Guides › Switching Financial Advisors
Updated September 28, 2026. Quick answer: you open an account at the receiving firm and sign the transfer form there; the new firm pulls the account through ACATS. Fragasso Financial Advisors, Inc.’s Form ADV Part 2A states “You may terminate the agreement for services with us at any time with written notice.” Fragasso Financial Advisors, Inc. names two possible custodians in its brochure, with no single default: Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., and Interactive Brokers LLC. If you are custodied at Schwab, budget $50.00 per account, per Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.’s own current fee schedule. No primary-source public fee schedule was located for Interactive Brokers LLC, an honest gap rather than a confirmed figure.
The published numbers
From Fragasso Financial Advisors, Inc.’s own Fragasso Financial Advisors, Inc., “Form ADV Part 2A Brochure” (July 8, 2026), Item 5, Fees and Compensation, “Asset Management Services” subsection (page 8): “You may terminate the agreement for services with us at any time with written notice. Upon termination, any prepaid, unearned fees will be refunded.” The same brochure names its custodians (Item 12, Brokerage Practices, “Charles Schwab” and “Interactive Brokers” subsections (pages 17-18)): “FFA has entered into a relationship with Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”). In certain limited situations as an accommodation to client, FFA may permit the use of Interactive Brokers LLC (“IB”) as a custodian instead of Schwab.” From Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.’s own Charles Schwab, “Pricing Guide for Clients of Independent Investment Advisors” (July 2026): “Full transfer (out) of assets: $50 per account.” No primary-source public fee schedule was located for Interactive Brokers LLC; left as an honest gap rather than assumed to be $0.
| What | Figure |
|---|---|
| Fragasso Financial Advisors’ own exit charge | $0.00 extra: pro-rated refund of any prepaid fee (Form ADV) |
| Full transfer-out at Schwab | $50.00 per account (Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.’s own Charles Schwab, “Pricing Guide for Clients of Independent Investment Advisors” (July 2026)) |
| Full transfer-out at Interactive Brokers | Honest gap: no comparable line item found |
| ACATS validation and completion window | 1 day to validate, 3 days to complete under FINRA Rule 11870 (measured in business days) |
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Source: WiserAdvisor’s service descriptionThe sequence
1. Pull a current statement for every account, showing the exact registration, account numbers and complete holdings list. 2. Check the holdings for anything that will not move. Ask the receiving firm directly: “Can you hold every position on this statement?” Anything they cannot hold has to be sold, and in a taxable account that is a realised gain in the year you switch: the categories that commonly do not transfer. 3. Open the receiving account and sign the transfer form there. Under FINRA Rule 11870 the delivering firm then has one business day to validate and three business days after validation to complete. 4. Send a dated termination letter for the record: the generator writes it, and confirm in writing that billing has stopped.
Two things to get right
Cost basis. Under IRC §6045A the delivering broker must furnish a transfer statement carrying basis for covered securities within 15 days of the transfer. Keep your final statements anyway, and check the first statement at the new firm for positions showing a missing or zero basis. Retirement accounts move as a direct transfer, trustee to trustee, not as a distribution to you. Why that distinction matters. Whether a transfer fee is worth paying at all is a question of what you are moving to: our benchmark of published adviser fee schedules puts the weighted median annual cost near $2,000 to $2,500 on $250,000: the benchmark. The general mechanics: switching financial advisors.
Want to know what Fragasso Financial Advisors charges before you decide whether to leave? See the dollar breakdown from Fragasso Financial Advisors’ own fee disclosure.
Sources
- Fragasso Financial Advisors, Inc., “Form ADV Part 2A Brochure” (July 8, 2026): https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=1051081
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Fragasso Financial Advisors, Inc. firm summary (CRD 123255): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/123255
- Charles Schwab, “Pricing Guide for Clients of Independent Investment Advisors” (July 2026): https://disclosures.schwab.com/SchwabDashboard/61256/REG23060SI.pdf
Methodology. This page was built September 28, 2026, drawing on Fragasso Financial Advisors’s own Form ADV/wrap-fee brochure/fee schedule plus each named custodian’s own published fee schedule, with sources linked inline; any figure we could not independently confirm this session on a firm-owned or custodian-owned document is named as an honest gap above rather than presented as verified. Nothing here is personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. See our Editorial Policy, Corrections, Affiliate Disclosure, and Disclaimer.
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