Item 5: Fees & Compensation
Compensation for Our Advisory Services
Asset Management:
Our fees will be outlined in the advisory agreement to be signed by the Client. This asset management
fee, which applies only to our firm’s fee, will not exceed 1.60% per year. Annualized fees are billed on a
pro-rata basis quarterly in advance based on the value of the account(s) on the last day of the
previous quarter. Fees will be deducted from client account(s). There may be immaterial differences
between the quarter end market value reflected on your custodial statement and the valuation as of
the last business day of the calendar quarter used for billing purposes, given timing and account
activity. Adjustments will be made for deposits and withdrawals during the quarter that are more
than $50,000. Our firm does not offer direct invoicing. If the advisory agreement is executed at any time
other than the first day of the calendar quarter, our fees will apply on a pro- rata basis, which means
that the advisory fee is payable in proportion to the number of days in the quarter for which the
individual is our client. Our advisory fee is negotiable, depending on individual Client circumstances
and account type. Further, it is important to note that our firm bills on cash and cash equivalents
unless specified in writing.
At our discretion, we may combine the account values of family members to determine the applicable
advisory fee. For example, we may combine account values for client and client’s minor children, joint
accounts with Client’s spouse, and other types of related accounts. Combining account values may
increase the asset total, which may result in the Client paying a reduced advisory fee based on the
available breakpoints in our fee schedule stated above.
Clients utilizing Third-Party Managers will be assessed an annual fee by the Third-Party Manager,
which is in addition to our firm’s advisory fees. Our firm will debit our fees as well as the Third-Party
Manager’s fees as disclosed in the executed advisory agreement between the client and our firm. The
maximum annual fee assessed by Third-Party Managers will not exceed 1.50%. The Third-Party
Managers we utilize will not directly charge clients a higher fee than they would have charged without
us introducing clients to them.
As part of this process, clients understand the following:
a) The client’s independent custodian sends statements at least quarterly showing the market values
for each security included in the Assets and all account disbursements, including the amount of
the advisory fees paid to our firm;
b) Clients will provide authorization permitting our firm to be directly paid by these terms. Our firm
will send an invoice directly to the custodian; and
c) If our firm sends a copy of our invoice to the client, a legend urging the comparison of information
provided in our statement with those from the qualified custodian will be included.
Financial Planning & Consulting:
Our firm charges on an hourly or flat fee basis for financial planning and consulting services. The total
estimated fee, as well as the ultimate fee charged, is based on the scope and complexity of our
engagement with the client. The maximum hourly fee to be charged will not exceed $350. Flat fees
will not exceed $200,000. Our firm requires a retainer of 50% of the ultimate financial planning or
ADV Part 2A – Firm Brochure Page 7 Sweet Financial Partners, LLC
consulting fee at the time of signing. The remainder of the fee will be directly billed to the client and
due within 30 days of a financial plan being delivered or consultation rendered. Our firm will not
require a retainer exceeding $1,200 when services cannot be rendered within 6 months.
Retirement Plan Consulting:
The specific fee to be assessed as well as the specific fee-paying arrangements will be outlined in the
consulting agreement to be signed by the Client. The retirement plan consulting fee will not exceed
0.75%. Fees are negotiable. Fee-paying arrangements are determined on a case-by-case basis.
Third-Party Manager
The Third-Party Manager fees are determined by the particular program(s) and manager(s) with
which the Client’s assets are invested and are calculated based upon a percentage of Client assets
under management, as applicable. Independent fixed income manager fees generally range from 0 -
0.90% annually, and independent equity manager fees generally range from 0.00% - 1.50% annually.
Client will note the total fee reflected on their custodial statement will represent the sum of our Asset
Management fee, and Third-Party Manager fee(s), accordingly. The Client should review such
statements to determine the total amount of fees associated with their requisite investments, and
Clients should review their asset management agreement with us to determine the asset management
fee the Client pays to us.
Assets Held Away from Our Firm
For assets held at a custodian that is not directly accessible by our firm ("Held Away Accounts"), we
may, but are not required to, manage these Held Away Accounts using the Pontera Order
Management System ("Pontera") that allows our firm to view and manage assets. Our annual fee for
investment management services for held away accounts will follow our portfolio management fee
schedule and termination instructions as noted in the Investment Management Agreement.
Our advisory fees will not be deducted directly from the accounts managed through the Pontera
Order Management System. Clients will give written authorization to deduct the fee from another
non-qualified account managed by our firm, in which case, the advisory fee would be deducted from
this account each quarter. Fees will be based upon your negotiated fee in accordance to our
portfolio management fee schedule and your Agreement. The client does not pay an additional fee
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