Financial Advisor for Inheritance: How to Compare Your Options

The short answer. A financial adviser can help after an inheritance, but the right kind of help depends on what you are legally entitled to act on — not on how much money is involved. Being named executor in a will does not by itself let you act. That authority comes from the court's letters of appointment, or from the institution accepting the documents it requires.

What needs attention now is narrow: keep records safe, and keep estate property separate from your own money. Choosing an adviser, opening accounts, and moving investments can wait.

The first step is official and free: write down who owns the asset and what proves it — court letters, a beneficiary designation, a deed, a trust. If you are already considering a person or firm, look them up with the search tool for investment professionals at Investor.gov and read their Form CRS relationship summary. Bring in an estate or probate attorney licensed in the decedent's state before you move estate property if authority, creditors, solvency, or the meaning of a will or trust is unsettled — and a qualified tax professional before any distribution or account decision that carries a tax consequence.

What decides which kind of help you need:

• Your role — beneficiary receiving an asset directly, person named as executor in a will, personal representative the court has appointed, trustee, joint owner, or surviving spouse claiming under a plan or policy.
• How the asset transfers — probate estate, trust, joint title, transfer-on-death registration, or beneficiary designation.
• The account or asset type, and the plan, policy, or custodian that holds it.
• The state where the person who died lived, and where any real property sits.
• The date of death and tax year, and whether a court or the institution holding the asset has recognized your authority.

Probate, inherited retirement-account distributions, state estate or inheritance tax, an insolvent estate, and disagreements among heirs apply only in some estates. A few elections do carry real deadlines, and what waiting can and cannot cost you lists them and names who sets each one. If the estate has debts, note that family members are generally not personally responsible for paying them from their own money — the exceptions are short and specific.

If what you need right now is support rather than paperwork, grief resources is where that lives.

Which kind of help fits your situation

There are five realistic paths, and one of them is not hiring anyone yet. This card is an Estate Made Clear decision aid; it is the only place on this page where all five paths appear together.

Path	Fits when	Not yet when	First check
No provider yet	Your role, authority, beneficiary status, estate obligations, or tax facts are still unresolved, or nothing irreversible is pending.	An official deadline is actually attached to something — a court date, a plan or insurer's stated claim window, a filing date.	Ask the probate court clerk in the county where the person who died lived what the estate's filing path is, and ask each institution what documents it needs.
One-time or project advice	A single decision is pending — a withdrawal sequence, a cash-flow plan, a second opinion — and the asset is already in your own name.	You cannot yet say what the decision is, or the asset is still estate or trust property.	Ask whether the professional will work on a written flat or hourly engagement without managing your assets.
Ongoing planning	The inheritance changes several connected parts of your life and you want recurring meetings and follow-through.	You want one answer rather than a relationship, or you are still in the first weeks and the paperwork itself is the whole job right now.	Read the engagement agreement, the annual price, what is included, and how you cancel.
Investment management	You want a portfolio built, monitored, and rebalanced, and you accept a recurring fee for it.	The assets are not yet titled in your name, or you have not confirmed the tax treatment of moving them.	Confirm the fee basis, the minimum, and whether assets must be transferred to the provider.
Candidate matching service	You want a short list of advisers assembled quickly and you understand who pays the service.	You want a neutral ranking or an endorsement. A match is an introduction.	Read the referral disclosure shown to you, then verify each adviser independently.

These paths map onto the comparison below: "no provider yet" and each named service have their own row, and project advice or ongoing planning is bought either through independent search and direct hire or through one of the named memberships.

If that card answered your question, you can stop there. The rest of this page is reference for when you need it: what you are allowed to act on if you are administering the estate, what each option actually costs if you are comparing, and how to check anyone before you hire them. You do not need to read it in order, and most people will need only one part of it.

On this page

• Which kind of help fits your situation
• Confirm what you are allowed to act on
  • If the estate has debts: who actually owes them
  • If you are the personal representative
  • What waiting can and cannot cost you
  • Who holds authority over what
• Compare the advice paths side by side
  • Choose the advice model, not just the credential
  • How these options were selected
  • Cost, minimum, and how the engagement ends
  • Access, custody, and what each option leaves unresolved
  • What was considered and not included
  • What a fee looks like in dollars
• What each option is actually like
  • Independent search and direct hire
  • SmartAsset SmartAdvisor
  • Facet
  • Vanguard advice services
  • Betterment Premium
  • No provider yet
• Verify a professional before you hire or transfer
  • Which regulator holds the record
  • Unsolicited offers after a probate filing
  • What to bring to a first conversation
• Choosing the right kind of help
• When financial advice is not enough
• Questions people ask after an inheritance

Confirm what you are allowed to act on

Almost every wrong turn here comes from acting on money that is not yet yours to act on. Work through the gates in order; each one changes which professional you need, and whether you need one at all.

Now. Write your role down plainly: beneficiary receiving an asset directly, person named as executor in a will, personal representative the court has actually appointed, trustee, joint owner, or surviving spouse claiming under a plan or policy. Then identify how each asset transfers. Assets with a living beneficiary, a payable-on-death or transfer-on-death registration, or surviving joint ownership generally pass outside the will and outside probate; what remains — titled in the name of the person who died, with no beneficiary — is what the will and the court address. A will does not generally override a beneficiary designation on a retirement account or life-insurance policy. Meanwhile, keep estate property separate from your own money, keep the statements and death certificates, and do not spend or invest anything you cannot document as yours. If you are administering the estate, the executor checklist covers the duties that sit outside financial advice.

Soon. Name the questions that actually need a professional. Retirement accounts are the most common trigger: distribution options and timing depend on the plan or IRA document, the beneficiary category, the date of death, and the tax year, and the inherited IRA or 401(k) rules page covers those mechanics. Real property carries its own decision, including whether property in another state needs an ancillary process there; if a house is the main asset, start with what to do with an inherited house. Sort your questions into legal, tax, and financial-planning, then interview candidates for the last group only.

