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Updated July 22, 2026. Quick answer (2026): A flat fee retirement planner in Montara should quote the planning cost in annual dollars before you compare it with an AUM percentage. Use this guide to sanity-check flat annual, retainer, hourly/project, and portfolio-based quotes before you book an intro call.
This page is for Montara, Moss Beach, Half Moon Bay, Pacifica, El Granada, San Mateo County Coastside, and nearby Peninsula households comparing retirement planning proposals in written annual dollars. For example, 1.00% on $1,000,000 is $10,000/year before fund, platform, overlay, or trading costs. Use it to compare flat annual, retainer, hourly/project, and AUM quotes — and to confirm planning scope: employer equity, old employer plans, taxable investments, home equity, charitable giving, Social Security timing, Medicare/IRMAA, Roth conversions, RMDs, and withdrawal order — before you book an intro call.
This page is not a directory or ranking of advisors; it is a fee-first checklist for comparing written proposals.
Nearby guides
- Coastside Peninsula hub
- San Mateo County hub
- SF Peninsula hub
- North Peninsula hub
- West Peninsula hub
- Bay Area hub
- California hub
- Half Moon Bay
- Pacifica
- Daly City
- South San Francisco
- San Bruno
- Millbrae
- Brisbane
- San Mateo
- Woodside
- Portola Valley
Fast tools
- Financial Advisor Fee Calculator — compare AUM, flat annual, retainer, hourly, and project quotes in dollars.
- Flat Fee vs AUM Break-Even Calculator — see where a flat quote starts to beat a percentage quote.
- Financial Advisor Fee Comparison — compare fee models, scope, conflicts, and first-year cost.
- Retirement Tax Windows — pressure-test Roth conversions, RMDs, Medicare/IRMAA, and taxable withdrawals.
- RSUs: Sell-to-Cover vs Net Shares — clarify equity-comp withholding before advisor calls.
Flat fee retirement planner Montara: what ‘flat fee only’ usually means
- Flat annual fee: one stated yearly dollar amount for an agreed planning scope, meetings, written deliverables, and support rules.
- Project or hourly fee: a fixed project quote or hourly cap for a narrower decision, such as a rollover review, retirement-income checkup, Medicare/IRMAA second opinion, equity-comp review, pension review, business-owner review, or tax-aware withdrawal plan.
- Not AUM-only: compare the flat quote against any portfolio-percentage quote in dollars, then confirm fiduciary status, compensation, implementation help, and ongoing support rules.
Montara fee sanity-check table
| Advisor quote | Example cost in dollars | What to confirm before an intro call |
|---|---|---|
| Flat annual planning | $6,000–$12,000/year | Meetings, written deliverables, renewal terms, implementation help, tax coordination, and what becomes hourly. |
| Monthly retainer | $500–$1,000/month, or $6,000–$12,000/year | Service calendar, response time, cancellation terms, and whether investment management is included. |
| Hourly or project planning | $300–$500/hour, or $2,000–$7,500+ per project | Not-to-exceed cap, written deliverable, timeline, and whether follow-up questions are included. |
| AUM comparison | 0.75% on $1,250,000 = $9,375/year; 1.00% = $12,500/year | Breakpoints, fund/platform costs, overlay fees, tax work, and whether planning scope is comparable. |
Calculator line: Run the same quote through the Financial Advisor Fee Calculator, then compare percentage-based proposals with the Flat Fee vs AUM Break-Even Calculator.
Retirement planner Montara: what to compare before an intro call
- Total first-year cost: ask for planning, portfolio management, fund, platform, hourly, referral, and product costs in dollars.
- Scope: confirm whether retirement income, Social Security, Medicare/IRMAA, Roth conversions, RMDs, taxable withdrawals, pensions, employer equity, taxable brokerage sales, business-owner planning, real estate, charitable giving, estate basics, and CPA coordination are included.
- Deliverables: ask whether you receive a written plan, action list, investment policy, tax-aware withdrawal map, equity-comp checklist, pension decision tree, home-equity scenario, or only verbal guidance.
- When to talk to an advisor: use an intro call when a rollover, pension decision, equity vest, Roth conversion window, concentrated stock sale, retirement-date change, home sale, or large tax decision could change the plan.
Montara planning prompts
- If coastal property, insurance, a remodel, a second home, downsizing, or a move inland could affect retirement cash flow, ask for written housing, insurance, liquidity, property-tax, and California tax assumptions.
- If pensions, old employer plans, public-sector benefits, 403(b), 457, inherited accounts, or rollover decisions matter, ask how survivor benefits, withholding, account location, and portfolio withdrawals are modeled together.
- If RSUs, ESPP shares, options, inherited accounts, low-basis stock, or taxable brokerage sales are part of the plan, ask what tax-aware selling, diversification, charitable-giving, and cash-reserve map is included before trades.
- If retirement is near, ask how Social Security timing, Medicare/IRMAA, Roth-conversion windows, RMDs, taxable withdrawals, charitable giving, and California taxable income are shown year by year.
5 copy/paste questions to ask a Montara retirement planner
- What is my all-in first-year cost in dollars, including planning, investment management, funds, platform costs, hourly work, and any product compensation?
- Are you acting as a fiduciary for the entire relationship, including rollover, insurance, annuity, and investment recommendations?
- What written deliverables will I receive, and what becomes out-of-scope or hourly after the first year?
- How will you coordinate taxes, retirement-income timing, Roth conversions, Medicare/IRMAA, RMDs, taxable withdrawals, employer equity, and home-equity decisions?
- How would your recommendation change if I used a flat annual, hourly/project, retainer, or AUM arrangement?
Methodology
- We convert advisor quotes into annual dollars so flat fees, retainers, hourly/project work, and AUM percentages can be compared side by side.
- We do not rank advisors, sell directory placement, publish fake reviews, or claim that one fee model is best for every household.
- This page was materially reviewed on June 17, 2026. Fee examples are educational ranges, not personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice.
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