Stone Arch Bridge and the Minneapolis skyline beside the Mississippi River

Flames Financial Planning | Minnesota

Flat-fee financial planning for your whole financial life.

Investments, tax planning and filing, retirement, estate guidance, and the decisions between them. One coordinated relationship. No 1% AUM fee.

Schedule a Discovery Meeting See Transparent Pricing
$600-$6,600 annualized Transparent annual memberships based on planning complexity.
0% AUM Your fee is not a percentage of your portfolio.
Start free The dashboard is free. Our team is here whenever you want a second set of eyes.
Minnesota-based Local roots with virtual planning flexibility.

The answer in 20 seconds

One Advisor Relationship for Decisions That Rarely Happen Alone

Investment choices affect taxes. Tax choices affect retirement. Retirement choices affect estate planning and family wealth. Flames FP connects those decisions under a flat quarterly membership instead of charging a percentage of your assets.

See how the planning relationship works

What's covered in a coordinated planning relationship

Investments

Portfolio guidance connected to taxes, cash flow, risk, and your broader plan.

Tax planning

Year-round tax decisions, with tax-return review in Planning and eligible preparation and filing in Premier through an independent tax partner.

Retirement

Income, Roth conversions, Social Security, Medicare, RMDs, and withdrawals.

Estate guidance

Legal documents, beneficiaries, legacy decisions, and family coordination.

Ongoing advice

A second set of eyes for decisions that come up throughout the year.

Parents and two children sharing time together in a bright kitchen
Minnesota-based, with virtual planning flexibility for households across the state.

Who Flames FP helps

Financial Planning for Connected Decisions

Flames FP helps Minnesota households coordinate investments, taxes, compensation, retirement, and family decisions instead of handling each one separately.

  1. High-income familiesCoordinate taxes, goals, and growing wealth.
  2. Corporate employeesConnect RSUs, stock options, and bonuses to the broader plan.
  3. Pre-retireesPlan retirement income, Social Security, Medicare, taxes, and withdrawals together.
  4. Young professionals and familiesBuild cash flow, protection, investments, and long-term goals together.
  5. Minnesota householdsGet local roots with the flexibility of a virtual planning relationship.
See Who We Help

Memberships

Three Clear Levels of Financial Help

Start with personalized foundational planning, step up to a comprehensive planning relationship, or add a named lead advisor and advanced implementation. Every tier includes investment management without an AUM fee.

Financial foundations

Flames Access

$150 / quarter

$600 annualized

Billed quarterly in advance. No annual commitment.

Best for: For people who want professionally managed investing and personalized guidance for the financial foundations.

Access guidance and investing

  • One introductory planning meeting
  • Personalized guidance by email or secure messaging
  • Cash flow, emergency savings, debt, retirement contributions, workplace benefits, insurance needs, and education savings
  • Flames model portfolios, monitoring, and rebalancing at Altruist
Schedule an Access Meeting
Advanced planning + named lead advisor

Flames Premier

$1,650 / quarter

$6,600 annualized

Billed quarterly in advance. No annual commitment.

Best for: For high-income, high-asset, retiring, or financially complex households that need advanced implementation and coordination.

Everything in Flames Planning, plus

  • A named lead advisor accountable for the relationship
  • Eligible personal tax-return preparation and filing through the designated independent tax partner
  • Ongoing tax projections and advanced Roth-conversion and capital-gain modeling
  • Retirement-income and withdrawal implementation
Schedule a Premier Meeting

Quarterly flexibility. Memberships are billed quarterly in advance with no annual commitment. Cancel at any time to stop the next quarterly renewal; the current paid quarter remains active and is nonrefundable.

Compare All Memberships

1% AUM vs Flames Premier

See What a Percentage-of-Assets Fee Means Over 10 Years

Move the slider to compare an advisor charging 1% of a growing portfolio with the Flames Premier Membership's fixed $6,600 annual fee. This illustration assumes 8% annual portfolio growth.

Compare Flat Fee vs AUM
$1,000,000
8% annual growth
Year-one 1% AUM fee $10,000
10-year 1% AUM fees $144,866
Portfolio grows 8% annually; the 1% fee grows with it.
10-year Flames Premier fees $66,000
$6,600 flat quarterly membership fee for 10 years.
Estimated 10-year savings with Premier $82,866
Hypothetical educational illustration only, not a performance projection or guarantee. Assumes the selected starting portfolio grows 8% annually, applies a 1% AUM fee to each year's beginning balance, and holds the Premier fee at $6,600 per year. Excludes withdrawals, taxes, investment expenses, other fees, and the effect of paying fees from the portfolio.

