--- title: "Financial Planning Practice Valuation Melbourne" url: https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/industries/financial-planning-practices/ description: "Valuations of Melbourne financial planning practices and client books: ongoing fee renewals, licensing, adviser retention, client mix. From $1,495 + GST." updated: 2026-11-11 --- # Financial planning practice valuations for Melbourne advisers selling, buying or bringing in a partner. For the sale of a client book or a whole advice business, an adviser retiring, a junior adviser buying in, and transfers between entities. Fixed fee, set by turnover. [Talk to a valuer (15 min)](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/contact/)[All industries](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/industries/) A Melbourne financial planning practice is valued on the ongoing advice fees its clients keep renewing, less the cost of servicing them, after the selling adviser is replaced at a market salary. Our valuers test how many clients are on current ongoing fee arrangements, how those clients are likely to respond to a new adviser, and whether the practice's licensing and file history will stand up to a buyer's review. One-off advice fees count, but they are valued as less certain income. ## Recurring advice fees are the core of the value What a buyer is really purchasing is a group of clients who pay each year for ongoing advice. So the valuation starts with the revenue split: ongoing fees, one-off strategy and implementation fees, and any other income. It then looks at the clients behind the ongoing fees, sorted by the size of fee, age, and whether they are building wealth or drawing down in retirement. A Camberwell or Balwyn book weighted to retirees has different prospects from a younger book of professionals in Richmond or the inner north, even with the same revenue today. Client concentration matters too: if a few family groups pay a large share of fees, losing one of them after the sale changes the numbers quickly. Our signed reports are a fixed fee of $1,495 + GST for a small business and $2,495 + GST for a medium business, and every one is independently reviewed by a suitably qualified business valuer. A small-business report is delivered in 2 business days and a medium-business report in 3 business days. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. Business Valuations Melbourne is not a registered tax agent. Get a fixed fee[Ask the valuer first](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/contact/) ## Renewals, consent and what happens when a practice changes hands Ongoing fees depend on the client agreeing to keep paying. ASIC's guidance explains that a client renews an ongoing fee arrangement in writing within a set renewal window, and that if a fee recipient does not meet its obligations, or the client does not renew, the arrangement terminates and ongoing fees must not keep being charged. On a sale, ASIC says the rights under an arrangement can be transferred to a new fee recipient without automatically needing a new written consent, as long as the arrangement otherwise stays the same, and that clients should be told about the change by both the old and new fee recipient. For a valuation, the renewal history is evidence: a practice whose clients renew steadily and on time is lower risk than one with many lapsed or late renewals. Whether a particular arrangement complies is for the licensee and its lawyers. ## Licensing and the adviser who stays Running a financial advice business needs authorisation. ASIC says you generally need to be authorised under an Australian financial services licence to run a financial services business, either as the licensee or as an authorised representative of a licensee. An authorised representative who is a relevant provider must also be appointed to the Financial Advisers Register. In practice, many Melbourne practices operate as authorised representatives of a larger licensee, so the buyer needs a licensee willing to take on the business, and the licensee may have its own rules about sales. The valuation also asks who will look after the clients after completion. A seller who stays on for a handover period usually protects more of the book than one who leaves at settlement, and the report says what was assumed. ## File quality, past advice and costs a buyer will look at Buyers of advice practices look hard at the files. Missing statements of advice, old fee arrangements, or reviews that never happened are all things a buyer may have to fix, and past advice or fee issues can come back as a cost after the sale. The valuer does not audit advice quality, but records what the licensee's own audits found and treats unresolved issues as a risk. On the cost side, the valuer sets a market salary for each adviser and paraplanner, and keeps in licensee fees, software, professional indemnity cover and rent at their real level. ## When Melbourne advice practices are valued - Sale of a client book or the whole practice to another adviser or a larger group - An adviser retiring and a junior adviser buying them out over time - A partner or shareholder leaving an advice business - Moving the practice from one licensee to another, or between family entities - Estate planning for an adviser who owns the business personally - Market value evidence for small business CGT concessions on exit (your accountant applies them) ## Common questions. How much is my financial planning business worth? + The main driver is the ongoing advice revenue that will keep renewing once you hand over, after paying someone to do your job. Client age, fee size, renewal history and how concentrated the book is all move the value. The report shows how each one was treated, so you and a buyer can see where the number comes from. Do my clients need to sign new fee agreements if I sell? + ASIC says the rights under an ongoing fee arrangement can be transferred to a new fee recipient without automatically needing new written consent, if the arrangement otherwise stays the same, and that clients should be told of the change. Whether your arrangements can transfer this way is for your licensee and lawyer. The valuation records the position they confirm. Is a book of one-off advice clients worth anything? + It can be, but less than a book of ongoing clients. One-off fees do not carry an annual renewal, so the buyer cannot count on them coming back. The valuer looks at how often past one-off clients returned for more advice and values that income as less certain than ongoing fees. I am an authorised representative. Does that affect what I can sell? + It affects who can buy and how. You do not hold the licence yourself, so a buyer needs their own licence or a licensee willing to authorise them, and your licensee may have rules about sales of client books. The valuation is based on the business you own and the licensing arrangements the parties confirm. Will a buyer discount my practice for old files? + Usually, if the files need work. Missing advice documents, overdue reviews or fee arrangements that may not have been renewed properly are costs the buyer takes on. The valuer records what your licensee's audits found and reflects unresolved issues as risk, rather than ignoring them or guessing at their cost. What does it cost and how long does it take? + The fee is fixed before work starts and set by annual turnover: $1,495 + GST under $2 million, $2,495 + GST for $2 million to $3 million, $3,495 + GST for $3 million to $10 million, and a written quote above $10 million. Small reports take 2 business days and medium and large reports 3 business days, counted from when payment and all required information have been received. Related industries - [Accounting Practice Valuations in Melbourne](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/industries/accounting-firms/) - [Insurance Broking Business Valuations in Melbourne](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/industries/insurance-broking/) - [Mortgage Broking Business Valuations in Melbourne](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/industries/mortgage-broking/) Sources - [FAQs: Ongoing fee arrangements](https://www.asic.gov.au/regulatory-resources/financial-services/giving-financial-product-advice/fees/faqs-ongoing-fee-arrangements), ASIC - [Check if you need an AFS licence](https://www.asic.gov.au/for-finance-professionals/afs-licensees/check-if-you-need-an-afs-licence), ASIC - [Authorised representatives](https://www.asic.gov.au/regulatory-resources/financial-services/financial-advice/running-a-financial-advice-business/authorised-representatives), ASIC Talk to a valuer ## Tell us what you need valued. A fifteen-minute call confirms the package, the fixed fee and the delivery date, before you commit to anything. 03 8375 4177 Mon to Fri, 9am to 5:30pm Melbourne time Send the form and we reply within one business day. No documents needed to start. Small Business Valuation $1,495 + GST For a business with annual turnover under $2 million. Signed report in 2 business days. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. The fee is fixed in writing before we start and never tied to the outcome. Larger business? Tell us in the form and we recommend the right package. [All fees](https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/fees/) Last reviewed 11 November 2026 by Business Valuations Melbourne, Level 7, 55 Collins Street, Melbourne. --- Business Valuations Melbourne · Level 7, 55 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000 · 03 8375 4177 · https://businessvaluationsmelbourne.com.au/start/