Later. Transfers, account openings, and investment decisions come after ownership, authority, tax treatment, and estate obligations are clear. Only if applicable: probate or a simplified state procedure, federal or state estate tax, state inheritance tax, an insolvent estate, a business interest, or a contested matter. Most states offer a small-estate affidavit or a simplified administration with a dollar threshold that varies widely between states and that counts different assets in different states, so the clerk's answer may be that no formal administration is needed at all; the small estate affidavit guide covers who qualifies, and how probate works covers the full process where it does apply.

If the estate has debts: who actually owes them

This is a federal consumer-protection layer with a short list of state-law exceptions, and it is the point most often misunderstood by the people it protects. It matters here because an inheritance is what remains after the estate's valid debts are paid: debts can reduce what you receive without ever making you personally responsible for paying them.

According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a person's debts are generally paid out of the money and property left in their estate. If the estate cannot pay and no one else shared legal responsibility, the debt usually goes unpaid. Survivors, including spouses, are not typically responsible for repaying a deceased person's debt from their own money unless one of these applies:

• You co-signed the loan or the credit account.
• You were a joint account holder. Being an authorized user on someone else's credit card is not the same thing and does not make you liable.
• You are a surviving spouse and your state's law requires spouses to pay a particular type of debt.
• You are the executor or administrator and your state's law requires you to pay an outstanding bill out of property that the surviving and deceased spouses owned jointly.
• You are a surviving spouse in a community property state whose law requires surviving spouses to use jointly held property to pay a deceased spouse's debts. The CFPB names these states as Alaska (where a special agreement is signed), Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. Verified against CFPB guidance August 5, 2026; state law can change, and how a rule applies depends on the facts.

If you are a surviving spouse, an executor, or an administrator, a debt collector may contact you to discuss debts and payments from the estate. It is not legal for a collector to state or imply that you are personally responsible for paying from your own assets unless one of the exceptions above actually applies to you, and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits harassment. If that happens, you can submit a complaint to the CFPB. None of this is a determination about your estate; whether an exception applies is a legal question for an attorney licensed in the decedent's state.

If you are the personal representative

This section is for the person administering the estate. If you are receiving an inheritance and hold no fiduciary role, it does not apply to you.

Your duty runs to everyone with an interest in the estate — the beneficiaries and the creditors — not to your own preferences and not to your own share. Personal exposure attaches in a small number of predictable places: distributing to beneficiaries before the creditor claim period closes or before taxes are settled; mixing estate money with your own; buying estate property from the estate or otherwise dealing with yourself; and failing to keep records or to account for what you did.

Here is the clearest federal example. Under the federal priority statute, a fiduciary who pays other claims of an estate ahead of a claim of the United States may be personally liable for the government's unpaid claim to the extent of that payment. IRS Publication 559 adds that income tax liabilities need not be formally assessed for a personal representative to be liable, if the personal representative was aware or should have been aware that they existed. State law adds its own version of the same idea, and the details are set by the state where the person who died lived.

There is also a conflict that almost nobody names out loud: most personal representatives are also beneficiaries. That is ordinary and it is not wrongdoing. It is still a conflict, because the duty runs to every interested person, including the ones whose share a decision reduces. It is a reason to document decisions and to get advice before a distribution, not a reason to feel accused. The executor checklist covers the operational duties; the escalation triggers are in when financial advice is not enough.

What waiting can and cannot cost you

Most of what this page describes can wait. A few elections cannot, and it is worth a short conversation to find out whether any of them apply to you before you decide to sit still.

Window	Layer	What it decides	Can it be extended?	Where to find the period that applies to you
Qualified disclaimer — refusing an inheritance so it passes to whoever is next in line	Federal, 26 U.S.C. § 2518	A written, irrevocable refusal must reach the transferor, their legal representative, or the holder of legal title no later than 9 months after the transfer that created your interest — or, if you were under 21 when that transfer happened, no later than 9 months after your 21st birthday — and you must not have accepted the interest or any of its benefits. Miss either condition and passing the asset along is treated as a transfer made by you.	No. The 9-month federal period is fixed. Your state's disclaimer statute sets separate requirements that must also be met. Decide this with an attorney and a tax professional, not alone.	Federal, so the period is the same everywhere. Ask an attorney licensed in the decedent's state about that state's separate disclaimer statute.
Spousal elective share — a surviving spouse's statutory claim against the estate instead of, or alongside, what the will leaves	State	Whether a surviving spouse can elect a share set by statute rather than by the will. If the period passes without an election, the surviving spouse takes what the will or that state's intestacy rules provide instead.	Set by the state where the person who died lived, and short in some states.	That state's probate code, or the probate clerk in the county where the person lived. An attorney licensed in that state can confirm whether an election is available to you at all.
Creditor claim period	State, with local court practice on notice	When creditors must present claims, and when a personal representative can distribute without personal exposure.	Set by that state; the start date usually depends on when notice was given.	That state's notice-to-creditors requirement, or the probate clerk's published packet for the county where the estate is filed.
Plan, IRA custodian, or insurer claim window	Institution policy, not law	When the institution will process a claim, a transfer, or a retitling.	Set by the contract or plan document, not by statute. Ask the institution in writing what its window is.	The plan document, the policy, or the custodian's own claim instructions. Request a copy in writing.

What this table covers, and what it does not. The disclaimer row is federal and applies in every state. The other three rows are set by the state where the person who died lived, by the court where the estate is filed, or by the institution's own contract, and Estate Made Clear does not publish those periods on this page for any state. To find the ones that apply to you, use the state and territory court directory at USAGov to reach the right court system, then ask the probate clerk in the county where the person lived; how probate works explains the sequence those periods sit inside. Federal tax filing dates for the estate and for the decedent's final return are a separate matter for a tax professional.

Who holds authority over what

Readers routinely search "can I access my mother's account" when the real question is which authority applies. Authority after a death comes from one of a small number of sources, and each has a different starting point, a different accountability, and a different effect on how long things take. The IRS uses "personal representative" as the umbrella term for an executor, an administrator, or anyone in charge of the decedent's property (IRS Publication 559). A power of attorney is not a path to estate assets: banks and custodians stop accepting one once they have notice of the death, and whoever acts next does so under court letters, trust terms, or a beneficiary designation instead. Nothing below is a determination about your estate — the state where the person who died lived, and often the county, controls the titles, the appointment procedure, and any bond or notice requirement.

