Balance Financial Planning

What Balance Financial Planning does

Balance Financial Planning, LLC is a fee-only, fiduciary registered investment advisor based in Oakland, California, operating as a solo practitioner firm founded and led by Cheryl Vesely, CFP® and EA. The firm serves individuals, families, and small businesses with three core service lines: financial planning (retirement, college savings, goal planning, home ownership, estate, tax, and insurance planning), investment management using low-cost index funds and ETFs with ongoing rebalancing, and cash flow planning covering budgeting, tax planning, and retirement account analysis. The practice has no proprietary technology platform and relies on standard industry financial planning tools.

Revenue is generated through two streams: fee-for-service financial planning billed hourly ($400 for a check-in meeting) or on a project basis ($1,110-$2,220 for comprehensive plans), and recurring asset-under-management fees of 0.50% annually on portfolios up to $600,000 and 0.30% on amounts above. There are no asset minimums, and the firm offers ongoing advisory engagements for continuous portfolio management. Services are delivered remotely via video, phone, and email, enabling a national client base from its Bay Area headquarters, with optional in-person consultations for local clients.

Client acquisition is driven by an educational blog covering budgeting, investing, retirement, and tax topics, supplemented by a newsletter and free introductory consultations. The firm is privately held, bootstrapped, and founder-owned, with no external equity investment, partnerships, or institutional backing disclosed. Its competitive positioning rests on Cheryl Vesely's CFP® and EA credentials, NAPFA and FPA memberships, fee-only fiduciary status, and flexible pricing with no asset minimum.

Name

Balance Financial Planning

Legal name

Balance Financial Planning, LLC

Website

https://balancefp.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Balance Financial Planning is a fee-only fiduciary RIA in Oakland, CA, providing financial planning, investment management, and cash flow planning to individuals, families, and small businesses nationwide on a remote-first, no-asset-minimum basis.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Personal Financial Planning & Investment Advisory

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive Financial Planning (FSAEAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Financial Coaching & Budgeting Advisory (FSAEAAAH), Budgeting & Cash-Flow Management (FSAGADAA)

Keywords

• Fee-only financial planning
• Investment advisory services
• Retirement planning
• Cash flow planning
• Fiduciary advice

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Financial Planning Services: Hourly and project-based financial planning fees ranging from $400 for a check-in meeting to $1,110-$2,220 for comprehensive plans. Scope and complexity determine final pricing after initial consultation.
2. Investment Advisory Services: Ongoing investment management with assets under management (AUM) fees: 0.50% annually for portfolios up to $600,000, reducing to 0.30% for amounts exceeding $600,000. Includes developing investment plans, managing accounts, ongoing check-ins, and rebalancing.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Balance Financial Planning is a fee-only fiduciary advisory practice that delivers comprehensive financial planning, investment management, and cash flow planning to individuals, families, and small businesses. Services are offered on hourly, project-based, and ongoing engagements, with investment management billed as a percentage of assets under management and portfolio construction centered on low-cost index funds and ETFs.

Product overview

Balance Financial Planning offers three core service lines: Financial Planning, Investing, and Cash Flow Planning. Financial Planning is provided on an hourly, project-based, or ongoing basis, covering topics like retirement planning, budgeting, education funding, debt management, goal planning, investments, estate planning, insurance, employee benefits, real estate investments, and tax planning. Investing uses low-cost index funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for portfolio management with regular rebalancing. Cash Flow Planning addresses tax planning, budgeting, and retirement account analysis. Investment Advisory Services provides ongoing portfolio management with fee structures based on assets under management.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Financial Planning Comprehensive financial planning service covering retirement planning, budgeting, education funding, debt management, goal planning, estate planning, insurance, employee benefits, real estate investments, and tax planning, offered on hourly, project-based, or ongoing engagement to individuals, families, and small businesses.
• Investment Advisory Services Ongoing investment management service that develops investment plans, manages client accounts using low-cost index funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and provides regular check-ins and portfolio rebalancing. AUM fees are 0.50% annually for portfolios up to $600,000 and 0.30% for amounts above $600,000, with no asset minimum.
• Cash Flow Planning Cash flow planning service addressing tax planning, budgeting, cash flow projections, real estate analysis, stock option planning, and retirement account analysis (including Roth IRA vs traditional IRA decisions) for individuals and small businesses.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Wealthfront: Leading robo-advisor offering automated investment management and financial planning tools to millennials and mass-affluent clients. Competes with Balance Financial Planning on price and accessibility for the same customer segment, but lacks dedicated CFP® advice.
• Betterment: Large robo-advisor and cash management platform serving individuals and small businesses with goal-based planning and low-cost ETF portfolios. Targets a comparable mass-affluent and small business segment that Balance Financial Planning also addresses.
• Empower Personal Dashboard (formerly Personal Capital): Hybrid digital wealth manager combining free financial tools with human advisor services for higher net worth clients. Adjacent incumbent offering a hybrid model with elements of both Balance's planning focus and automated portfolio management.
• Schwab Intelligent Portfolios Premium: Hybrid robo-advisor with access to CFP® professionals at a flat fee, offered by Charles Schwab. Directly comparable fee-only planning and indexed portfolio offering, but backed by a major brokerage with broader scale.
• Vanguard Personal Advisor Services: Hybrid advisory service combining Vanguard's low-cost funds with human financial advisor access. Competes for the same goal-based, low-cost, indexed investment customer that Balance Financial Planning serves with a human CFP® model.

Emerging players

• Ellevest: Goal-based financial planning and investing platform originally focused on women. Comparable in targeting mass-affluent individuals seeking flat-fee advice and low-cost index portfolios, but operates as a tech platform rather than a personal advisory relationship.

Direct peers

• Zoe Financial: Online matching platform connecting consumers with vetted fee-only financial advisors. Operates in the same fee-only fiduciary, middle-market advice segment and could route clients to or from Balance Financial Planning's profile.
• XY Planning Network: Network of fee-only financial planners serving Gen X and Millennial clients with no or low asset minimums. Directly comparable to Balance Financial Planning's fee-only, no-minimum, hourly/project/AUM service model for middle-market individuals.
• Facet Wealth: Tech-enabled financial planning firm offering flat-fee advice from CFP® professionals to mass-affluent clients nationwide. Highly comparable target customer and subscription-style pricing model, though delivered via a centralized team rather than a solo practitioner.

Others

• SmartAsset: Financial advisor matching and personal finance content platform. Comparable audience overlap with Balance's blog-driven inbound funnel and could be a source of referral leads to or away from fee-only advisors.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/balancefinancialplanning
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/balance-financial-planning

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Balance Financial Planning