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. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth, LLC’s Form ADV Part 2A states “The Investment Advisory Agreement between Ashton Thomas and the client will continue in effect until terminated by either party by written notice in accordance with the terms of the Investment Advisory Agreement.” Ashton Thomas Private Wealth, LLC names four possible custodians in its brochure, with no single default: Fidelity Investments, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., Pershing Advisor Solutions, LLC, and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC. If you are custodied at Schwab, budget $50.00 per account, per Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.’s own current fee schedule. If you are custodied at Pershing, budget $150.00 per account, per Pershing Advisor Solutions LLC’s own current fee schedule. Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC / National Financial Services LLC’s own published fee schedule has no comparable line item for a full transfer-out, an honest gap rather than a confirmed $0. No primary-source public fee schedule was located for Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, an honest gap rather than a confirmed figure.
The published numbers
From Ashton Thomas Private Wealth, LLC’s own Ashton Thomas Private Wealth, LLC, “Form ADV Part 2A, Firm Brochure” (March 31, 2026), Item 5, Fees and Compensation, Section C (page 21): “The Investment Advisory Agreement between Ashton Thomas and the client will continue in effect until terminated by either party by written notice in accordance with the terms of the Investment Advisory Agreement. Upon termination, Ashton Thomas shall refund the pro-rated portion of the advanced advisory fee paid based upon the number of days remaining in the billing quarter.” The same brochure names its custodians (Item 12, Brokerage Practices, Section A (page 31)): “Clients may select either Fidelity Investments (“Fidelity”), Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”), Pershing Advisor Solutions, LLC (“Pershing”), Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC (“Goldman”) and other qualified custodians as approved by Ashton Thomas.” 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.” From Pershing Advisor Solutions LLC’s own Pershing Advisor Solutions LLC, “Schedule of Maximum Charges”: “Account Termination $150.00 per account.” Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC / National Financial Services LLC’s own Fidelity, “Brokerage Commission and Fee Schedule” contains no comparable line item for a full account transfer out; left as an honest gap rather than assumed to be $0. No primary-source public fee schedule was located for Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC; left as an honest gap rather than assumed to be $0.
| What | Figure |
|---|---|
| Ashton Thomas Private Wealth’s 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 Pershing | $150.00 per account (Pershing Advisor Solutions LLC’s own Pershing Advisor Solutions LLC, “Schedule of Maximum Charges”) |
| Full transfer-out at Fidelity | Honest gap: no comparable line item found |
| Full transfer-out at Goldman | 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) |
Compare your next step
Just comparing fees? Keep reading the fee guide.Optional next step
Explore an adviser match
Compare the services and the full fee before deciding whether to hire anyone.
- No fee to request a match
- No obligation to hire
Expect questions about your situation, your name, email and phone, and phone verification by text. A match is not guaranteed.
The form is run by Kapitalwise, our advisor-matching partner. Kapitalwise sends your details to advisers who pay for the introduction, so expect calls and texts. Clear Money Guide is paid when you submit the form, whether or not you ever hire anyone. This is free to you and there is no obligation to hire anyone.
Opens here. Nothing loads and nothing reaches Kapitalwise until you press the button.
How our partner relationships workCompare an adviser match before you decide
Ask about the full fee, what it covers and how the adviser is paid. A match is an introduction, not a recommendation from Clear Money Guide.
- Free matching service
- No obligation to hire
The matching service is run by WiserAdvisor, an independent advisor-matching company. It opens on their site, asks for your ZIP code and a few questions, and matches you with 2 to 3 vetted advisors. It is free to you. WiserAdvisor states the service is built for portfolios of $250,000 and above. By submitting, you consent to emails, phone calls and text messages from WiserAdvisor and up to three advisors, so expect to be contacted. Advisers pay for the introduction. Clear Money Guide is paid when you complete the form, whether or not you ever hire anyone. There is no obligation to hire anyone.
Continue to WiserAdvisorOpens on WiserAdvisor’s site in a new tab.
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 Ashton Thomas Private Wealth charges before you decide whether to leave? See the dollar breakdown from Ashton Thomas Private Wealth’s own fee disclosure.
Sources
- Ashton Thomas Private Wealth, LLC, “Form ADV Part 2A, Firm Brochure” (March 31, 2026): https://files.adviserinfo.sec.gov/IAPD/Content/Common/crd_iapd_Brochure.aspx?BRCHR_VRSN_ID=1037300
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth, LLC firm summary (CRD 153902): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/153902
- Charles Schwab, “Pricing Guide for Clients of Independent Investment Advisors” (July 2026): https://disclosures.schwab.com/SchwabDashboard/61256/REG23060SI.pdf
- Pershing Advisor Solutions LLC, “Schedule of Maximum Charges”: https://www.pershing.com/content/dam/pershing/documents/pdfs/disclosures/pas-schedule-of-maximum-charges.pdf
- Fidelity, “Brokerage Commission and Fee Schedule”: https://www.fidelity.com/bin-public/060_www_fidelity_com/documents/Brokerage_Commissions_Fee_Schedule.pdf
Methodology. This page was built September 28, 2026, drawing on Ashton Thomas Private Wealth’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.
Leaving a different firm? See the exit guides for all 189 firms, with the four steps every exit shares.