Category	What it covers	Who holds authority, and is the court involved?	What it changes for you
Executor named in a will	The estate assets the will controls.	The person nominated; authority begins only when the court appoints and issues letters.	Nothing can be moved on the will alone. Timeline depends on the court's calendar.
Administrator or personal representative	The same estate assets when there is no will or the named executor cannot serve.	Appointed by the court under state priority rules; accountable to the court and beneficiaries.	Court supervision, possible bond, and reporting duties; distributions come last.
Trustee	Assets titled in the trust.	Named in the trust document; the court is normally not involved.	Usually faster and more private than probate; the trust terms, not the will, control.
Agent under a power of attorney	The person's affairs during life only.	The agent; authority ends at death.	Not a path to estate assets. Institutions will ask for letters or a death claim instead.
Beneficiary of a nonprobate transfer	Retirement accounts, insurance, payable- or transfer-on-death registrations, joint accounts.	The institution decides on its own claim procedure; no court appointment needed.	Often the fastest transfer, and the one most likely to be yours outright to act on.
Heir under intestacy	Estate assets where there is no will.	The statute of the state where the person who died lived sets who inherits; the court still appoints someone to administer.	Your share is set by state law, not by family agreement.

Verification status for this framework: Verified for the federal usage of "personal representative" above; Partial for the state-specific titles, appointment procedures, bond and notice requirements, and intestacy shares, which are set by the state and county where the person who died lived; Not applicable where a trust document or a contract, rather than a court, controls the transfer.

Compare the advice paths side by side

Choose the advice model, not just the credential

Most readers arrive looking for a credential — usually "a fiduciary." That is the wrong first filter. A credential describes a duty and a qualification; the service model describes what you actually get and what it costs.

Under CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct, a CFP® professional must act as a fiduciary when providing financial advice to a client. That is meaningful and narrower than most people read it: the duty attaches to the advice relationship, so you still have to establish who the client is, what the engagement covers, which firm the person works for, how that firm is paid, and what conflicts it discloses. "Fee-only" is likewise a description of compensation, not a guarantee of fit or of the absence of every conflict. Registration is a public record, not an approval — no regulator endorses an adviser.

Models differ on four things that decide the cost and the commitment: scope, how you pay, whether your assets have to move, and how the engagement ends. Those four are columns in the tables below, so compare them there rather than in the abstract. None of the models is better than another. Each is a fit, or a poor fit, for the job you wrote down above.

How these options were selected

Estate Made Clear is an independent publisher. It is not a law firm, tax preparer, fiduciary, broker-dealer, investment adviser, insurer, or government agency, and nothing here is individualized legal, tax, investment, or financial advice.

The rules that govern this page. No provider pays to be included. Inclusion, ordering, and the wording of each option's disqualifier are set by the evidence and by the rules below, and by nothing else. Options were included when they represent a materially distinct service model, when the provider's own current documentation states the fee basis, minimum or eligibility, scope, and human model — or the field is labeled unknown — and when the firm can be checked through public registration records. Prices shown are standard published prices, not promotional prices, with the fee basis stated in every case. The neutral "no provider yet" path is an option here, not a footnote. There is no scoring system, star rating, or ranking on this page, and nothing is ordered by payout. Every included option carries a disqualifier, and no commercial relationship would ever remove one or move an option up the page. We do not list inheritance advances, estate-purchase offers, finder services, or paid document-retrieval products in any comparison.

How this page is funded. Estate Made Clear is supported by advertising and, on some pages, disclosed referral links. No provider has paid for placement, ordering, or inclusion on this page, and compensation never determines what is included or how it is ranked. If a compensated link is added to this page, it will be disclosed here — and the rules above will still apply.

Comparison of advice paths after an inheritance. Provider pricing, minimums, account types, and terms verified August 5, 2026; SEC registration records verified July 22, 2026. Provider pricing and terms on this page are rechecked at least quarterly. Recheck any figure yourself before relying on it. The two tables below cover the same six options in the same order.

Cost, minimum, and how the engagement ends

Path or service	Service model	Published cost and fee basis	Minimum or eligibility	How it ends and what that costs
Independent search and direct hire	You use a directory to find candidates and hire one directly on a project, hourly, flat, or asset-based engagement.	Set by each firm; quote required. Fee basis varies by engagement.	Set by each firm.	Whatever the engagement agreement says. A defined project ends when the work is delivered. Get the termination terms in writing before you sign.
SmartAsset SmartAdvisor	Referral service that introduces you to advisers who elected to participate in its matching platform.	No referral fee charged to you. SmartAsset is paid by the advisers — cost per lead, a share of the ongoing fee the adviser charges you, or a subscription. The adviser's own fee is separate.	Set by each matched adviser.	You have no ongoing relationship with SmartAsset to end. Anything you sign with a matched adviser has its own termination terms.
Facet	Flat-fee annual planning membership with CFP® professional access; investment management included in the membership.	Flat annual membership: Core $2,600, Plus $4,300, Complete $8,700 per year. Quarterly billing adds a $300 enrollment fee, waived with annual payment. Memberships are annual, non-refundable agreements.	Not stated on the pricing page; confirm at consultation.	Annual, non-refundable agreement. A $10 per month, per account administrative fee applies if you cancel and do not move the assets to another custodian within 30 days.
Vanguard advice services	Asset-based planning and portfolio management, tiered by enrolled balance.	Percentage of enrolled assets. Personal Advisor: approximately $30–$31 per $10,000 net (gross 0.35% all-index, 0.40% active/index mix, less revenue Vanguard retains). Select and Wealth Management: tiered, no more than $30 per $10,000. A separate $75 quarterly advice platform fee applies to enrolled Select portfolios holding less than $450,000, with stated exceptions. Fund expense ratios are separate.	$50,000 in eligible Vanguard Brokerage Accounts, or $250,000 in an employer-sponsored plan at Vanguard (Personal Advisor); $500,000 (Select); $5 million or more (Wealth Management).	Unenroll from the advice service; the accounts stay yours at Vanguard. Confirm any transfer costs before moving assets elsewhere.
Betterment Premium	Digital portfolio management plus access to a team of CFP professionals.	Percentage of eligible investing balance: 0.65% a year on the first $1 million (0.25% digital base plus 0.40% premium), 0.15% from $1–2 million, 0.10% above $2 million. Fund expenses and certain transfer costs are separate.	$100,000 minimum investing balance. Checking, Cash Reserve, 401(k) and HSA balances are excluded from the eligible balance.	Betterment lists certain transfer costs separately from the advisory fee. Confirm what moving assets out would cost before you enroll.
No provider yet	Gather documents, confirm authority, use official resources; no advisory engagement.	No advisory fee. Court filing fees, certified death-certificate copies, notarization, and tax preparation may still cost money; those are set by the court, the agency, or the professional, never by an adviser.	None.	Nothing to end. Choosing this preserves every other option at no cost.

