At Voyant, we’re always working to make financial plans as accurate and realistic as possible. One of our latest enhancements improves how fees are modeled within your investment and retirement accounts.
In the past, all fees were grouped together and automatically deducted from investment growth. This worked well for product fees charged by investment managers, but it didn’t fully reflect advice or platform fees, fees you actually pay in cash, which can sometimes create tax consequences.
With this update, your plan now separates fees more clearly. You’ll see a dedicated fees section showing:
Product Fees – deducted directly from investment growth, with no tax consequences.
Advice and Platform Fees
These include ongoing adviser fees, initial setup fees, or exit fees. They are modeled as expenses in the plan, giving you a more accurate view of their impact on cash flow and potential taxes.
Initial Advice Fees – Applied as a one-time expense when funds are first transferred into the account (if a fee amount is entered).
Ongoing Adviser Fees – Deducted annually from the account, reflecting the ongoing cost of advice and platform use.
Exit Fees – Applied as an expense when the account is closed and all available assets are transferred out (if a fee amount is entered).
You can view these fees in Year View > Expenses.
* Fees are deducted directly from the source account (e.g., an ongoing advice fee tied to a taxable brokerage account will be paid from that account). When this happens, the fee is split between your original investment (basis) and the growth (gains) in the account.
Here’s an example:
|
Account Value |
Cost Basis |
Gains |
Total Fee |
Fee from Basis |
Fee from Gains |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
$100,000 |
$70,000 |
$30,000 |
$1,000 |
$700 (70%) |
$300 (30%) |
👉 In this case, 70% of the fee ($700) reduces your cost basis, and a 30% ($300) gain is realized. Only the portion coming from gains is potentially taxable as a capital gain.
Explaining Fee Deduction at Source to Your Client
“Rather than paying your adviser or platform fees by direct debit from your bank account, the fees come directly out of your investment, Retirement or pension account. What happens is that we sell a small amount of the investment to cover the fee.
In your plan, this is captured in the cash flow, it shows the fees being withdrawn from the account to which they apply.
So, the fund or investment you hold essentially pays the fee itself. From your point of view: the portfolio is doing the work. You don’t have another separate payment.
This approach is more efficient and transparent. It means the fee is only met by the investment account it’s tied to, so you can clearly see the impact (and tax consequences) of that withdrawal. It also simplifies the process for you, since you don’t need to make a separate payment, they’re built into the plan.”
💡 Tip: If you prefer to keep your fees applied net of growth (and not displayed as expenses), simply use the Product Fee type exclusively.
For a full breakdown of fees in each investment, go to Year View > Investments and select the account. You’ll see “Net Growth After Annual Fees” along with a detailed dollar breakdown of each fee type.
Note: In Plan Settings > Account Fees & Taxation, you’ll now see a dedicated Ongoing Advice Fees section. By default, all values are set to 0%, giving you complete control to enter the exact fees that apply to your client’s plan. This ensures the software reflects your firm’s fee structure accurately while keeping the starting point clean and customizable.
Why This Matters
As a financial adviser, your value lies not only in building strong client relationships but also in presenting advice that is both clear and realistic. With this update, Voyant helps you demonstrate the true impact of fees in a client’s plan, something clients often find confusing or overlooked.
By separating product fees from advice and platform fees, you can now:
Show greater transparency – Clients see exactly how much they’re paying for investment management vs. your ongoing advice and platform costs.
Highlight your role – Modeling adviser fees as expenses makes the value of advice more visible, reinforcing the importance of your ongoing service.
Plan with accuracy – Because fees may affect cash flow and taxes differently, this enhancement ensures your projections are aligned with real-world outcomes.
Educate with confidence – The fee breakdown by basis and gains allows you to explain potential tax consequences in a way clients can easily grasp.
In short, this update isn’t just about fees; it’s about strengthening trust, improving client understanding, and making your advice stand out as both professional and practical.
Note: For Client's with White Labels if you would like to update your preferences to add in the various types of fee rates, please contact support@planwithvoyant.com for an update to your White Label.