Advisors, lenders & money services
Books and taxes for fee-only financial planners.
Monthly subscription clients on different billing dates, one-time comprehensive plan fees, the occasional refund. Your own bookkeeper keeps each one straight, an accountant checks every transaction, one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
September made $8,600. Two comprehensive plan fees closed this month, so I flagged them apart from your steady monthly retainers.
- Monthly retainer batch, StripeSubscription fees
- Comprehensive plan, T. ReyesProject fees
- RightCapital subscriptionPlanning software
- Partial refund, client cancelRefunds
- Virtual assistant, biweeklyContract labor
Why your books are different
A fee-only practice's books go wrong in a few specific spots.
There is no custodian fee deposit to lean on and no commission check to explain away. The trouble here is dozens of small subscription clients on different billing dates, and project fees that look like a windfall instead of months of planning work.
-
1
Subscription clients land on different days all month
With forty clients each paying a monthly retainer on their own signup anniversary, deposits trickle in all month instead of arriving as one clean batch, and it becomes hard to tell whether the client base actually grew.
What we doRolls up every retainer deposit into one subscription total each month, so growth or attrition in the client base is easy to see. -
2
A comprehensive plan fee looks like a lucky month
A $3,500 fee for a full financial plan can take six weeks of meetings and drafting, and if it lands as one lump deposit, the month it arrives looks great while the months of work behind it look thin.
What we doFlags large one-time plan fees apart from recurring retainers, so a strong month is not mistaken for the new normal. -
3
A mid-year cancellation and refund gets missed
A client who cancels a monthly retainer partway through often gets a prorated refund, and if that refund is not linked back to the original fee, it just looks like an unexplained expense.
What we doTies refunds back to the original client and fee, so a cancellation shows up as what it is, not a mystery cost. -
4
Planning software costs creep as the client list grows
RightCapital, eMoney, or a similar planning tool often bills per client or per seat, so the monthly cost quietly climbs as the practice adds clients and rarely gets checked against what each client actually pays.
What we doKeeps planning software in its own category, so the cost is visible against the client fees it supports.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a fee-only planning practice.
Set up once for how the practice bills and what it spends, with no commission or AUM line to confuse. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Subscription retainersMonthly fees from ongoing planning clients, billed through Stripe or a portal.
- Project and plan feesOne-time fees for a comprehensive plan or a specific project.
- Hourly consultationsSingle meetings or second-opinion reviews billed by the hour.
- Refunds and creditsMoney returned for cancellations, kept apart so it is not mistaken for lost income.
Money out
- Planning softwareRightCapital, eMoney, or a similar tool, tracked as the client list grows.
- Registration and licensingState investment adviser registration renewals, filed as a solo practice.
- InsuranceErrors and omissions coverage sized for an advice-only practice.
- Marketing and websiteWebsite hosting, search visibility, and content costs.
- Scheduling and video toolsCalendly, Zoom, or similar tools for client meetings.
- Contract laborA virtual assistant or part-time paraplanner paid outside payroll.
What we watch for you
- Retainer client count
How many subscription clients are active, the clearest sign of steady growth.
- Project fee share
How much of income came from one-time plans, so a good month is read correctly.
- Refund rate
How much came back as cancellations, worth watching before it grows.
- The set-aside
What the practice will owe across every subscription client, tracked monthly instead of guessed at in April.
Ask Gus
Things fee-only planners ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
Yes. I roll every retainer deposit into one monthly total, so you can see whether the client base is growing without tracking forty separate dates.
I flag those apart from your steady retainers, so this month reads as a strong one, not your new normal.
Tied back to her original fee, so it reads as a cancellation, not a random expense. The accountant sees the full picture at tax time.
The tax side
The tax side of a fee-only planning practice.
With no commissions and no AUM fees, most of what matters here is structure and the cost of running a lean, advice-only practice.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- A subscription practice can still take the pass-through deductionUp to 20 percent of business profit can come off taxable income, though for a fee-only planning practice this deduction tends to shrink sooner as income rises. Gus keeps the profit number current so the accountant can plan around it before year end.
- Retainer income and the S corp decisionSteady monthly retainers can make a solo practice profitable enough that an S corp election, due by March 15 for the year, changes how much of that profit is hit with the 15.3 percent self-employment tax.
- A solo 401(k) fits a subscription-based practice wellWith no staff and predictable monthly income, a one-person practice can defer up to $24,500 into a solo 401(k), plus $8,000 more at 50 and older, trimming the year's taxable profit.
- 1099s for a virtual assistant or paraplannerA virtual assistant or paraplanner paid $2,000 or more in 2026 who is not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list running all year.
Deductions fee-only financial planners miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Planning software subscriptions
- State IA registration fees
- Errors and omissions insurance
- Continuing education courses
- Website hosting and design
- Client portal and e-signature tools
- Scheduling and video software
- Professional association dues
- Home office costs
- Conference travel
- Laptop and office equipment
- Virtual assistant fees
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A fee-only practice's year, kept every month.
Retainers land all year on their own schedule and project fees land whenever a plan is finished. Your team keeps the practice's own books current through both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Year planned
New retainer clients often sign up after year-end reviews, 1099s go out for anyone paid outside payroll, and last year's return gets started.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed, with retainer income tracked steadily since January, so the amount due matches what you expected.
- July
Halfway check
Where the practice stands, what it will owe, and whether retainer growth is keeping pace with the year's plan.
- October
Before year end
A look at software, a retirement contribution, or a project worth wrapping up before December, and next year's fee schedule.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for fee-only financial planners. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions fee-only planners ask first.
I have no AUM and no commissions, just fees. Does that make the books simpler?
In some ways yes, but forty clients on forty different billing dates still take real tracking. Gus rolls it all into one clean monthly number so you can see the trend without chasing each date.
Does Gus give financial advice to my clients or touch their money?
No. Gus and your bookkeeper only keep the practice's own books, what the firm makes and spends. Your clients and their money stay entirely with you.
A client canceled mid-month and I owe her a partial refund. How is that handled?
The refund gets tied back to her original fee, so it shows up as a cancellation, not a random cost. It will not throw off your monthly number.
My planning software bills per client. Is that worth tracking on its own?
Yes. Gus keeps it in its own line so you can see the cost against what each client actually pays, instead of it disappearing into general software spend.
I take on a few hourly second-opinion clients too. Does that complicate things?
No. Hourly fees get their own category apart from retainers and plan fees, so you can see all three kinds of income clearly.
My books are a mess from doing them myself for two years. Can Gus untangle that?
Yes. Send what you have and Gus sorts it, the accountant checks it, and most owners know where they stand within a week.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever