What Hafner Financial Group does

Hafner Financial Group is an independent, privately-held financial advisory firm founded in 2007 by Peter Hafner in Williamsville, New York, specializing in helping individuals and families transition from their working years into retirement. The firm serves primarily the Western New York market with a staff of five, including founder and lead advisor Peter Hafner (CFF®, CFP®, Series 7, 24, 63), financial advisor Nathaniel Zawadzki, Director of Operations Katie Perry, Client Care Manager Christina Moore, and Marketing Director Samantha Penziul. Its core services are Comprehensive Financial Planning (covering retirement income, life insurance, estate planning, and long-term care) and ongoing Investment Advising, delivered through a proprietary six-step HFG Retirement Planning Process and offered as three tiered Financial Planning Packages ranging from self-directed investor support to fully managed portfolios.

The firm operates on a fee-based and commission-based revenue model: advisory fees are earned on assets under management held in custody at LPL Financial (with a secondary broker/dealer relationship with Next Financial Group, Inc. for trade execution), supplemented by planning fees and product commissions on life insurance, annuities, and related products. Client engagement begins with a complimentary Get Acquainted Meeting and is supported by an eMoney-powered client portal and LPL's Account View 2.0 for portfolio access, document sharing, and aggregated household views. The go-to-market is relationship-led, combining direct advisory sales with a sustained content marketing program (blog, educational videos, email newsletter) and recurring client appreciation events.

Hafner Financial is registered through LPL Financial and licensed to serve residents of specific U.S. states only, with media features in Yahoo! Finance, Investopedia, CNBC, and Buffalo Business First establishing regional credibility. The firm carries no external institutional investment, no subsidiaries, and no patents or proprietary technology assets; its competitive position rests on founder-led fiduciary expertise, deep Western New York community ties, and personalized service delivery rather than technology differentiation or scale.

Name

Hafner Financial Group

Legal name

Hafner Financial Group

Website

https://hafnerfinancial.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Hafner Financial Group is an independent, LPL-affiliated financial advisory firm in Williamsville, New York, founded in 2007, that provides retirement-focused financial planning and investment management to individuals and families transitioning to retirement in the Western New York market.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Advisory & Retirement Planning

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive Financial Planning (FSAEAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Financial Planning–Led RIAs (FSAAACAB), Retirement & Distribution Planning RIAs (401(k)/IRA/Pension Rollovers) (FSAAACAE)

Keywords

• Retirement income planning
• Investment advisory services
• Financial planning services
• Wealth management
• Estate planning services

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Comprehensive Financial Planning: Fee-based or commission-based financial planning services delivered through a series of meetings covering retirement planning, life insurance, estate planning, and long-term care planning.
2. Investment Advisory Services: Ongoing investment monitoring and management to ensure client portfolios align with life goals. Trades executed through broker/dealer relationships with LPL Financial and Next Financial Group.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Hafner Financial Group is an independent financial advisory firm that delivers retirement-focused financial planning and investment advisory services to individuals and families. Core engagements span a multi-meeting Comprehensive Financial Planning process covering retirement income, life insurance, estate planning, and long-term care, paired with ongoing Investment Advising across mutual funds, stocks, bonds, and variable annuities, with trade execution routed through LPL Financial and Next Financial Group.

Product overview

Hafner Financial Group offers retirement-focused financial advisory services through a combination of Comprehensive Financial Planning and Investment Advising. The firm uses a proprietary six-step HFG Retirement Planning Process methodology and offers three Financial Planning Packages at different service levels. Core services include retirement income planning, investment portfolio management, IRA/401k portfolio enhancement, estate planning, and long-term care planning. The firm also provides a complimentary Get Acquainted Meeting and operates a client portal with access to Account View 2.0 and eMoney platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Comprehensive Financial Planning A multi-meeting advisory engagement in which HFG advisors work with clients to answer financial questions, build retirement plans, review life insurance needs, consider beneficiary designations, discuss estate planning, and address long-term care planning. Designed for individuals and families preparing for or transitioning into retirement.
• Investment Advising Ongoing investment monitoring and management service ensuring client portfolios align with their life goals. Advisors manage holdings across mutual funds, stocks, bonds, real estate investments, trusts, and variable annuities, with trade execution through LPL Financial and Next Financial Group.
• Get Acquainted Meeting A complimentary initial consultation that allows prospective clients to learn about Hafner Financial Group and decide whether to engage the firm for ongoing financial planning and investment services.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• LPL FinancialcoreTechnology or IntegrationSecurities and advisory services offered through LPL Financial, a registered investment advisor and member of FINRA and SIPC. Custodian for client accounts with Account View 2.0 online platform. Provides trading platform and regulatory oversight for securities transactions. Nathaniel Zawadzki holds Series 7 and Series 66 licenses through LPL Financial. Peter Hafner holds Series 7, Series 24, and Series 63 licenses held through LPL Financial.
• Next Financial Group, Inc.coreTechnology or IntegrationBroker/dealer relationship for execution of trades including mutual funds, stocks, bonds, real estate investment, trusts, and variable annuities. Trade execution services for client investment portfolios.
• eMoneysupportingTechnology or IntegrationAll-encompassing financial data platform for clients to view and engage with their financial plans. Connects all accounts including assets held away, allows document sharing with HFG team, and provides comprehensive portfolio visualization.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Personal Capital (now Empower Personal Dashboard): Tech-forward advisory platform combining financial planning with managed portfolios, with strong penetration among HNW and mass-affluent households. Direct substitute for HFG's planning-plus-investment-management offering, differentiated by technology and national reach.
• Carson Group: Large RIA serving households and partner advisors with holistic financial planning and retirement-income solutions. Same retirement-planning niche and independent RIA positioning as HFG, with significantly greater scale and product breadth.
• Edelman Financial Engines: National RIA with deep retirement-income planning focus and a planning-led, fee-only model. Comparable to HFG in client persona (pre-retirees/retirees), fiduciary stance, and emphasis on goal-based planning; materially larger in scale and geography.
• Mariner Wealth Advisors: Independent RIA offering comprehensive financial planning, retirement, tax, and estate services to high-net-worth and emerging-HNW households. Overlaps with HFG in the planning-led, fee-only proposition but operates at much larger scale.
• Creative Planning: Large independent, fee-only RIA providing comprehensive financial planning and investment management to households across the U.S. Same planning-led model and target client as HFG, with national reach instead of a regional footprint.

Emerging players

• Facet Wealth: Tech-enabled, flat-fee financial planning firm delivering comprehensive plans and ongoing advice via remote CFPs. Competes with HFG for the same retirement-planning segment but via a digital, distributed delivery model.
• Ellevest: Goal-based investing and planning platform with strong retirement-income messaging. Partial overlap with HFG's retirement persona, but targets a more digital, self-directed user than the white-glove planning model.

Direct peers

• Savant Wealth Management: Fee-only RIA offering retirement, investment, tax, and estate planning to individuals and families. Similar planning-led, comprehensive-service model as HFG; operates across multiple states, slightly larger scale.
• Buckingham Strategic Wealth: Independent, fee-only RIA delivering comprehensive financial planning with a focus on evidence-based investment management and retirement strategies. Closest in business model, fee-only stance, and planning-led approach to a small-practice firm like HFG.

Regional players

• Centerpiece Financial Group: Mid-Atlantic regional RIA focused on retirement income and pre-retiree planning. Shares HFG's small-firm, comprehensive-planning approach and retirement niche but serves a different geographic market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hafner Financial Group