Access, custody, and what each option leaves unresolved

Path or service	Human access	Custody, transfer, and inherited retirement accounts	What it does not resolve	Evidence status
Independent search and direct hire	The individual you hire.	Only if you engage investment management. Whether an inherited retirement account can be held depends on the custodian that firm uses; ask before you engage.	Legal authority, court process, and tax filing. The searching and screening also stay with you.	Directories verified July 22, 2026. Pricing not publicly disclosed; quote required.
SmartAsset SmartAdvisor	The advisers shown on your results page; SmartAsset itself does not advise or monitor.	None by SmartAsset, which does not manage funds or hold custody. Inherited-account handling is set by whichever adviser and custodian you engage.	Everything after the introduction. A match is not a screening, an endorsement, or a monitored relationship.	Verified from SmartAsset's disclosure page, August 5, 2026.
Facet	Any CFP professional (Core); dedicated CFP team (Plus); dedicated CFP professional (Complete).	Managed accounts are custodied with Apex Clearing, Fidelity, or Charles Schwab. Whether an inherited retirement account can be managed is not stated in the reviewed pricing page; confirm at consultation.	Legal authority and court process. Tax filing and estate-document services sit in higher tiers only; confirm which tier covers what.	Verified from Facet's pricing page and Form ADV Part 2A, August 5, 2026. Promotional pricing displayed separately and excluded here.
Vanguard advice services	Access to an adviser (Personal Advisor); dedicated CFP professional (Select); dedicated team (Wealth Management).	Yes. Assets must be held in eligible Vanguard Brokerage Accounts and enrolled. Enrollment terms name inherited IRAs among the account types that can be enrolled, subject to eligibility screening of the holdings.	Legal authority, court process, and tax return preparation.	Verified from Vanguard's advice comparison, Personal Advisor, and Personal Advisor Select brochure pages, August 5, 2026.
Betterment Premium	A team of CFP professionals; no single assigned planner.	Yes. The fee applies to eligible Betterment investing accounts, so assets move under Betterment's management. Inherited IRAs are offered but must be opened by contacting Betterment rather than online, and Betterment states it does not automatically calculate required minimum distributions.	Legal authority, court process, tax return preparation, and the required minimum distribution calculation on an inherited IRA.	Verified from Betterment's pricing and help documentation, August 5, 2026.
No provider yet	The probate court clerk, the custodian or plan administrator, and any attorney or tax professional you engage separately.	None. The account stays where it is, with the current custodian or plan, under that institution's own procedure.	Legal authority, a tax filing obligation, and the court process. It avoids paying for advice before those are settled; it does not settle them.	Estate Made Clear decision aid; official resources verified August 5, 2026.

Where a provider's own documents disagree. Three conflicts are worth knowing about, because in each case the disagreement is between a provider's own published documents or its own statements rather than between us and them. Facet's Form CRS describes membership fees as generally ranging from about $900 to $10,000 a year, which is wider on both ends than the three tiers published on its pricing page; ask which figure applies to the service you are actually being offered. Betterment's pricing page excludes HSA balances from the eligible balance that decides Premium eligibility, while a Betterment help page lists HSA assets among those that count; the pricing page is what the tables above use, and this is worth settling in writing before you rely on a balance to qualify. And where promotional language about a matching service describes advisers as vetted, read SmartAsset's own disclosure instead: it states that SmartAsset does not review advisers' ongoing performance, manage accounts, or hold custody, which makes participation a records-and-agreement matter rather than an approval. All three checked August 5, 2026.

What was considered and not included

Several option types were reviewed and left out, each for a stated reason as of August 5, 2026. Bank and brokerage private-client or trust departments: pricing and scope are quoted per relationship rather than published, so they could not be compared on the same fields as the rows above. Digital advice platforms with no human planning tier: they do not serve the job this page is about, which is deciding what kind of help you need. Practices that describe themselves as inheritance specialists: a self-described focus is not an official credential, and the reviewed documentation did not publish a comparable fee basis, minimum, or scope — a documentation gap, not a judgment about any firm's quality. Attorneys and CPAs are not listed as alternatives to financial advisers because they do a different job; they appear below as escalation paths instead.

What a fee looks like in dollars

Percentages hide the size of a recurring cost, and flat prices hide the effect of a small balance. The table below is arithmetic only. It is not a quote, a recommendation, or a prediction, and the dollar amount is only half the comparison — scope is the other half.

Illustrative balance	At 0.30% a year	At 0.65% a year	A $2,600 flat annual fee equals
$100,000	$300	$650	2.60%
$500,000	$1,500	$3,250	0.52%
$1,000,000	$3,000	$6,500	0.26%

One caution the arithmetic hides: an asset-based fee usually sits on top of the expense ratios of the underlying funds, while a flat fee may or may not include investment management at all. And an inheritance amount is not a reason to hire anyone; it changes eligibility and fee dollars, not the underlying decision.

What each option is actually like

The tables above carry the comparable fields. These profiles carry the trade-offs and disqualifiers the tables cannot.

Independent search and direct hire

This is the only route that lets you define the engagement first and then find someone who will do exactly that — which suits a one-time question, a coordination meeting with your tax professional, or a specialized piece of work. It costs you time. You are doing the sourcing, the screening, and the price comparison yourself, and directory listings are opt-in discovery tools, and no directory endorses the people in it. Start with CFP Board's Let's Make a Plan or NAPFA's adviser search, then verify independently.

