Why family office costs vary so much
Family office fee quotes range from a few thousand dollars a month to several million dollars a year. That spread is not noise — it reflects meaningfully different arrangements. The main cost drivers are: how many professionals are dedicated to your family, whether those professionals are employees or shared across clients, which services are genuinely bundled versus referred out, and how complex your planning situation is.
Understanding those drivers is more useful than a single number. A provider quoting 0.85% AUM and a provider quoting a $60,000 annual retainer may be offering comparable scope — or they may not be. The way to find out is to compare service scope and fee structure in writing before you engage.
What a traditional single-family office costs (and why most families don't need one)
A dedicated single-family office — one that employs its own CIO, accountants, estate planning staff, and operations team — typically costs $1 million to $3 million per year in operating overhead, and the upper end of that range reaches $9 million or more for larger, more complex offices.1
That cost structure is generally only defensible when a family has $100 million or more in investable assets. At that scale, the direct oversight of the team, the tax savings from in-house coordination, and the control over investment manager selection can justify the expense. For families in the $5M–$30M range, the overhead cost as a percentage of assets is far too high — and the services offered by shared or fractional arrangements have improved substantially.
Multi-family office fees: the typical range
A multi-family office pools resources across a number of client families, making the cost substantially lower than a dedicated office. Most multi-family offices serve clients who bring at least $10 million to $30 million in investable assets, with some boutique firms working at lower thresholds for families with complex planning needs.2
Fee structures at multi-family offices typically fall into three categories:
AUM-based fees. The most common structure. Fees generally run 0.5% to 1.5% of assets under management per year, with larger accounts paying closer to the low end of that range. On a $10 million account, a 0.75% AUM fee means $75,000 per year. On a $20 million account at 0.6%, that's $120,000 per year.
Flat retainers. Some providers charge an annual retainer that does not scale with assets — common when the engagement is coordination-focused rather than discretionary investment management. Retainers at the multi-family office level commonly run $25,000 to $100,000 or more per year depending on scope.
Hybrid structures. A base retainer for coordination services, plus an AUM fee on the assets the firm manages directly. This structure is transparent about what the investment management piece costs separately from the coordination work.
What fractional arrangements typically cost
Fractional or virtual family office arrangements share professional time across multiple client families, which reduces cost significantly compared to a dedicated office. The result is access to coordinating-advisor services at a price point that works for families well below the traditional multi-family office minimum.3
Fee ranges vary by scope:
Coordination-focused engagements. If the primary value is a named coordinator who manages the information flow between your existing CPA, estate attorney, and investment manager — without taking over investment management — retainer-based fees typically run in the range of $2,500 to $10,000 per month ($30,000 to $120,000 annually). Scope at this level usually includes a planning calendar, regular communication with your existing specialists, and review of whether your account structure reflects your estate plan.
Full-service fractional arrangements. When the provider also manages investments, prepares consolidated reporting, and handles more complex planning coordination, fees at the higher end run $10,000 to $25,000 per month, or an AUM-based fee in the 0.5%–1.25% range applied to all assets under management. Some providers charge both a retainer and an AUM fee — read the fee schedule carefully to understand the total.
Families approaching a liquidity event — a business sale, a significant equity payout, or a large inheritance — sometimes engage a provider for a project-based fee covering the planning around that specific event, then decide afterward whether ongoing coordination makes sense. This is worth asking about if you are in that position.
What is typically included — and what is not
Before comparing fee quotes, clarify exactly what is bundled. Common inclusions:
Investment management for assets under the firm's advisory agreement. A consolidated performance report across all accounts. Coordination with your CPA (not preparation of the return itself). Review of estate documents and beneficiary designations for consistency. A shared planning calendar covering tax dates, trust milestones, and liquidity events.
What is typically out of scope, even in full-service fractional arrangements:
Tax return preparation (that stays with your CPA). Legal drafting of trust documents, wills, or entity structures. Insurance underwriting or policy administration. Bookkeeping for a business. Concierge or lifestyle services unless specifically included in your agreement.
The clearest arrangement to evaluate is one where the engagement letter specifies each service category, who provides it, and whether it is included in the base fee or available as an add-on. Vague terms like "holistic planning" or "full coordination" are worth pushing on: what does that mean in practice, and what evidence exists that it happens?4
The math for families in the $5M–$15M range
At $10 million in investable assets, a coordination-only retainer of $4,000 per month represents 0.48% of assets per year. That is competitive with — or less than — the incremental AUM fee many wealth managers charge for planning services above the investment management baseline.
The relevant comparison is not "what does this cost?" but "what does uncoordinated advice cost over time?" Missed Roth conversion opportunities, trust structures that haven't been updated in a decade, beneficiary designations that contradict the current estate plan, and forced portfolio sales to cover liquidity needs are the costs of inadequate coordination. Those costs don't show up on a fee schedule, but they are real and quantifiable in specific years.
That said, coordination is not free, and it is not automatically worth the fee. The clearest signal that you need it: your advisors regularly don't know what the others are doing, or you keep discovering decisions were made by one specialist without input from another.5
Questions to ask about fees before you sign
Before engaging any provider, ask these questions in writing and review the answers against the actual fee schedule:
Is the fee AUM-based, retainer-based, or both? What is the all-in annual cost at my current asset level? What services are included in the base fee, and what triggers an out-of-scope charge? Are investment management fees and coordination fees listed separately? Is there a minimum fee regardless of asset size? What happens to fees if I have a significant liquidity event and assets increase? Is the fee disclosed as a percentage of my total assets, or only of assets the firm manages directly?
The last question matters more than it seems. A firm charging 0.75% on assets they manage directly — but not on your CPA-held 401(k) or your real estate holdings — has a lower effective cost per dollar of total wealth than a firm charging 0.6% on total assets. Neither is wrong, but comparing them requires knowing which definition applies.6
Sources & further reading
Content reviewed September 2026. Fee ranges described reflect general market conditions and do not represent any specific provider's current pricing. Actual fees for any engagement are discussed separately and depend on scope, assets, and complexity.