Founded in 1972, it manages roughly $2.4 billion in advisory and non-advisory assets for about 2,000 households.
The firm works with individuals, families, business owners, institutions, and nonprofit organizations, with the aim of guiding clients through different life stages and financial transitions.
The firm’s core service is advisor-led wealth management. Here, financial advisors work with their clients to gather information on goals, time horizon, family responsibilities, and risk tolerance and then develop an ongoing financial plan and build and manage their clients’ portfolios.
Fragasso offers a broad menu of planning and advisory services that can be combined as needed, including personal retirement planning, education funding, business succession planning, multigenerational and estate planning, charitable and family gifting strategies, income-tax reduction ideas, insurance and long-term care cost analysis, and employer-sponsored retirement plan management.
While Fragasso’s team makes day-to-day investment decisions within agreed parameters, clients retain ownership and can set reasonable investment restrictions. Each account is also held at approved custodians, adding an additional layer of protection for clients.
For some relationships, it also provides advice-only programs, such as retirement plan consulting or guidance on assets held outside its usual custodians, in which Fragasso delivers recommendations and monitoring, while the client or plan sponsor implements trades.
What are the pros and cons of Fragasso Financial Advisors?
When choosing an advisory firm, it’s good to consider all the pros and cons before making a final decision.
While Fragasso Financial Advisors offers a traditional, advisor-led wealth management service, it also comes with layered costs and several disclosed conflicts that investors should weigh up.
Here are some of the key advantages and drawbacks to get you started as you do you researchon advisory firms.
Pros of Fragasso Financial Advisors:
Advisor-led, holistic service: Clients work directly with human advisors, not robo-advisors or an automated platform, who link discretionary portfolio management to broader planning around retirement, estate, tax, and other life goals.
Operates at a fiduciary standard: Fragasso formally acknowledges fiduciary status and commits to standards such as putting client interests ahead of its own, avoiding misleading statements about conflicts and fees, following a professional standard of care.
Structured investment approach and monitoring: Your portfolio is built using a diversified global allocation and are reviewed and rebalanced on an ongoing, typically quarterly basis.
Broad planning menu for different client types: Services span individuals, families, business owners and nonprofit institutions, with offerings such as business succession planning, multigenerational and estate planning, charitable giving strategies and employer retirement plan support.
No performance-based fees: It does not charge fees based on a share of investment gains, which reduces incentives to take excessive risk purely to increase compensation.
Cons of Fragasso Financial Advisors:
Layered cost structure: In addition to the advisory fee, clients also pay underlying product costs (such as mutual fund or annuity expenses) and custodian transaction or account fees, so total costs can be higher than the headline fee.
Minimum asset expectations: Individual households are generally expected to have at least $250,000 in investable assets and at least $500,000 in retirement plan assets, which may limit access for smaller investors and very small plans.
Multiple disclosed conflicts of interest: The firm notes incentives related to advisor loans repaid from advisory fees, dual registration of some advisors as brokers in non-program accounts, relationships with custodians, and compensation only when certain retirement assets are rolled into IRAs it manages.
Use of more complex investments: Portfolios can include structured notes, alternative investments, REITs, options and other specialized instruments, which may add complexity and risk beyond what some investors are comfortable with.
Fragasso Financial Advisors fees: How much does Fragasso Financial Advisors cost?
For its core discretionary wealth-management service, Fragasso charges a tiered, advisory fee based on assets under management (AUM).
This fee starts at 1.25% on the first $500,000 and drops to 0.45% on assets above $10 million.
For employers using its corporate planning and educational services, headline fees range from $7,500 per executive in the first year to flat seminar fees of $750 per session.
On top of those advisory charges, clients also pay third-party trading, fund and custodial costs.
Key costs for the managed-account service
These fees apply to Fragasso’s asset management services (“program” accounts) and are blended across tiers;
| AUM | Annual advisory fee |
|---|---|
| First $500,000 | 1.25% |
| Next $500,001–$1,000,000 | 1.00% |
| Next $1,000,001–$5,000,000 | 0.75% |
| Next $5,000,001–$10,000,000 | 0.50% |
| Amount over $10,000,000 | 0.45% |
These fees are billed quarterly in advance based on the prior quarter-end value and will not exceed $1,200 more than six months in advance.
Corporate planning and educational services fees
Fragasso uses three levels of fixed-fee schedules that are separate from portfolio management fees:
| Service level | Fee structure |
|---|---|
| Level 1: Executive officers & senior managers | $7,500 per person in the first year & $2,500 per person annually thereafter |
| Level 2: Executives & managers (workshops) | $525 per attendee |
| Level 3: General workforce employees (seminars) | $750 flat fee per 1.5-hour session or $375 flat fee per 45-minute session |
Retirement consulting services fees
For retirement plan consulting services, Fragasso can charge in several ways, as agreed with the plan sponsor:
Annual flat fee: Typically $50,000 per plan
Annual percentage of plan assets: Maximum fee of 1.35% of plan assets annually.
