Ares Financial Consulting LLC

Item 5: Fees and Compensation

     DESCRIPTION
     AresFC primarily charges flat dollar fees for its services. In some cases, clients may be charged
     hourly for limited scope services. Some asset-based fee arrangements exist under a Corporate
     Retirement Consulting service agreement or an Investment-Only service agreement. We do
     NOT accept transaction-based compensation for the sale of securities or other investment
     products, including asset-based sales charges or service fees from the sale of mutual funds.
     All Fees are NEGOTIABLE.

     FEE BILLING
     AresFC does not have a minimum fee policy. Some legacy client relationships may exist where
     the fees are lower than currently being charged to new clients.
     Limited Scope Services
     AresFC offers two fee options for limited scope work – hourly and fixed fee. The hourly rate is
     generally $500 per hour and is billed monthly for services performed in the prior month. A
     fixed fee arrangement would depend on the scope of the work, generally estimated to be
     anticipated number of hours times the hourly rate. If the fixed rate is over $2000, fees are
     billed 50% in advance, with the balance due upon delivery. At no time will the advance
     payment be held for six months or more if it exceeds $500. The hourly rate is negotiable and
     may be lower than the stated rate (minimum of $150/hr.), depending on the advisor’s
     experience level.
     Comprehensive Services
     AresFC offers customized value-based pricing based on the scope of services being rendered
     (see Item 4, Types of Advisory Services for a description of the various services). AresFC does
     not base its fees on time but on our own professional assessment of the intensity of client
     servicing efforts, the responsibility AresFC is assuming, our expertise and training, the
     complexity of the services, and the results AresFC is working to achieve. AresFC seeks to obtain
     outstanding results for clients for a fee that the client will feel fairly values the services being
     provided. Comprehensive Services fees are either billed quarterly or monthly, in arrears, and
     clients can terminate the arrangement at any time.
     Corporate Retirement Plan Consulting
     AresFC customizes services to the needs of the client and thus fees may greatly vary. Generally,
     there are two components to the fee - a base fee and a per/participant fee. The base fee starts
     at $250/quarter but may be greater if the client requires extensive administrative support and
     would be calculated at the firm’s hourly rate (see Project Work above). The participant fee
     starts at $25/quarter but may be reduced if less in-person service is necessary (for example,
     web-based interaction with participants). On new plans, an additional fee of $1500 in the first
     year will apply to cover the costs of plan design and the vendor due diligence process. This fee
     will be invoiced in the first quarter and is subject to the same termination rules as the ongoing

13              Ares Financial Consulting LLC         Form ADV Part 2A                   February 26, 2026

     quarterly fees. This fee may be waived or reduced if either or both of those initial services are
     not necessary. Fixed fees are generally invoiced quarterly in arrears.
     If asset-based pricing is being used, a tiered fee schedule is used as follows:
            0.75% on first $500,000
            0.50% on next $500,000
            0.25% above $1,000,000
     Asset-based fees are calculated in arrears.
     Investment-Only Services

     Third Party Money Managers:

     Fees associated with third party managers will vary and will be fully disclosed to you before any
     manager is retained on your behalf. Fees will be described in detail in your investment advisory
     agreement and in the manager’s ADV Disclosure Brochure.

     If AresFC determines that the use of a third-party manager is in your best interest, we will
     recommend one of the following managers based on the client’s specific circumstances.

     Betterment Platform:
     AresFC receives a fee equal to 30 basis points (0.30%) of the client account(s) assets value,
     deducted quarterly in arrears from the client account(s).
     In addition, clients are responsible for paying Betterment’s asset-based wrap fee on amounts
     invested in the “Betterment for Advisors” platform. That wrap fee is tiered based on the
     aggregate balance of all AresFC client accounts at Betterment (not including funds held in
     Betterment Everyday Cash Reserve).
     The wrap fee currently ranges from 0.12% to 0.20%, charged quarterly in arrears.
     The services included for the wrap fee charged include advisory services, custody of assets,
     execution and clearing of transactions, and account reporting. Betterment collects wrap fees
     directly from Clients pursuant to the terms of the sub-advisory agreement between Betterment
     and each Client. Clients utilizing the Betterment for Advisors platform may pay a higher
     aggregate fee than if the advisory, custodial, trade execution, and other services were
     purchased separately.
     Additional information regarding Betterment’s fees and compensation information is described
     in Betterment’s Form ADV Part 2A: https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/149117.

     American Funds Platform:
     The portfolio’s assets will be held in the American Funds F-2 share account(s) at Capital Bank
     and Trust Company (CB&T), who serves as custodian. AresFC offers this service primarily for
     legacy clients, of investment adviser representatives who join AresFC, who already have
     accounts at CB&T and have previously paid an up-front fee to purchase mutual funds prior to
     signing up with AresFC. AresFC receives a fee equal to 25 basis points (0.25%) of the account(s)
...

Item 7: Types of Clients

     DESCRIPTION
     AresFC generally provides advice to individuals, pension and profit-sharing plans, trusts,
     estates, or charitable organizations, corporations, and other business entities. Client
     relationships vary in scope and length of service.

     ACCOUNT MINIMUMS
     AresFC does not have a minimum account size.