Free financial dashboard

See Your Whole Financial Life in One Place

Organize your net worth, cash flow, goals, debt, insurance, and estate documents in one clear view. Start on your own, then bring in a Flames planning team when you want personalized advice or implementation.

Start Free Explore the Dashboard
Flames Financial Dashboard overview showing net worth, active goals, planning support, and planning team
Example dashboard shown with sample data.
OrganizeAssets, debts, cash flow, and documents.
TrackGoals, progress, and upcoming decisions.
LearnGuidance connected to the numbers in your plan.
PrepareClearer questions for an advisor conversation.

Client perspective

Advice Should Feel Personal, Understandable, and Useful

Short excerpts from Google reviews highlight the parts of the relationship that matter most: personal fit, coordinated advice, and trust. See Google reviews.

Personal fit

"Working with Joel has been a life changer."
Kirsten, Google review

Advisor relationship

"Financial planning is accessible, personal and enjoyable through Joel's expertise!"
Jonny, Google review

Trust and confidence

"Joel at Flames is an exceptional financial planner who has consistently exceeded our expectations."
Anthony, Google review

Client testimonials from Google reviews. Reviewers were not compensated. Individual experiences vary and are not indicative of future results or outcomes.

Common questions

Clear Answers Before the First Meeting

Pricing, services, and the planning model should be understandable before you ever share a financial statement.

Browse financial planning guides
Does Flames Financial Planning charge AUM fees?

No. Flames FP uses flat quarterly membership pricing instead of charging a percentage of assets under management. Your membership fee is based on planning complexity rather than portfolio size.

What can a Flames FP membership include?

Depending on the membership, Flames FP can include financial planning, investment management, tax planning, retirement planning, family wealth coordination, and ongoing advisor access. Planning and Premier include Wealth.com estate-document access, while eligible Premier members also receive individual tax-return preparation and filing through an independent tax partner.

How much does Flames Financial Planning cost?

standard quarterly memberships are $600, $3,600, and $6,600 annualized depending on planning complexity. Flames FP does not charge a percentage of assets under management.

Does Flames FP work with Minnesota clients?

Yes. Flames FP is Minnesota-based and can work with local and virtual clients where permitted by registration and compliance requirements. See the flat-fee financial advisor in Minnesota guide for comparison questions.

Is the Flames Financial Dashboard really free?

Yes. The dashboard is free to use for organizing net worth, budgeting, goals, debt, insurance, estate documents, and planning questions. A paid Flames membership adds personalized advisor judgment, implementation support, and accountability.

Explore Flames FP

The Main Pages for Understanding Flames Financial Planning

Start with the service model, transparent membership pricing, free dashboard, households we serve, planning process, and the firm behind the advice.

Financial Planning Services

See how investments, taxes, retirement, estate guidance, and ongoing decisions work together without AUM fees.

Membership Pricing

Compare Flames Access, Planning, and Premier at $150, $900, or $1,650 per quarter and see exactly what each relationship includes.

Free Financial Dashboard

Organize net worth, budgeting, goals, debt, insurance, and estate documents before deciding what help you need.

Who We Help

Review the households and planning situations that are most likely to fit a coordinated flat-fee relationship.

How It Works

Follow the process from discovery meeting through organization, recommendations, implementation, and ongoing advice.

About Flames FP

Learn about the fee-only fiduciary model, Minnesota roots, planning philosophy, and professional standards.

Watch and learn

Use the video for the walkthrough, then use the written guide for the details, examples, and next steps.

Flat Fee vs 1% Financial Advisor

Flat Fee vs 1% Financial Advisor

See how a percentage fee changes in dollars as a portfolio grows and what to compare beyond the headline rate.

Watch and read the guide
Five Money Mistakes High Earners Make

Five Money Mistakes High Earners Make

Common coordination gaps involving taxes, cash flow, investments, insurance, and estate planning.

Watch and read the guide
How to Decrease Your Tax Bill

How to Decrease Your Tax Bill

Review practical tax-planning decisions that can connect income, investments, retirement, and withholding.

Watch and read the guide
Browse all financial planning videosVisit Flames FP on YouTube

Your next step

Find Out Whether a Flat-Fee Planning Relationship Fits Your Life

Use a discovery meeting to talk through your priorities, the planning work involved, and which membership may fit. Understand the options before deciding whether to move forward.

Get Started Review Pricing First