Only Fee-Only – Details, episodes & analysis

Curious about building a thriving RIA in just three years? Thomas Kopelman, co-founder of All Street Wealth, shares how he did it by focusing on content creation and tailoring services for high-income millennials and professionals with equity compensation. In this episode, Thomas walks us through his unique tax planning approach—adding value that goes beyond standard advice.

We also dive into the balance of scaling a firm while keeping a boutique feel, from hiring specialized planners to keeping communication crystal clear. Thomas reveals the power of authentic client relationships and content as a growth engine. Tune in for practical tips on scaling your advisory business and strengthening client connections!

👉 Want more from Thomas? Check out his social media course to level up your online presence and reach the clients you want!

https://www.allstreetacademy.com/advisor

Social:

x: @TKopelman

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomaskopelman/

Explore the journey of Tim and Alexis Woodward of Blend Wealth, where financial planning meets bookkeeping and accounting. Originally focused on blended families, they’ve expanded to support business owners by streamlining essential services into one integrated offering. In this episode, Tim and Alexis discuss how strategic partnerships and innovative thinking helped them turn challenges into opportunities for smoother client experiences.

Hear how they evolved from a lifestyle practice to a thriving boutique firm, driven by consistency and a strong focus on customer experience. They’ve built a network of loyal clients, embedding exceptional service into their daily operations—minimizing the need for constant prospecting and setting the foundation for sustainable growth.

Tim and Alexis also share the importance of personal development and building authentic relationships in the industry. Their story highlights the value of learning from experts and creative mentorships to overcome early obstacles. Plus, don’t miss insights into Blend Wealth’s latest marketing campaign and follow their journey on Instagram for more updates.

Curious about turning a love for numbers into a fulfilling career in financial planning? Join us for a chat with Brittany Brinkerhoff of Hilltop Wealth Advisors. Brittany shares her journey from college intern to leading the Ascend program, aimed at helping young professionals and families secure their financial futures. Learn about the subscription-based service she created for high-income clients needing flexible, affordable financial planning.

Brittany also discusses the challenges of moving to an independent advisory firm and the strategies used to keep client trust. She highlights the support from the XY Planning Network, which helped attract younger clients through online searches and local referrals.

In the final part of our conversation, Brittany emphasizes the importance of visual roadmaps in financial planning to reduce stress. She shares stories of clients with high incomes and significant student loan debt, showing how financial advice can turn anxiety into peace of mind. Connect with Brittany on LinkedIn or visit Hilltop Wealth Advisors' website to learn more. This episode is packed with insights for anyone interested in financial planning or improving their financial health.


Social:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittanybrinckerhoff/

Zechariah's Bio:

Professional Zechariah 👨‍💼
In his role, Zechariah loves the challenge of communicating complex financial information and the joy of building long-term relationships with clients. He begins each of his partnerships with a series of conversations to discover and prioritize his client’s goals and interests. Zechariah is dedicated to his clients and works hard to provide high-quality service to ensure they remain on track to reach their financial goals.

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During his schooling, Zechariah discovered his passion for empowering others to achieve financial freedom through tailored education and mentoring. He completed his financial planning degree at Liberty University and has worked at several premium boutique wealth management firms.

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One common theme that he noticed during his time working at those firms was the immense challenge that finding excellent, personalized financial help is for young people. He founded Ascent with the objective of providing this group of people with the quality financial help they need.

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Weekend Zechariah 😊

I’m all about living life as the adventure that it is! My passions are getting to know people deeply through genuine conversations, discovering unique coffee shops, & exploring the Blue Ridge Mountains, where I live. If I’m not outdoors, then I’m in a coffee shop helping someone reach their financial goals.

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I'm a technologist, advocate for accessible financial advice, & excited to be a part of the movement revolutionizing financial planning.


Music in the episode is provided by Bensound.

Angels Bio:

Angel has worked in the financial services industry since January 2018 after attaining a Bachelor of Science Degree in Personal Financial Planning from Texas Tech University. Texas Tech University is often regarded as the top university for financial planning and has produced more industry leaders than any other.

Angels’ primary goal as a financial planner is helping his clients light a financial path to dignity, awareness, hope and a worry-free life. Angels experience working with both the large broker-dealers and small family offices has allowed him to create a financial planning experience that is both personal and actionable allowing the client to achieve financial peace of mind faster.

Angel is an active volunteer in VITA, which is a nonprofit program that assists low-income individuals in getting their taxes done free-of-charge. Being involved in this program to help give back to the community is something Angel takes pride in.

In his free time, Angel enjoys being active, trying out new locally-owned restaurants, breweries, theaters, and other local businesses.

Music in this episode is from Bensound.

Tim Woodward Bio:

I am a number-cruncher to the core. I strongly believe that a data driven approach to wealth building is the key to helping people understand how even small decisions can significantly impact financial goals. 

I help simplify financial decision-making by letting the data do the talking and by applying my engineering brain to interpret numbers and translate what they’re saying into plain, simple, English.

I am a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional and joined the industry following a successful “first” career in engineering. I believe in the value of wealth building for all families and the positive impact that good stewardship has on yourself, your marriage, your family and your community.

I have always had a passion for helping others, and now I'm fortunate to help blended families navigate these same complexities that we have experienced on our blended family journey.

I have a heart for marriage, for families and blended families who desire great relationships combined with financial freedom. I love to spend time with my wife Alexis and our boys Conner & Christian. You will often find us outdoors exploring new parks, hiking, biking, camping or hanging out by the pool.

Alexis Woodward Bio:

As a kid, I loved the idea of saving towards a goal. Before I was old enough to have a job, I was running around my neighborhood trying to see how many lawns I could mow, which was pretty unusual for a girl in middle school.

