Twelve questions on your wealth, structure, investing, services and how your family makes decisions. Each answer counts toward the options it matters to, and you get a fit score for each, plus an estimated annual cost at your asset level.
Families often build a single-family office too early and spend a large share of their returns running it, or stay with one advisor long after their affairs have outgrown it. Both are expensive mistakes, and both are hard to unwind.
The right structure depends less on a wealth threshold than on complexity: how many entities, countries, households and direct investments you have, and how much control you want.
Family principals, next-generation family members and family office executives, and founders after a liquidity event. It works best when several family members take it and compare their answers.
Usually not until your affairs outgrow what one advisor can coordinate: several entities or countries, private and direct investments, an operating business, or several households. Below that, a wealth manager or multi-family office is often more cost-effective.
Often $1M to $3M or more a year, depending on staff, services and investment approach. That's why many advisors suggest a single-family office only becomes economic at $100M to $250M or more of investable assets.
A single-family office serves one family with its own dedicated staff. A multi-family office serves several families with shared staff and systems, usually for a percentage of assets.
A small in-house lead, often a CFO or family office executive, who coordinates outside specialists for investing, accounting, tax and legal work. It sits between a multi-family office and a full single-family office.
Most charge a percentage of assets under advice, often on a sliding scale, sometimes with fixed fees for services such as tax preparation and bill pay. Ask for every fee in writing, including fund and product costs.
From VC10X, hosted by Prashant Choubey. Updated .