Not ideal for: readers who want the search done for them, or who want to start this week without interviewing anyone.

Confirm before you engage or pay: Will you quote a flat or hourly fee in writing for this defined piece of work? What is excluded from that fee? Will you work with me without managing my assets?

SmartAsset SmartAdvisor

The value here is speed: you answer a questionnaire and receive introductions instead of building a candidate list. The economics are worth understanding rather than fearing. SmartAsset has a written agreement with each participating adviser and is paid a referral fee by that adviser, and states that no part of it is charged to you and that your adviser's fee is not increased because of it. It also discloses that some referred advisers are affiliated with a minority investor in its parent company, that those advisers participate on the same terms and receive no preference from the matching algorithm, and that it does not review advisers' ongoing performance, manage accounts, or hold custody (SmartAsset important disclosures).

Not ideal for: readers who want a neutral ranking, an endorsement, or a screened shortlist. A match is an introduction to a participating firm.

Confirm before you engage or pay: Read each adviser's brochure and the referral disclosure shown on your results page. What is this adviser's fee basis and minimum? Can I verify this firm's registration and disciplinary record myself before the first meeting?

Facet

Facet's appeal after an inheritance is predictability: a flat annual price with investment management bundled in, so the cost does not rise because you inherited more. The trade-off is commitment. The membership is an annual, non-refundable agreement and leaving carries its own charge, so this is a poor structure for a single question (Facet pricing; Form ADV Part 2A). Tiers also differ substantially in whether you get any CFP professional, a dedicated team, or a dedicated planner, and in whether tax filing and estate-document services are included.

Not ideal for: anyone who wants one meeting, or who is not yet sure they will still want ongoing planning in six months.

Confirm before you engage or pay: Can my specific inherited account be managed, and by which custodian? What does my tier cover for inherited accounts and coordination with my tax professional? What are the cancellation and refund terms in the membership agreement, and is the price I was quoted the standard price or a promotional one?

Vanguard advice services

This is a low-cost asset-based route for someone who wants ongoing management and is comfortable holding assets at Vanguard. The distinction that matters most is human access: the entry program gives you access to an adviser, while a dedicated CFP professional starts at the Select tier and its $500,000 minimum. The published rate is also a net rate — Vanguard's gross advisory fee is reduced by revenue it retains from the portfolio — and fund expense ratios sit on top (Vanguard advice services). One cost is easy to miss: the Personal Advisor Select brochure adds a quarterly platform fee for Select portfolios that fall below a stated balance, so a shrinking account pays more than the headline percentage. Of the managed options here, this is the one whose own enrollment terms name inherited IRAs among the accounts that can be enrolled, subject to an eligibility screen of what the account holds, and whose published eligibility rules open a second route in for employer-plan participants.

Not ideal for: readers who want planning without moving assets, who want a named person at the entry tier, whose inherited account cannot be enrolled, or whose Select balance would sit below the platform-fee threshold.

Confirm before you engage or pay: Can my specific inherited account be enrolled, and which investments qualify? What is my net fee given my actual portfolio mix, and would the advice platform fee apply to me? Does the tier I qualify for include a dedicated CFP professional?

Betterment Premium

Premium suits a digital-first reader who wants a managed portfolio plus human access without a large minimum by traditional standards. Two details change the math. The minimum applies to eligible investing balances only, so cash and workplace accounts do not count toward it. And the advice comes from a team of CFP professionals rather than one assigned planner, which is fine for episodic questions and less suited to a long relationship with one person (Betterment pricing). For an inherited retirement account there is a third detail: Betterment offers inherited IRAs but they must be set up by contacting the firm rather than opened online, and Betterment states that it does not automatically calculate required minimum distributions, which leaves that calculation with you or your tax professional.

Not ideal for: readers who want one named planner, whose eligible balance is under the minimum, or who do not want assets moved.

Confirm before you engage or pay: Which of my accounts count toward the eligible balance? Who will I actually meet with, and how often? What does it cost to transfer assets out later?

No provider yet

This is a legitimate choice, not a delay tactic, and it is the right one more often than commercial pages admit. It costs nothing, it preserves every other option, and it is the correct answer whenever authority, beneficiary status, tax facts, or estate obligations are unresolved. The one real risk is confusing waiting with ignoring: pausing on an investment decision is different from missing a court filing date, a plan's stated claim window, or a tax deadline, and the windows that waiting can actually close are listed in what waiting can and cannot cost you.

Not ideal for: situations where something official already has a date attached, or where an insolvent estate or a dispute needs an attorney now.

Confirm before you engage or pay: Ask the court clerk, custodian, or professional — not a salesperson — whether any filing or election has a date attached, what documents the institution requires, and whether a tax professional should review the situation before you take a distribution.

Verify a professional before you hire or transfer

This takes about ten minutes per candidate and is the same for every option above, including one you found yourself. Do it before you share account documents, and long before you transfer anything.

1. Search the person and the firm. Use the investment professional search at Investor.gov, which reaches both the SEC's Investment Adviser Public Disclosure records and FINRA's BrokerCheck. Confirm the firm's exact legal name, which may differ from the brand on the website.
2. Read the Form CRS. The relationship summary states the services offered, the fees and costs, the conflicts of interest, the standard of conduct, and whether the firm or its professionals have disciplinary history. Brokers and investment advisers offer different relationships; the document tells you which one you are being offered.
3. Read the Form ADV brochure for an investment adviser. It goes further into services, compensation, conflicts, and disciplinary disclosure.
4. Check disciplinary information in the records above, and ask directly about anything you find rather than assuming the worst or ignoring it.
5. Verify the credential separately. CFP Board's verification tool confirms current certification status and public discipline. A credential is not the same as firm registration.
6. Ask how the firm and the individual are paid — flat, hourly, percentage of assets, subscription, commission, referral fee, or a combination — and whether anyone is paid for referring you.
7. Get the scope in writing. Which services are included, which are excluded, who else at the firm will work on your file, and what happens if you need something outside the scope. Ask what part of this work they do not do; whether they have worked with beneficiaries and personal representatives before; whether they prepare tax returns or give legal advice or refer that out; and whether they will work alongside your tax professional and the estate's attorney, and who leads.
8. Confirm custody and discretion. Who holds the assets, and can the adviser trade without asking you first? Custody should sit with a qualified custodian; the individual adviser should not be holding your money.
9. Confirm minimums and eligibility for the tier you would actually land in, which is often not the headline tier.
10. Read the cancellation and termination terms before signing. Ask what happens to your assets and any prepaid fee if you leave.