I have always had a passion for Finance and Entrepreneurship, from mowing lawns to later begging my grandma to let me attend her financial planning meetings with her advisor. So if someone would have told the younger version of me that I would eventually be a financial planner, I wouldn't have been surprised. Now if someone had said that I was going to marry a man with 2 kids, I would have definitely looked at them like they were crazy!

Fast forward to today, I am a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, wife to my very best friend, stepmom, Believer and Co-Founder of Blend Wealth. I have a strong passion for marriage and a heart for blended families. I love being a family that serves families. We make a great team as Tim loves to crunch the numbers and I love to dig deep into the relational and emotional side of money.

Tim and I are fortunate enough to understand the benefits of having our financial life in order, and we want to help others do the same! Diving deep into our financial situation has brought more organization in our lives, stability in our marriage and more freedom in all areas of our life.

Music in Episode by Bensound.

Cody's Bio:

I am Cody Garrett, an advice-only financial planner passionate about helping families refine their path to financial independence (FI) as DIY investors. As a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional, I specialize in comprehensive financial plan development, topic research, and personalized financial education. I believe that truly comprehensive financial advice can provide the clarity and confidence necessary for families to implement their own well-informed decisions.

As a registered investment adviser, I am held to the fiduciary standard of care, legally and ethically required to act in your best interest when providing personalized financial advice. To provide transparency and avoid conflicts of interest, I do not receive any compensation from the sale of investment or insurance products and do not manage client investments. With advice-only financial planning, all recommendations are tailored to fit your personal objectives and values.

As a trusted source, my financial education insights have been featured in articles by Forbes, Barron’s, Yahoo Finance, FOX Business, MarketWatch, Morningstar, Business Insider, Morning Brew, and CNBC.

I am an alumnus of The University of Houston and completed the CFP certification program at Rice University. I fulfilled the CFP Board’s rigorous education, exam, experience, and ethics requirements. With tax efficiency as a core planning consideration, I also passed the IRS Special Enrollment Exam (SEE Part 1 – Individuals).

I am a continuous learner who believes there is always room for personal and professional development. I am an active member of the Financial Planning Association (FPA), the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA), the XY Planning Network, the FPA Next Generation Planner Editorial Advisory Board, and financial independence (FI) communities.

Passionate about helping others receive conflict-free financial education, I write comprehensive yet concise articles about various planning topics at MeasureTwiceMoney.com.

EXPERIENCE

As an advice-only financial planner, I have collaborated with hundreds of individuals and families to develop detailed strategies and provide clarity when making major financial decisions. With multi-generational planning opportunities, I have been fortunate to work with families of various ages, levels of wealth, educational backgrounds, and personal lifestyles. From the first dollar saved to the last dollar spent, I have helped families in all stages of life create a path to and through financial independence.

Previous years of experience as a fee-only financial planner have provided opportunities to review thousands of financial documents, create tax-efficient wealth accumulation and income distribution strategies, develop and rebalance investment portfolios, and encourage healthy family communication around financial decisions. Every financial plan is different, and I enjoy going beyond the ‘rules of thumb’ to help families refine their financial paths.

Music in this episode is from Bensound.

Thomas is a financial planner, the co-founder of AllStreet Wealth, as well as a:

• Blogger
• Podcaster
• Content creator

• Top 23 Millennial Financial Advisor by Business Insider
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After graduating from Butler University, Thomas has spent his entire career in the financial services industry as a financial planner. Thomas is passionate about helping millennials cut through the noise and figure out how to use their resources to accomplish what they truly want in life. 
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Outside of helping clients with their financial plan, Thomas enjoys working out, playing basketball, spending time at the lake with his family, and hanging with his friends and girlfriend. 




The music in this episode was obtained from BenSound.

Silvia is the Founder and Managing Partner of Manent Capital, a Boston-based wealth management firm that manages over $70 million and focuses on helping professionals understand their personal and business finances so that they can feel accomplished, confident and excited about investing in their future dream goals. She has over 10 years of investment and wealth management experience, including individual investment management, comprehensive financial planning and high net worth advisory.

Prior to founding Manent Capital, Silvia worked as a financial advisor at Morgan Stanley where she was responsible for providing clients with personalized plans to help them better manage their investments, cash flow and achieve their financial goals. Prior to this, Silvia worked with international ultra-high net worth clients at Credit Suisse in Zürich, Switzerland as well as J.P. Morgan in Boston, MA. Silvia began her career in Palo Alto, CA at Cepheid, a leader in molecular diagnostics and Instrumentation Laboratory (IL), a leader in critical care, hemostasis and point-of-care diagnostics.

Silvia received her undergraduate and master’s degree in Finance and International Management from ESADE, a Top-Ranked European Business School. Silvia is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®), the highest distinction in the investment management profession as well as a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®), the standard of excellence in financial planning. In addition to understanding the complexities of the changing financial climate, Silvia is held to the most rigorous ethical standards by both designations.

Silvia speaks English, Spanish, French and Catalan.


The music in this episode was obtained from BenSound.

Justin's Bio:

I am a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ practitioner, the founder and leader of RLS Wealth, co-founder of The AGC™, and a member of the XY Planning Network. Having spent my entire career in the financial services industry, I started RLS Wealth in 2015 to bring my passions to my work and help dreamers align their passions with their finances. Since launching RLS Wealth, I’ve been included in Financial Advisor Magazine’s Advisors To Watch 2019,  Investopedia’s Top 100 Advisor (2019 and 2020), and Investment News 40 under 40 2020 Class.

Purpose

My purpose is to live a fulfilled life and make a lasting impact on others as their guide on their journey toward fulfillment by supporting them and encouraging them to step out of their comfort zone to achieve their goals.

The music in this episode was obtained from BenSound.