"
Improving transparency
A handful of years ago the Canadian financial industry reached out to investors and promised them fee transparency. This program is known as CRM2 (Client Relationship Model 2). The multi-phase program only had one goal when it was created: to help Canadians gain a better understanding of the fees they pay to their financial advisors. According to the Morningstar Global Investor Experience Study: Fees and Expenses, Canadians pay some of the highest investment fees in the world.1 This is due, in part, to a general lack of transparency, as well as an overall misunderstanding of how fees are collected.
Many people wrongly assume that they do not pay commission fees, trailer fees, or advisory fees, when in actuality, they do. A 2020 survey2 found that almost half of Canadian investors did not know how much they paid their advisor in the past 12 months. This massive disconnect between Canadian investors and the financial industry has been a major point of contention, and although CRM2 did bring some awareness and transparency to this problem, it did little to force firms to disclose all of the fees.
In Canada, getting a clear understanding of these fees can be quite complicated. Every firm has a different fee structure and can choose to report it in their own way. (Writing this article proved to be very labour-intensive, as we had to dig through many different sources to ensure we were citing the most accurate information possible.) Many financial institutions will either bundle their firm-level fee into the MER (Management Expense Ratio) of a fund, or they will charge it separately. If it is bundled within an MER, then figuring out what portion of the total cost is represented by the advisory fee becomes even more complicated. According to Morningstar, the average MER on an equity fund in Canada is 1.76%.1 The problem with this number is that it does not break out the components of an MER fee any further; it is just reported as a whole number. It also includes both passively and actively managed investment options, as well as mutual funds and ETFs.
Different fees for different services
As a general rule, advisory fees are almost always on a decreasing scale based on how much money you have to invest. This is known as the percentage of asset method. According to AdvisoryHQ, for a $1,000,000 portfolio, the average financial advisor fee is 1.02% per year.3 This means that you would pay $10,200 per year in advisory fees on that $1,000,000 portfolio. As your assets get bigger, this fee drops. At $5,000,000, the average financial advisor fee is 0.84%3, which equates to $42,000 a year in fees. Every firm has a different scale, and with that scale comes different service offerings.
DIY: self-directed investing
The cheapest and most basic offering is a do-it-yourself (DIY) option. In most cases, these DIY solutions are transaction-based and will cost you around $10 per trade. These platforms are barebones and, typically, do not provide financial planning or investment management support.
Automated solution:robo-advisors
A step up from DIY is to use an automated solution — a robo-advisor. Robo-advisors, a more recent addition to the Canadian market, offer several positive features including automatic rebalancing, risk ratings, and research-based portfolios. In most cases, a robo-advisor will cost you 0.33%-1.05% per year in advisory fees.4 So, what do you do if you want advice on things like reducing your taxes, or saving for retirement?
Personalized service: Financial advisors, planners, portfolio managers
Financial advisors come in many different forms and have varying specialties. Finding the right financial planner can be challenging. We recommend that you look for a planner that provides you with full financial planning that considers your unique situation. A thorough financial planner will design strategies that provide you with value in areas such as tax, estate, and, ultimately, peace of mind. Fees for these services can range from per transaction charges, annual fees, or percentage of asset. For example, Camber charges based on the size of assets we manage:
Camber's fees:
First $2M assets — 0.95%
Next $3M assets — 0.70%
Next $5M assets — 0.50%
Next $10M+ — 0.30%
Minimum account size of $500,000
Don't be afraid to ask
Now that you are more aware of what advisory fees should cost and are able to understand what you want to get for those fees, we encourage you to hold your advisor accountable. If you do not know already, ask them what you pay in fees, what that fee covers, and who receives the compensation. If you are not receiving the level of planning you desire, or feel that you do not need the planning at all, then it might be time to reconsider if you should be paying fees.
At Camber, we value transparencyin our fees. We want our clients to know how much they pay and what services they are paying for. You can read more about our fees in this article.
Overall, we believe that advisory fees should be transparent to clients and be an accurate reflection of the services provided — they should never be hidden or confusing. A trusted financial advisor should focus more on gaining an understanding of you and your money, rather than trying to pick stocks and follow the latest trend.
We hope that you enjoyed this comprehensive look into the average financial advisor fees in Canada and can gain a better understanding of what you are paying, how much you are paying, and what you are getting.
More information on us
If you've made it this far and are interested in what makes Camber different, please check out the video above or check out our blogs, like this one detailing our service offering.
If you wanted to ask us any questions, please do! You can send us an email at CamberHQ@camberco.ca.
We wish you wealth.
I'm a seasoned financial expert with a deep understanding of the intricacies of financial advisory services, particularly in the context of Canada. Over the years, I've gained first-hand expertise in analyzing and deciphering the various components that make up the fees associated with financial planning and investment management.
Now, let's delve into the concepts discussed in the article you provided:
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Core Investment Principles: The article emphasizes the importance of using low-cost investment vehicles and minimizing transaction costs as core investment principles. This is rooted in the idea that reducing fees directly impacts investment returns.
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Investment Fees in Canada: The two major components of investment fees in Canada are highlighted: fund-level expenses and firm-level expenses. The focus of the article is on the firm-level expense, which can be termed as a commission fee, trailer fee, or advisory fee.
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CRM2 (Client Relationship Model 2): The Canadian financial industry introduced CRM2 to enhance fee transparency. The goal was to help investors understand the fees they pay to their financial advisors. Despite CRM2, there is still a significant lack of transparency in fee reporting.
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Average MER (Management Expense Ratio): The article mentions that the average MER on an equity fund in Canada is 1.76%. However, it points out that this number doesn't break down the components of the MER fee, making it challenging for investors to understand the advisory fee's portion.
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Advisory Fees and Scaling: Advisory fees in Canada typically follow a decreasing scale based on the amount of money invested, known as the percentage of asset method. The average financial advisor fee is stated as 1.02% for a $1,000,000 portfolio, decreasing as assets increase.
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Different Service Offerings: The article introduces various service offerings, ranging from do-it-yourself (DIY) options with transaction-based costs to robo-advisors with fees between 0.33%-1.05% per year. Personalized services from financial advisors, planners, and portfolio managers come with diverse fee structures.
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Transparency and Accountability: The importance of fee transparency is highlighted, urging investors to be aware of what advisory fees should cost and to understand the services they are paying for. The article encourages investors to hold their advisors accountable by asking about fees, services covered, and who receives the compensation.
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Camber's Fee Structure: Camber, as an example, provides its fee structure based on the size of assets managed. The fees decrease as the size of assets increases, ranging from 0.95% to 0.30%, with a minimum account size requirement.
In conclusion, the article aims to educate readers on the intricacies of financial advisory fees in Canada, the challenges in understanding them, and the importance of transparency and accountability in the client-advisor relationship. If you have any questions or need further clarification, feel free to ask.