No regulator vets an adviser as suitable for you. Registration and certification are records of who has met a filing or examination requirement, and nothing more.

Which regulator holds the record

Not every adviser's record sits with the SEC, and this is where the search above can come up thin. Investment advisers are regulated under a split system: according to NASAA, the association of state and provincial securities regulators, firms with roughly $100 million or more in assets under regular and ongoing management generally register with the SEC, while smaller firms generally register with the securities regulator in each state where they do business. The exact boundary, and the treatment of mid-sized firms, is set by SEC rule rather than by a single round number (SEC guidance on mid-sized advisers). Firms whose services are financial planning only, or that solicit clients on behalf of other advisers, are also commonly state registrants.

That matters practically. A smaller local planner — often exactly the person you want for a single, defined question — may be a state registrant, and their examination history and some disciplinary records sit with the state rather than with the SEC. If a firm does not appear as you expect in the federal search, that is not a red flag by itself; look them up with the state. NASAA maintains a directory of state and territorial securities regulators covering all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Verified August 5, 2026.

Unsolicited offers after a probate filing

Probate filings are public records in most places, and mail, calls, and visits often follow one. Offers to buy your share of an estate, to advance you cash against an inheritance, to find "unclaimed" money for a percentage, or to retrieve documents for a fee are a routine consequence of that public record. Seminars promising that a living trust will settle everything, and document-preparation services that are not law firms and cannot advise you on your own situation, tend to reach people through the same channels. Their arrival does not mean anything is wrong with the estate, and it does not mean anyone has singled you out.

None of them is an advisory service of the kind compared on this page, and the same practical test applies: a professional worth engaging will quote you in writing, will not need your account numbers or a signature at a first meeting, and can be found in the public registration records — federal or state — under the firm's exact legal name.

A different concern deserves a different route. If a will, trust, beneficiary designation, or account title was changed late in the person's life in circumstances that trouble you, or if you think someone took financial advantage of them, that is a question for an attorney licensed in the decedent's state, and in some cases for adult protective services or law enforcement. It is not a question for a financial adviser, and no adviser should offer to resolve it.

What to bring to a first conversation

Ask for written answers where you can. Comparing three written replies is far easier than comparing three conversations you half remember.

Bring only what a first conversation needs: a high-level list of accounts and approximate values, the beneficiary notices or claim letters you have received, the governing documents you are entitled to share, any tax-basis records you already hold, and a note of the cash you need in the next few months. Do not send full account numbers, policy numbers, Social Security numbers, or court documents into a public form or a first email. A professional worth hiring will not need them to quote you.

Choosing the right kind of help

These are Estate Made Clear editorial picks by situation. They are not a ranking, and they name types of help rather than firms wherever the choice depends on your state or your court.

• Best for an executor who has not been appointed yet: the probate court's own self-help resources and the clerk in the county where the person who died lived, plus an estate attorney licensed in that state. Not an investment engagement, and nothing can be moved on the will alone.
• Best for a beneficiary who already owns the asset outright and has one focused decision: a planner who will quote a flat project fee in writing and does not require you to move assets.
• Best for someone who inherited a retirement account: the plan administrator or IRA custodian for the procedure, and a qualified tax professional for the distribution question, before any adviser engagement.
• Best for someone who wants ongoing management of assets already titled in their own name: an asset-based or flat-fee program whose fee basis, minimum, scope, and cancellation terms you have read in full.
• Best if you want a short list assembled quickly: a matching service, but only if you understand that the participating advisers pay it, that a match is an introduction rather than a screened recommendation, and that you still verify each firm yourself.
• Best when the facts are unsettled: pause and get professional review from an estate attorney or estate CPA before you sign anything or move money.

Your situation and role	Next move	Free route	Deadline in play	Verify before you commit
Named in a will, no letters issued yet — nominated executor	Probate court clerk on the appointment path; an estate attorney licensed in the decedent's state if anything is unclear	The court's own self-help resources; legal aid if you are income-eligible	Some states require the will itself to be filed with the court after a death — ask the clerk whether that state does	Is a court appointment required before any institution will release anything? Is there a filing date already attached?
The will is contested, or a relative is holding estate property — nominated executor, personal representative, or beneficiary	Estate or probate attorney licensed in the decedent's state	The probate court file, which is usually public; the clerk on procedure	A period for contesting, set by that state and short in some	What is already filed with the court? What is the deadline to contest in this state? What may I do, and not do, while it is unresolved?
Asset received outright through a beneficiary designation, joint title, or completed transfer; one decision pending — beneficiary, no fiduciary role	One-time or project advice on a written flat or hourly fee	Investor.gov and the state securities regulator; CFP Board verification; the fee-only and CFP directories above	None, unless a tax election is attached to the decision	Will you quote in writing without managing assets? What is excluded? How is your firm paid, and by whom?
Inherited retirement account, or a tax question tied to the date of death or basis — beneficiary or personal representative	Custodian or plan administrator for procedure; qualified tax professional for treatment; adviser afterwards if still needed	The custodian's own claim process; IRS Publication 590-B	Distribution timing set by the plan document and your beneficiary category	What does the plan or IRA document require? Which tax year applies? Is anything time-bound?
Surviving spouse, with most assets held jointly or by beneficiary designation	Often no provider yet — much of it may pass outside probate and already be yours	The institutions' own claim processes; the probate clerk on whether any election applies	A spousal elective share period, where that state provides one	Does that state give a surviving spouse an elective share, and is there a period for claiming it?
The estate looks like it has more debt than assets — personal representative, or family being contacted by collectors	Estate or probate attorney before any distribution, and no adviser engagement funded by estate money	Probate clerk on the creditor claim process; legal aid if you are income-eligible; CFPB guidance on who owes what	The creditor claim period, and the exposure that comes with distributing before it closes	What is the creditor period in this state, and when did it start? What exposure do I take on by distributing?
Beneficiary with no role, waiting to hear what is happening	No provider yet	The probate court file, which is usually public; a written request to the personal representative	None personally, unless you are considering a disclaimer	What am I entitled to receive, and when? Is an inventory or accounting filed with the court?
Real property in a state other than where the person lived — personal representative or beneficiary	An attorney licensed in the state where the property sits, on whether a separate ancillary process is required there	That state's court system through the USAGov directory, then its own self-help resources	Set by the second state's process, not by the home state's	Is a separate proceeding required? Who may act on the property in the meantime? Does the home-state appointment carry any authority there?
Assets are held in a living trust — successor trustee or trust beneficiary	Read the trust and confirm which assets were actually retitled into it; an attorney licensed in the decedent's state if the terms are unclear	The trust document itself; the custodian's successor-trustee procedure	Set by the trust document rather than by statute	Which assets were retitled into the trust and which were not? What does the trust require of the successor trustee before a distribution?

