What a Slow Advisor Transition Actually Costs You
See the real cost of a poorly managed advisor transition: advisory fees uncollected, clients who don't follow, and AUM at risk. Built for firms recruiting advisors and advisors making the move.
The moment an advisor resigns, two clocks start running. Both of them cost money until the accounts are open at the new firm.
Clients who don't hear from anyone during the switch often don't sign the forms.
They just go quiet, and by the time anyone notices the revenue is already gone.
Calculate Your Advisor Transition Cost
See what a slow, poorly managed transition actually costs you. Pick your side and enter your numbers.
Docupace advisor transition cost calculator
Docupace Transition Assistant
When advisors move firms,
every week has a cost.
This calculator shows you the real cost of a poorly managed transition: advisory fees uncollected, clients who don't follow, and income at a complete halt. Enter your numbers and we'll show you exactly what's at stake.
Choose your view to begin
A quick example: $150M book at 1%
Your two answers give you an exact number.
Question 1 of 3
How many advisors do you recruit each year?
We'll use this to show your total annual exposure. Rough number is fine.
Question 2 of 3
Is this an advisory book or a brokerage book?
This changes how we calculate the cost, because advisory fees and brokerage commissions work differently.
Question 3 of 3
What's a typical book worth when an advisor joins you?
Total value of the client accounts they bring over.
For books over $1B enter in millions, e.g. $2B = 2,000
Question 3 of 3
What's a typical advisor's trailing 12-month production?
Total commissions, trails and 12b-1 fees generated over the past year. This is the number that's actually at risk during the move.
Question 1 of 3
How much are you managing right now?
Total assets you'd move to the new firm. This is what's at risk while accounts are being opened.
Question 2 of 3
Is your book advisory or brokerage?
This changes how we calculate what you're at risk of losing.
Question 3 of 3
What's your annual fee?
The percentage you charge on AUM. This tells us exactly what you're not earning every day accounts sit unopened.
Question 3 of 3
What was your trailing 12-month production?
Total commissions, trails and 12b-1 fees over the past year. This is what's actually at risk during your move.
Your transition cost results
Cost to your firm
$409K
Fee revenue and recruiting investment at risk on this single advisor's book.
Cost to the advisor
$178K
Income the advisor doesn't earn while accounts sit unopened. It directly affects retention and goodwill.
Unmanaged vs Docupace-managed
Without Docupace (90 days)
$409K
With Docupace (30 days)
$136K
You save $273K per transition by moving the timeline from 90 days to 30.
Management fees missed
$178K
A Docupace-managed transition takes 30 days. A manual one takes 90. That gap is 60 days of fees your firm collects instead of loses.
Revenue Gone Every Year After
$231K
Clients who don't hear from you during the switch move their money somewhere else. This repeats every year after.
What a slow transition costs your firm, per advisor
$409K
in fees and revenue your firm doesn't recover
Methodology & assumptions
60-day opportunity cost. Docupace targets a 30-day transition. The industry standard for manual transitions is 3–6 months. The 60-day figure is the conservative minimum difference between a managed and unmanaged transition.
20% client attrition. Cerulli Associates reports advisors lose roughly 11–22% of client assets during a transition, depending on the type of move. This calculator uses 20% as a conservative working figure.
Fee rate. A 1% annual advisory fee is used as a representative rate within the industry range. Kitces Research and Schwab RIA benchmarking place typical advisory fees near 1% on smaller accounts, stepping down for larger portfolios.
Brokerage / commission-based books. For commission and trail-based business, this calculator uses trailing 12-month production directly rather than an AUM-fee assumption. Permanent attrition is estimated at 20% of trailing production, repeating annually.
Model limitations. These are estimates, not forecasts. Do not use for financial planning or valuation purposes.
Trusted by firms connecting more than $2 trillion in AUM through Docupace.
Download Your Results
Enter your work email to download a branded PDF of your firm's numbers. We'll also follow up with exactly how Docupace closes the gap.
We'll email you a copy. Schedule a time to discuss your results.
The transition service is paid by the advisor, not the firm.
Your PDF just downloaded. Schedule a time to discuss your results.
What's at stake in your move
Cost to you
$178K
Income you don't earn while your accounts sit unopened at the new firm.
Cost to your new firm
$409K
What a slow transition costs the firm that recruited you: fee revenue, AUM and their confidence in the decision.
Unmanaged vs Docupace-managed
Without Docupace (90 days)
$409K
With Docupace (30 days)
$136K
You keep $273K more by getting accounts open in 30 days instead of 90.
Your income. Per day. On pause.
$822
This is what you're not earning every single day your accounts aren't open at the new firm.
Revenue Lost Every Year After
$36K/yr
Some clients use a slow, disorganized transition as their exit. They don't call to tell you. They just don't sign the forms.
Methodology & assumptions
60-day opportunity cost. Docupace targets a 30-day transition vs an industry standard of 90–180 days for manual moves. 60 days is the conservative minimum difference between fees you collect in one scenario and lose in the other.
20% client attrition. Cerulli Associates reports advisors lose roughly 11–22% of client assets during a transition, depending on the type of move. This calculator uses 20% as a conservative working figure.
Brokerage / commission-based books. For commission and trail-based business, this calculator uses trailing 12-month production directly rather than an AUM-fee assumption. Permanent attrition is estimated at 20% of trailing production, repeating annually.
Model limitations. These are estimates based on your inputs. Do not use for financial planning purposes.
Trusted by firms connecting more than $2 trillion in AUM through Docupace.
Download Your Results
Enter your work email to download a branded PDF of what your move puts at stake, and how to protect it. We'll follow up with next steps.
We'll email you a copy. Schedule a time to discuss your results.
Your PDF just downloaded. Schedule a time to discuss your results.
A Slow Transition Costs You in Three Places at Once
None of them show up on an invoice. All of them show up in the numbers above. Tap a card to see how.
A Concierge Service That Starts Before the Advisor Joins
Where permitted, Docupace begins before the official start date. By the time the advisor goes live, the paperwork is already built, pre-filled and validated. Accounts open faster, clients stay informed, and NIGOs drop to near zero.
Every Form, Pre-Filled and Validated
NIGO rates hit 40–60% on manual transitions. Docupace pre-populates every form from your data and validates before submission, so packets don't bounce back.
30-Day Target, Not 3–6 Months
The industry standard for a manual transition is 3–6 months. Docupace targets 30 days, up to five months of fees your firm collects instead of loses.
Client Data Stays Secure
No spreadsheets over email, ever. All client data stays inside a secure, compliant system, protecting your clients and keeping you compliant with SEC Regulation S-P.
Clients Tracked Every Step
A secure portal shows clients their status and next steps throughout the move. Anxiety goes down, attrition goes down, and the transition becomes a first great experience.
A Decade Of Advisor Transitions, Done Right
Advisor Transition Cost, NIGO, and Timeline FAQs
See your number, then let's close the gap.
Walk through a live transition with our team. We'll show you exactly what Docupace handles, how the 30-day timeline works, and what your firm or your move looks like with the right support behind it.