Facet entered the spotlight in 2016 when it announced its plan to challenge the traditional wealth management fee model. Nearly a decade later, the subscription-based wealth manager continues to expand—and its latest move adds another layer of integration for clients: tax preparation and filing, now available across all service tiers.
“We’re huge believers in creating a one-stop shop for all of your financial needs,” says Anders Jones, Facet’s co-founder and CEO. “We already deliver tax advice and strategy, but we didn’t actually handle filing. Automatic tax filing has been the single most requested feature from our clients.”
The new service comes through a commercial partnership with april, a tax platform designed for advisors who want to deliver tax services under their own branding. For Facet, it’s a natural extension of a broader approach that integrates third-party solutions. The firm already relies on Wealth.com for estate planning, Orion for direct indexing and alternative investment capabilities, and PolicyGenius for life insurance offerings. Tax filing simply closes another gap in the financial planning process.
The move also reflects a broader industry trend. For decades, wealth advisors and CPAs operated in separate lanes: advisors handled investment advice and planning, while CPAs executed the tax return. That division is breaking down as more advisory firms bring tax preparation directly into their value proposition. For clients, it simplifies a frustrating disconnect.
“A huge friction point for customers is getting advice in one place and then having to take that information somewhere else to actually file,” Jones explains. “Integrating it solves that pain.”
Unlike traditional RIAs that charge a fee based on assets under management, Facet uses a flat subscription model. It offers three pricing tiers ranging from $2,100 to $7,600 annually, with tax prep included at every level but with different scopes of service depending on the tier. Jones argues that this approach has resonated most strongly with mass affluent and younger households, a demographic segment increasingly wary of percentage-based fees.
“I think younger generations are wising up to fee structures,” Jones says. “Financial advisors across the industry often operate with ridiculously high margins. We’re much more focused on capturing market share and providing transparent pricing.”
The flat-fee model, however, comes with its own challenges. Firms that rely on it have to balance profitability with the costs of maintaining experienced advisors. Range, another flat-fee fintech, has publicly suggested that the long-term solution may be replacing human advisors with artificial intelligence. Facet, however, sees the equation differently.
“For a tech company, we actually hold a somewhat counterintuitive view: humans are incredibly important,” Jones says. “Technology can make us more efficient, but it’s the human relationships that anchor the client experience.”
That philosophy has helped Facet build steady—if measured—growth. At the end of 2024, the firm managed $3.5 billion for 11,000 clients. Today, assets have grown to roughly $4.7 billion across about 12,000 households. It’s progress, but not the type of hypergrowth some fintechs have pursued.
Jones says that’s by design. In 2024, he had floated that an IPO might be on the horizon. Now, he says public markets aren’t a priority. “The cost of being public is very high,” he notes, pointing to the added regulatory, compliance, and investor relations burdens. Instead, Facet is content to refine its platform, grow its client base, and strengthen its long-term business fundamentals.
The firm’s expansion into tax filing is part of a larger strategy to position itself as a full-service financial hub. Banking services—including checking and savings—could be next, Jones says. The logic is straightforward: clients want a consolidated financial experience, and advisors who can deliver that will deepen loyalty and wallet share.
“The goal is to address all of a client’s financial needs for a single fee,” Jones says. “That’s the model we’re building.”
For RIAs and wealth management professionals watching from the outside, Facet’s trajectory offers both inspiration and caution. The inspiration comes from its commitment to simplifying the client experience and delivering services in a way that younger generations increasingly prefer: subscription pricing, digital-first delivery, and consolidated offerings. The caution lies in the challenges of sustaining profitability under a flat-fee model while continuing to employ credentialed advisors.
The rise of tax filing as a client expectation is particularly telling. Not long ago, most firms treated tax services as a referral opportunity. Clients were expected to take advice from an advisor, then walk it over to a CPA. Now, more clients expect a seamless, integrated service. For firms not yet offering tax prep, the question is less whether they will need to add it and more how quickly they can do so without overextending resources.
Facet’s use of partnerships is another element worth noting. Rather than build every solution in-house, the firm curates external providers to plug into its model. Wealth.com for estate planning, Orion for portfolio customization, PolicyGenius for insurance, and now april for tax filing—all are specialized services delivered under Facet’s umbrella. This approach allows the firm to expand capabilities without the heavy lifting of internal development, while still presenting a unified client experience.
It also underscores an important competitive reality: scale matters. Larger firms, whether fintech-driven or established RIAs, have the resources to integrate multiple services, manage vendor relationships, and offer clients an all-in-one experience. Smaller RIAs may need to consider how to keep pace, whether through custodial partnerships, white-label solutions, or consortium-based offerings.
Jones is clear that the demand for integrated services will only increase. “Clients want simplicity,” he says. “They don’t want to juggle multiple providers or explain their financial story five different times. That’s where the industry is going.”
For independent advisors, that raises strategic questions. Should they pursue partnerships with tax platforms to deliver filing? Should they hire in-house CPAs? Should they adjust pricing models to include tax prep as a bundled service? The answer may vary by firm size, client demographics, and long-term vision, but the pressure to respond is mounting.
Facet’s emphasis on flat fees is another shift that challenges industry norms. For decades, the AUM-based model has been the standard, but scrutiny of percentage-based pricing is growing, especially among younger clients who are more accustomed to subscription models in other areas of life. Netflix, Spotify, and countless digital services have trained consumers to think in terms of fixed monthly or annual fees. Wealth management is not immune to this cultural shift.
Advisors who continue to charge 1% of assets may find increasing pushback as clients compare fees not just to investment returns but to the scope of holistic services delivered. Transparency and simplicity are powerful differentiators in a competitive landscape.
At the same time, the flat-fee model does not fit every client segment. High-net-worth households may prefer AUM fees if they equate them with alignment of interests, while mass affluent clients may gravitate toward predictable annual pricing. Advisors who want to experiment with subscription or flat-fee structures may need to carefully assess the trade-offs in margins, service delivery, and talent retention.
Facet’s journey offers a case study in what’s possible when an advisory firm is willing to challenge convention. It has grown steadily by aligning its model with evolving client expectations, leveraging partnerships to expand capabilities, and maintaining a belief that human advisors remain essential even in a tech-driven landscape. Its expansion into tax prep illustrates how client demand is reshaping the boundaries of wealth management—and why the firms that adapt fastest are likely to win.
For RIAs, the message is clear: the future of advice is integrated, transparent, and client-centered. Whether that means adding tax prep, exploring subscription pricing, or deepening partnerships with tech providers, the competitive bar is rising. Firms that can deliver a cohesive, comprehensive experience will not only attract new clients but retain them in a marketplace where loyalty is increasingly hard-won.
As Jones frames it, the mission is simple but ambitious: “If we can remove friction from clients’ financial lives and bring everything together under one roof, we’ve done our job.”
Facet’s evolution shows that wealth management is no longer just about portfolios and planning. It’s about building ecosystems that meet clients where they are and deliver value across every dimension of their financial lives. For advisors willing to rethink their models, the opportunity is immense—and the clock is ticking.