Two things people are reluctant to ask about. If the will cannot be found, say so to the probate court clerk in the county where the person lived rather than assuming the estate is stuck; the clerk can explain what that state's process is when no will is produced, and if none is ever found the estate is generally administered under that state's intestacy rules. And being named executor in a will does not oblige you to serve. The court appoints, and a person nominated in a will can decline before appointment, after which someone else is appointed under the state's priority rules. Neither situation is a failure, and neither is a financial-advice question.

One scorecard for every option. Do not invent new criteria per candidate. Run the ten-point verification above on each one and record the same fields — registration, Form CRS, credential status, disciplinary history, fee basis in annual dollars, minimum, scope in writing, custody, discretion, and termination terms. Any option that cannot produce those fields in writing has answered you.

When financial advice is not enough

Some questions belong to a different professional entirely, and a financial adviser who takes them on is doing you harm rather than a favor.

An estate or probate attorney licensed in the decedent's state handles authority and appointment, interpretation of a will or trust, creditor claims and insolvency, disputes among heirs, ancillary administration for out-of-state property, and any question about what the personal representative may lawfully do. Bring them in before distributing or investing estate property, not after. Two things worth knowing before you assume you cannot afford it. Many attorneys will take a defined piece of work — a single question, a document review, one court appearance — on a limited-scope basis rather than the whole administration, which costs a fraction of full representation; ask for it by name. And if your income qualifies you, free help exists: the CFPB explains how to find legal aid and low-cost attorneys in your state, and the federal Eldercare Locator connects older adults and their caregivers to local services including free legal help for those who are eligible. Whether an attorney is needed at all is its own question, and do you need a probate lawyer works through it.

A qualified tax professional handles the decedent's final income tax return, estate or trust income tax returns, basis of inherited property, the tax treatment of inherited retirement distributions, elections, withholding, and how federal and state rules interact. Federal estate tax, state estate tax, state inheritance tax, income tax, and basis are five separate things that get confused constantly; the differences between estate and inheritance tax page separates them, and IRS Publication 559 and Publication 590-B are the current federal starting points for estate administration and inherited retirement accounts respectively.

The custodian, plan administrator, or insurer owns its own procedure — what documents it accepts, what forms it requires, and how it retitles or pays out. No adviser can override it.

The probate court clerk can tell you the filing path, the forms, and the fee schedule for that county. Clerks explain procedure; they cannot give legal advice, and it is not fair to ask them to.

Questions people ask after an inheritance

Can I hire someone for just one meeting?

Often, yes — but you have to ask for it specifically, because the default offer from most firms is ongoing. Ask directly whether the professional works on an hourly or flat project basis, get the fee and the deliverable in writing, and confirm that nothing requires you to move accounts. A membership or an asset-based program is generally the wrong shape for a single question, and an annual agreement may not be refundable if you change your mind.

Should I move the inherited accounts before I choose an adviser?

Usually not. Retitling and transfers can be difficult or impossible to undo, and for inherited retirement accounts the sequence and the method can change the tax result. Confirm ownership, the beneficiary category, and the custodian's own procedure first, and get a tax professional's view on anything with a distribution attached. Holding cash in an appropriate account for a short administrative period is a normal thing to do, not a failure of discipline.

How long does it take before an inheritance is actually mine to invest?

There is no universal answer, and any page that gives you a number in months is guessing. The clock is set by the slowest dependency in your particular situation: the court's calendar and when a personal representative is appointed, the creditor-claim period fixed by the state where the person who died lived, inventory or appraisal, the sale of real property, tax filings and clearances, and any dispute. Assets that pass by beneficiary designation or joint title often move in weeks rather than months, because no court step is involved. Ask the clerk in that county what the local sequence looks like.

What will all of this cost me?

Separate the costs, because they are set by different people. Court filing fees are set by the state or county and published in that court's own fee schedule — check the county where the estate is filed rather than any national figure. Certified death-certificate copies, publication or notice costs, any bond, and appraisal fees are estate expenses. Attorney fees, tax-preparation fees, and any personal-representative compensation are separate again, and each has its own basis. Financial advice is the last line: a flat fee, an hourly rate, or a percentage of managed assets, plus the fund expenses underneath a portfolio.

Does a free adviser match mean the advisers were approved or vetted?

No, and this is the most common misreading of these services. A matching platform introduces you to advisers who chose to participate and who pay the platform a referral fee; the platform typically confirms that a firm is registered, which is a records check, not an approval, and it does not monitor the advice you later receive. "Free to you" is accurate as far as it goes — the advisers pay, not you — but it is not the same as neutral. Verify each match yourself before the first meeting.

Your next step

Write down, in one sentence, the decision that actually needs help. Underneath it, write who owns the asset and what proves it — court letters, a beneficiary designation, a deed, a trust. If you cannot fill in that second line yet, the no-provider path is your next step, and the court clerk or the custodian is your next call. If you can, choose two or three candidates that fit the model you need, run the ten-point verification on each, and compare their written answers before you share documents or move money. Much later, when the estate is settled, updating your own estate plan is worth the afternoon it takes.

