16 Helpful Questions to Ask Your Financial Advisor
There’s a season in life where everything feels more connected. Your kids are moving forward, your parents may need more support, and your career is in full stride. The financial decisions around you suddenly feel bigger and more complex than they used to.
In this stage, your relationship with your advisor matters. And while many advisors are good, caring professionals, the industry hasn’t always made things clear or consistent. Disclosures can be confusing, standards vary widely, and a few bad actors have created uncertainty that affects everyone.
Because of that, many families don’t know the answers to key questions about their advisor. Not because they should have known, but because the system hasn’t always encouraged transparency.
These 16 questions are simply meant to create clarity. They can help you understand the relationship you already have, strengthen it if it’s strong, or highlight areas where more alignment might help.
No pressure. No assumptions. Just clarity.
1. Do you feel clear on how your advisor is compensated and who pays them?
Many people aren’t, often because compensation structures are rarely explained cleanly.
You might consider:
- What fees you pay directly
- What fees are built into products
- Whether commissions or bonuses exist
- Whether any compensation isn’t visible on statements
Clarity benefit: Understanding compensation helps you see how incentives line up.
2. Are you familiar with your advisor’s qualifications and training?
The industry uses many titles, and they often mean different things.
You might consider:
- Whether they hold the CFP® designation
- How long they’ve been practicing
- What ongoing education they complete
- Whether they work with families similar to yours
Clarity benefit: Credentials help you understand the depth of their expertise.
3. Do you know whether your advisor has had any disciplinary actions or complaints?
Many people don’t know where to look, and not all advisors bring this up.
You might consider:
- Whether any complaints or actions exist
- Whether anything is currently under review
- Where to check independently
Clarity benefit: It strengthens trust in the relationship.
4. Do you know if your advisor is independent or connected to in-house products?
Many advisors work within firms that create their own products. This isn’t automatically negative, but transparency matters.
You might consider:
- Whether their firm manufactures investment or insurance products
- Whether preferred lists or incentives exist
- Whether they can choose freely from the marketplace
Clarity benefit: It helps you understand the range of solutions available to you.
5. Do you know where your money is held and who the custodian is?
Many families aren’t aware because account access looks seamless on the surface.
You might consider:
- Which institution actually safeguards your accounts
- How to view them independently
- What protections are in place
Clarity benefit: It adds security and peace of mind.
6. Do you have a sense of what ongoing service looks like throughout the year?
Annual reviews are still common, even when life is changing.
You might consider:
- What’s reviewed and when
- How taxes, insurance, estate, and cash flow are monitored
- What work happens behind the scenes
- Whether a structured planning process exists
Clarity benefit: It aligns expectations with real support.
7. Do you know how your advisor defines client success?
Different firms view success differently.
You might consider:
- How progress is measured
- What outcomes clients often experience
- What matters most in your stage of life
Clarity benefit: It reveals their philosophy and approach.
8. Do you know how your advisor coordinates tax, investments, insurance, and estate planning?
Many firms keep these areas separate, even though your life isn’t.
You might consider:
- Whether everything is integrated
- Whether they collaborate with your accountant and lawyer
- How it’s all documented
Clarity benefit: Integration helps reduce gaps and surprises.
9. Do you know what happens if your advisor is unavailable?
Continuity varies widely across the industry.
You might consider:
- Who steps in
- Whether the team is cross-trained
- Whether a written continuity plan exists
- Their long-term succession planning
Clarity benefit: It ensures stability in any circumstance.
10. Do you know who your advisor typically works with?
Many advisors aim to serve broadly because that’s how the industry evolved.
You might consider:
- Whether they specialize in families like yours
- Whether they handle complexity similar to yours
- Whether they’re clear about who they’re not built for
Clarity benefit: It helps you understand their strengths.
11. Are you aware of your total fees in actual dollars, not just percentages?
Fee disclosure is often spread across multiple documents and layers.
You might consider:
- Your total annual cost
- Product-related fees
- How fees scale with assets
- Any extra charges
Clarity benefit: It brings your full financial picture into focus.
12. Do you feel clear on your advisor’s investment philosophy?
Many clients have never had this explained plainly.
You might consider:
- The principles guiding their decisions
- Whether strategies are active, passive, or blended
- How risk is managed
- Who manages the money day to day
Clarity benefit: A clear philosophy creates calm during volatile periods.
13. Do you know how to view independent reporting directly from the custodian?
Many people rely entirely on advisor-generated reports without realizing they can see the source data themselves.
You might consider:
- Whether you have direct online access
- How often custodian data is updated
- How advisor reporting complements that data
- What you can view independently
Clarity benefit: Independent access increases transparency and confidence.
14. Do you have a clear sense of how and when communication happens?
Communication patterns differ widely between firms.
You might consider:
- How often you’ll hear from them
- What prompts outreach
- How they handle communication during volatility
- How to reach their team
Clarity benefit: It supports a more aligned, confident relationship.
15. Are you aware of any public reviews or client feedback?
Some advisors collect reviews, some don’t.
You might consider:
- Google reviews
- Case studies or testimonials
- Experiences from families like yours
Clarity benefit: Real experiences add perspective.
16. Do you know how many client households your advisor serves?
Capacity varies widely across the industry.
You might consider:
- How many families they work with
- How many new clients they take each year
- How they maintain service quality
Clarity benefit: It helps you understand their availability and focus.
Why These Questions Matter
These questions aren’t about criticism or comparison. They’re not meant to catch anyone off guard. And they’re not based on assuming the worst.
They exist because:
- Many advisors genuinely care about their clients
- The industry hasn’t always been transparent or consistent
- A few bad actors created distrust that affects everyone
- Families today face more complexity and less margin for error
- Clarity leads to calmer, more confident decisions
This checklist helps bring your advisory relationship into focus, whether that means deepening the one you have or exploring one that aligns more closely with the life you’re living now.
Clarity creates calm.
Calm creates confidence.
Confidence inspires action.
- Shea Sanche, CEO
About Shea Sanche
Shea Sanche, CFP®, is the founder of Insight Planning Wealth Management and has worked as a financial advisor since 1999. He specializes in financial planning, retirement strategy, and decision frameworks for Canadian families and business owners, with a focus on simplifying complex financial decisions and long-term wealth planning.
He is the creator of Insight 360 OS, a decision and life-design system built to help clients navigate financial complexity, uncertainty, and major life transitions.
Common Questions About This Topic
How do financial advisors in Canada get paid?
Common models include AUM fees, fee-for-service, commissions, or blended arrangements. What matters is understanding incentives and whether you receive coordination beyond investments.
What is a normal advisor fee in Canada?
Fees vary by service and complexity. Instead of comparing a single percentage, evaluate what the fee includes: planning outputs, coordination, accountability, and improved net outcomes.
Are financial advisors worth it in Canada?
They can be when the relationship coordinates investments, tax, estate, and decisions as a system. They are less valuable when the service is limited to reporting and portfolio-only management.