Succession planning

Despite the notable flows and valuations, some sellers get locked into an ill-fitting parent firm without many options for getting away.

For many firms, looming advisor retirements and the need to retain client households through the next generations will create difficult problems.

The choice of brokerage or RIA firm involves any number of factors and a range of timelines. Here's what the numbers and experts suggest are the main drivers.

Retirement savings can stretch further in some states than others, but retirees don't appear to care much about that fact, data shows.

Affiliated Advisors aims to recruit, retain and advance wealth management professionals with resources aimed at three different career stages.

Chief Operating Officer Dennis Moore is taking on the role of interim chief as the profession mourned the loss of a dedicated leader.

The model that RIAs use to pay their less-tenured professionals is morphing and looming larger in their future plans and present-day valuations, experts say.

With 37% of financial advisors expecting to retire within the next decade, rookies are still failing at a 70% clip within their first five years, according to a new Cerulli study.

The answer depends first and foremost on how much time financial advisors have for an emotionally and technically challenging process, experts said.

The asset sales carry complexity requiring careful thought and expert advice, but they could prove beneficial to some wirehouse breakaways or RIA succession plans.