About this page. Estate Made Clear is an independent publisher; this page was researched and written by the Estate Made Clear editorial team from the sources listed below. The method is what you can hold us to: legal, tax, and procedural statements come from statutes, courts, and federal agencies rather than from law-firm marketing or review sites; anything a provider says about its own service comes from that provider's current pricing, terms, or regulatory filings; every figure carries the date it was checked and provider terms are rechecked at least quarterly; and where a claim could not be verified, the page says so rather than filling the gap. Estate Made Clear is not a law firm, tax preparer, fiduciary, investment adviser, insurer, or government agency, and this page is general information rather than advice about your estate. Corrections and source questions reach the editorial team at hello@estatemadeclear.com.

Sources and last verified date

Last verified: August 5, 2026

Next review: November 5, 2026 (provider pricing and terms are rechecked at least quarterly).

• Investment Professionals — U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Investor.gov — free official search covering SEC investment adviser records and FINRA BrokerCheck; supports the registration and disciplinary verification steps.
• Relationship Summary (Form CRS) — U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Investor.gov — supports what Form CRS discloses about services, fees, conflicts, standard of conduct, and disciplinary history, and the broker/adviser distinction.
• Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Mid-Sized Advisers — U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Division of Investment Management — supports that the SEC/state registration boundary and the treatment of mid-sized advisers are set by SEC rule rather than a single round figure. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Investment Adviser Guide — North American Securities Administrators Association — supports the split between SEC and state registration, the approximate $100 million threshold, and the categories of adviser that commonly register with states. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Contact Your Regulator — North American Securities Administrators Association — state and territorial securities regulator directory covering the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct — CFP Board — supports the fiduciary duty that applies when a CFP® professional provides financial advice. Accessed July 22, 2026.
• Verify a CFP® Professional — CFP Board — supports credential status and public discipline verification. Accessed July 22, 2026.
• Find a CFP® Professional (Let's Make a Plan) — CFP Board — opt-in directory used for candidate discovery, not endorsement. Accessed July 22, 2026.
• Find an Advisor — NAPFA — fee-only directory used for candidate discovery, not endorsement. Accessed July 22, 2026.
• Does a person's debt go away when they die? — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — supports that estate debts are paid from the estate, the specific exceptions that create personal responsibility, the named community property states, and the limits on what a debt collector may say. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Submit a complaint — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — the official complaint route referenced for debt-collection conduct. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• How do I find an attorney in my state? — Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — supports the free and low-cost legal help route. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Eldercare Locator — U.S. Administration for Community Living — supports the route to local services, including free legal help for eligible older adults. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• 26 U.S.C. § 2518, Disclaimers — Office of the Law Revision Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives — supports the qualified-disclaimer requirements, including the nine-month period measured from the later of the transfer or the disclaimant's twenty-first birthday, and the condition that the interest and its benefits not have been accepted. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Internal Revenue Manual 5.17.13, Insolvencies and Decedents' Estates — Internal Revenue Service — supports the federal priority statute and the fiduciary's personal liability for paying other claims ahead of the government. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Publication 559, Survivors, Executors, and Administrators — Internal Revenue Service — supports the federal use of "personal representative," the personal representative's liability for income tax liabilities they were or should have been aware of, and the estate-administration and final-return escalation triggers. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Publication 590-B, Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) — Internal Revenue Service — supports the inherited-retirement-account escalation trigger and current tax-year sourcing. Accessed July 22, 2026.
• Federal, state, territory, county, and municipal courts — USAGov — official directory used to route readers to their state or territory court system and, through it, the county probate court. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Important Disclosures — SmartAsset Advisors, LLC — supports the referral-fee model and its bases, the statement that no referral fee is charged to the user, the Focus Financial Partners affiliation disclosure and equal participation terms, and the limits of SmartAsset's role. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• SmartAsset Advisors, LLC firm summary — SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure — public registration record. Accessed July 22, 2026.
• Pricing — Facet — supports standard annual membership prices by tier, the enrollment fee and its waiver, the annual non-refundable membership terms, tier service differences, and the separately displayed promotional pricing. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Form ADV Part 2A — Facet — supports the custodians used for managed accounts and the $10 per month, per account administrative fee applied after cancellation without transfer within 30 days. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Form CRS relationship summary — Facet Wealth, Inc., via SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure — supports the membership fee range stated in Facet's own relationship summary and the conflict with its published tier pricing. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Facet Wealth, Inc. firm summary — SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure — public registration record. Accessed July 22, 2026.
• Compare investment advice — Vanguard — supports program minimums, net and gross advisory fee rates and their basis, the adviser-access tiers, and the exclusion of fund expense ratios. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Personal Advisor — Vanguard — supports the $50,000 enrollment balance and the enrollment terms naming inherited IRAs among enrollable account types, subject to eligibility screening. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Personal Advisor eligibility FAQ — Vanguard — supports the alternative eligibility route of $250,000 or more in an employer-sponsored retirement plan at Vanguard, and the net-versus-gross advisory fee mechanism. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Vanguard Personal Advisor Select brochure — Vanguard Advisers, Inc. — supports the $75 quarterly advice platform fee assessed on enrolled Personal Advisor Select portfolios holding less than $450,000, and that stated exceptions apply. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Vanguard Advisers, Inc. firm summary — SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure — public registration record. Accessed July 22, 2026.
• Pricing — Betterment — supports the Premium annual fee and its components, the tiered discounts above $1 million, the $100,000 eligible-balance minimum, the excluded account types, the CFP team model, and separate fund and transfer costs. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• What accounts can I open with Betterment? — Betterment — supports that inherited IRAs are offered and must be opened by contacting the firm. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Can I transfer or roll over an inherited IRA / 401(k) or other retirement plan? — Betterment — supports that Betterment does not automate required minimum distribution calculations for inherited IRAs. Accessed August 5, 2026.
• Betterment LLC firm summary — SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure — public registration record. Accessed July 22, 2026.