Financial advice, whole-of-life.

Inside the FAP regime, advisers range from product specialists (a single-line mortgage adviser, or an insurance-only broker) through to whole-of-life planners providing strategic advice across all of a household's financial decisions. Craig sits at the planning end of that spectrum.

Certified Financial Planner (CFP). The CFP designation is the highest internationally-recognised credential in financial planning. It's awarded by the Financial Advice New Zealand professional body and requires completion of an advanced planning qualification, demonstrated experience, ongoing professional development and adherence to a code of ethics. Fewer than 400 advisers in NZ hold the designation. It signals planning competence beyond the regulatory floor.

Holistic by practice. The Wealth Health advice model integrates the four service pillars (mortgages, KiwiSaver, insurance, planning) into one client engagement. The same adviser sees how the mortgage paydown rate affects the household's ability to save, how the insurance premiums fit alongside KiwiSaver contributions, how the retirement timing decision changes the optimal mix. This is the whole-of-life view that compartmentalised advice can't deliver.

Fee-based for planning, commission-funded for insurance. We charge a fee for the planning work because planning advice is structurally different to product advice. Planning advice tells you what to do; product advice helps you execute. The fee model removes the incentive to recommend products you don't need just to generate commission. For personal insurance, where the commission model is universal and any switch to a fee-based model would simply add cost on top of the existing commission, we use the standard NZ commission structure with full written disclosure.

One of the most important questions a client can ask their adviser is "how are you paid for this conversation". We answer it in writing in the Statement of Advice and we summarise it here.

Planning work: fee-based. Structured financial planning engagements are charged at $750 + GST for around 3 hours of work, producing a written plan with specific recommendations. The fee is invoiced directly to the client and is not contingent on any product being purchased. Larger planning engagements (multi-entity structures, business succession, estate restructuring) are quoted separately and confirmed in writing before any chargeable work begins.

Mortgages: lender commission. Mortgage brokers in NZ are paid by the lender on settlement, typically a small percentage of the loan size with claw-back if the loan is repaid early. There is no separate fee charged to the client. The commission structure is disclosed in writing and the recommendation must be justifiable on factors other than commission rate.

KiwiSaver: provider fee or planning fee. Where the client wants KiwiSaver advice as part of a broader planning engagement, that work sits inside the planning fee. Where the client wants standalone KiwiSaver advice (typically scheme selection and contribution review), some schemes pay an advice fee to the adviser; we disclose this where it applies.

Insurance: insurer commission. Personal insurance is commission-funded by the insurer, standard NZ industry model. The specific commission paid by each insurer is disclosed in the Statement of Advice along with the equivalent amounts from each alternative insurer considered. There is no separate fee charged to the client.

The structure is deliberately transparent. The client always knows who is paying the adviser for which piece of work and can make their own judgment about conflicts of interest.