Most advisors were built for accumulation. We built a practice for what comes next: making what you saved last 30 years or more.
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You did everything right. Why does retirement still feel different?
You spent 35 years building your wealth. Maxed the 401(k). Stayed the course through 2008 and 2020. That advice was correct — for the accumulation phase.
The distribution phase has different rules. Sequence risk. Tax sequencing across account types. Longevity. The advisor who helped you build it was trained for the era you just left.
If something feels off about your current plan, you're not imagining it.
Your advisor's business is built for the era you just left.
Most financial advisors in America were trained, paid, and equipped for one job: helping you accumulate. The AUM fee model — typically 1% of assets managed — rewards gathering assets and holding onto them. It does not reward the actual work of retirement planning.
Tax sequencing. Social Security timing. Distribution strategies that account for sequence risk. Long-term care planning. Estate coordination. That's the work that determines whether your retirement holds up. The AUM model rewards none of it.
You end up with a portfolio manager at the moment you need a retirement planner.
We built a business that pays us to plan.
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 | Roughly half the industry average.¹ Because the monthly membership fee of $400 overs the advisory work; the management fee of 0.48 percent is purely for execution. | |
 | We are fiduciaries on every recommendation, always. Not fee-based. Not "when convenient." Always. |
Earned, not claimed.
Retirement planning, not a portfolio review with planning bolted on. Income, tax, investment, and estate planning each get a dedicated quarter. Nothing falls through the cracks.
Equities for growth. A bond ladder for income. Individual bonds built bond-by-bond with known coupons and maturity dates — 5–7 years of income not tied to market swings. Built on years running an institutional fixed-income desk.
Family firm. Estate work included. Ed Mahaffy’s son Will joined the practice. ClientFirst prepares wills and estate plans as part of your retirement plan; legal execution coordinates with your attorney, or one we help you find.
30+ years across three market crises. 1987. 2000–2002. 2008. Conservative allocations and proactive communication were already in place. Clients didn't panic because they didn't need to.
See What Our Clients Are Saying
These statements are from current clients and may not be representative of the experience of other clients and do not guarantee future performance or success; no compensation was exchanged for these recognitions. ClientFirst Wealth Management LLC is not aware of any material conflicts of interest between this client and the firm.
Get a second opinion on your retirement plan.
The Retirement Checkpoint involves two meetings. Completely free. We review your current plan, build a personalized gap analysis, and walk through the findings together. The findings are yours whether or not you decide to work with us.