Advisers have their places. I do believe that most people can benefit from having an adviser. If nothing else, it becomes a sound-board before you do something foolish with your money. Why? Because it is very unlikely that you will talk freely about your money with friends, or brother in-law.

But paying them solely basing on your assets amount is NOT good for you. In the "Growth" portion of your portfolio the fee must tie to the performance (relative to Index) of your Growth portfolio. If my portfolio doesn't grow relative to Index, why should I pay them?

On the matter of setting up "Income" portfolio, you pay them a one time fee (may be _base_d on time). They do need to do some computation, etc, to get the income stream for you. But once setup, you can leave it alone. You certainly will be foolish to pay them watching the Income portfolio generating income for you.

For other matters, pay them _base_d on time. For example, you have the urge to buy the motor-boat with big engine. Call them to see if you really can afford it. Then pay them a fee.

In other words, pay them _base_d on performance, or performing tasks.