Tiered percentage of plan assets
One-time flat project fee
Actual fees are negotiable and may vary depending on plan size, complexity, and the services selected.
Other costs linked to this service
Trading fees: Transaction charges to the custodian for trades (e.g., mutual funds, ETFs, equities, options).
Fund and product expenses: Internal expenses of mutual funds, ETFs, annuities and alternative investments held in the portfolio.
Custodial/account fees: Certain IRA, retirement-plan, trust, wire and other account-level fees charged by custodians or other third parties.
Working with Fragasso on the services covered here means paying a tiered advisory fee of roughly 1.25%–0.45% on managed assets, depending on account size, and, where applicable, fixed corporate fees such as $7,500/$2,500 per executive or $750/$375 per seminar, plus standard trading, fund and custodial costs.
The true all-in cost therefore depends on asset level, use of corporate programs, portfolio construction and trading activity.
Source: Fragasso Financial Advisors Firm Brochure
What is Fragasso Financial Advisors minimum account size?
Fragasso generally works with clients and retirement plans that meet specific asset thresholds.
Fragasso minimum requirements by client type：
| Client type/service | Typical minimum disclosed |
|---|---|
| Individual/household investment advice | $250,000 in investable household assets |
| Employer retirement plan services | $500,000 in plan assets |
Advisors may grant exceptions to these minimums in some cases.
These minimums are typical rather than absolute, and some advisors may grant exceptions. This structure means Fragasso is aimed at households and retirement plans with assets in the hundreds of thousands of dollars or more, while smaller accounts may need to confirm on a case-by-case basis whether the firm will take them on.
Who should choose Fragasso Financial Advisors?
Fragasso is generally suited to investors who want an ongoing, advisor-led relationship that combines discretionary portfolio management with broad financial planning.
It can also serve employers that need retirement plan consulting or structured financial education for executives and employees.
Fragasso Financial Advisors works well for:
Clients wanting a dedicated, advisor-led relationship: Investors who prefer to delegate day-to-day investment decisions and receive ongoing advice, rather than using a robo-advisor or self-directed platform.
Households needing integrated planning and investments: Individuals and families who want investment management tied to retirement planning, education funding, estate and multigenerational planning, charitable and family gifting strategies, and tax-reduction ideas.
Business owners and organizations seeking retirement plan support: Employers that sponsor retirement plans and need help with investment menus, fiduciary education, benchmarking, and participant communication.
Employers looking for structured financial education programs: Companies that want formal planning and education for executives and staff.
Who might not benefit as much:
Smaller accounts and very small plans: Households with substantially less than the account minimums may find it harder to engage Fragasso’s core advisory services.
Cost-sensitive, do-it-yourself investors: Investors whose main priority is minimizing fees and who are comfortable choosing and monitoring their own low-cost funds.
Highly self-directed or active traders: Those who want to make frequent trades, pick individual securities themselves or avoid discretionary management.
Fragasso Financial Advisors: Is it secure?
Fragasso Financial Advisors is an SEC-registered investment advisor and is therefore generally considered secure for advisory relationships.
Client assets are not held by Fragasso itself but by qualified custodians such as Charles Schwab. These firms provide custody, trade execution, clearance and settlement, and clients receive official account statements directly from the custodian at least quarterly.
Fragasso is a registered investment adviser and has adopted a formal Code of Ethics that covers fiduciary obligations, confidential handling of client information, and controls around personal trading and conflicts of interest for its supervised persons.
The firm also explicitly highlights cybersecurity risk in its risk disclosures and stating that it has systems designed to reduce (but not eliminate) these risks.
Overall, measures aim to protect client accounts and data, but it’s important to remember they do not prevent normal market losses.
Fragasso Financial Advisors: Customer service
Fragasso’s customer service is centered on direct, advisor-led support, where each client works closely with a dedicated financial advisor.
Meetings may be conducted online or via phone, but office visits are available for clients who prefer in-person discussions.
The firm lists its main office near Pittsburgh, along with general contact options, including telephone, fax, and online inquiry forms.
Fragasso Financial Advisors: Mobile app
Fragasso provides its own dedicated mobile app, designed to give clients convenient access to key account information and their advisory team.
Clients can view account balances, performance and holdings, access monthly statements, receive firm updates such as blog posts and “The Advisor” magazine, and communicate directly with their financial advisor through the portal.
The app is available only to existing clients, and an online account must be set up before downloading to ensure secure access.
Is Fragasso Financial Advisors worth it?
Whether Fragasso Financial Advisors is worth it depends on the kind of relationship and level of service you are looking for.
For clients who value an ongoing relationship with a dedicated advisor, the wide range of services on offer, and are comfortable paying a tiered asset-based fee, this integrated approach may be just what they’re looking for.
By contrast, investors who mainly want to minimize fees, manage their own portfolios, or invest substantially below the typical asset thresholds may find Fragasso less compelling.
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