Burkett Financial Services

What Burkett Financial Services does

Burkett Financial Services, LLC (BFS) is a fee-only, SEC-registered investment advisory firm providing comprehensive financial planning services to individuals, families, and small businesses in South Carolina. Founded in 2000 as a spinoff from the predecessor CPA practice Burkett, Burkett & Burkett CPAs (established 1976), the firm operates from two office locations in West Columbia and Rock Hill. The firm does not sell financial products and does not earn commissions; compensation is derived from fees for advisory and planning services, with a fiduciary obligation to clients.

The firm's service portfolio spans six integrated planning disciplines: investment planning, insurance planning, education planning, estate planning, retirement planning, and income tax planning. The investment methodology follows William Sharpe's Modern Portfolio Theory with strict asset allocation across equity and fixed-income markets. Retirement projections employ Monte Carlo simulations based on statistical risk-return relationships to assess probability of successful retirement outcomes. The technology stack is composed of third-party tools: the Tamarac client portal (portal.tamaracinc.com) for account access, Dinkytown.net financial calculators for client education, and PrecisFP for inquiry intake. The firm holds no proprietary technology platform.

The firm is led by Managing Partner Kevin Smiley (CPA, CFP®) with a team of six, including multiple professionals holding dual CFP® and CPA designations — a credentialed depth that enables integrated tax and investment planning. Client acquisition is driven by direct outreach, professional network referrals, community presence, and content marketing (blog, video library, LinkedIn). The firm is privately held with no institutional investors or external ownership.

Name

Burkett Financial Services

Legal name

Burkett Financial Services, LLC

Website

https://burkettfs.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Burkett Financial Services is a fee-only, SEC-registered investment advisory firm providing integrated financial planning—investment, retirement, tax, estate, education, and insurance—to individuals, families, and small businesses across South Carolina, operating from West Columbia and Rock Hill.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Advisory Services

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Fee-Only Advisory (FSAEAAAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Comprehensive Financial Planning (FSAEAAAA)

Keywords

• Financial planning services
• Investment advisory
• Retirement planning
• Tax planning services
• Estate planning services

Headquarters

HQ city

West Columbia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Fee-Only Financial Planning and Advisory: Burkett Financial Services operates as a fee-only registered investment advisor with a fiduciary obligation to clients. The firm is compensated through fees for financial advice and planning services rather than product sales commissions, ensuring recommendations are driven by client goals rather than advisor compensation. As a registered investment advisor with the SEC, the firm does not sell financial products but provides advice and implementation on investments, income tax, estate planning, insurance, retirement, education funding and other financial areas.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Burkett Financial Services is a fee-only, fiduciary registered investment advisor providing comprehensive financial planning across six core disciplines: investment planning, insurance planning, education planning, estate planning, retirement planning, and income tax planning. The firm serves individuals, families, and small businesses in South Carolina from offices in West Columbia and Rock Hill, charging advisory fees rather than product commissions to deliver objective, integrated financial advice.

Product overview

Burkett Financial Services offers a comprehensive, integrated financial planning service through six core planning disciplines: Investment Planning, Insurance Planning, Education Planning, Estate Planning, Retirement Planning, and Income Tax Planning. The firm operates as a unified advisory practice where these services are coordinated to work together as a full-scope financial strategy, rather than as separate standalone products. The firm also provides self-service financial calculators as supplementary tools for client education and planning purposes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Investment Planning Portfolio review service that eliminates unnecessary risk, minimizes taxes and expenses, and generates income, using William Sharpe's Modern Portfolio Theory with strict asset allocation across equity and fixed-income markets. Designed for individual and family clients seeking disciplined investment management.
• Retirement Planning
• Income Tax Planning
• Education Planning
• Estate Planning
• Insurance Planning
• Financial Calculators

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• South Carolina Business Review (NPR Radio)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 June 2009Burkett Financial Services staff member Neil Brown appeared on the South Carolina Business Review NPR Radio program in June 2009, providing financial planning commentary. This media partnership served as a top-of-funnel marketing channel to reach regional audiences in South Carolina.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Personal Capital (Empower): Empower (formerly Personal Capital) is a large digital wealth manager combining technology with human advisors to provide financial planning and investment management. Broad incumbent providing similar fee-based holistic planning, but at national scale with a tech-enabled platform.
• Fisher Investments: Fisher Investments is a large, fee-only investment advisory firm serving individuals and institutions. Broad incumbent providing investment management and financial planning, comparable in fiduciary/fee-only positioning but with a much larger, primarily portfolio-management focus.
• Edelman Financial Engines: Edelman Financial Engines is one of the largest independent RIAs in the U.S., offering comprehensive financial planning, investment management, and retirement plan services. Broad incumbent comparable in service breadth (investment, retirement, tax) but operates at national scale with a much larger client base.

Others

• LPL Financial: LPL Financial is the largest independent broker-dealer in the U.S., supporting thousands of RIAs and financial advisors with technology and custody. Industry ecosystem player comparable as the type of platform Burkett could leverage for RIA custody, though Burkett today uses Tamarac for its client portal.
• Commonwealth Financial Network: Commonwealth is a large independent broker-dealer and RIA platform providing back-office, technology, and compliance support to independent financial advisors. Comparable as the type of platform ecosystem that Burkett could partner with for scale, though Burkett uses Tamarac today.

Direct peers

• Buckingham Strategic Wealth: Buckingham is a fee-only, fiduciary RIA providing comprehensive wealth planning across investment, tax, retirement, and estate disciplines. Directly comparable as a fee-only fiduciary advisor integrating financial planning with tax services, similar in model to Burkett but national.
• Carson Group (Carson Wealth): Carson is a large fee-only RIA platform offering comprehensive financial planning across investment, tax, retirement, and estate services. It is directly comparable as a fee-only RIA serving individuals and families with holistic planning, though far larger and national in scale.
• Savant Wealth Management: Savant is a fee-only, fiduciary RIA offering integrated financial planning, tax, and investment management to individuals and families. Comparable as a fee-only RIA with multi-disciplinary CFP/CPA-staffed teams serving clients in regional markets across the Midwest and East Coast.
• BlueSky Wealth Advisors: BlueSky is a fee-only RIA with a team of CFP® professionals providing comprehensive financial planning. Direct comparable as a small-to-mid fee-only advisory practice offering integrated planning services similar to Burkett's model.

Emerging players

• Facet Wealth: Facet Wealth is a digital-first fee-only financial planning firm offering comprehensive advice remotely. Emerging player comparable in fee-only model and comprehensive planning, but competing on technology-enabled, lower-fee delivery where Burkett operates with a physical office model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/1990996

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 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 Burkett Financial Services