By: Dr. Tamara Patzer
October 12, 2026
In brief: New York owners are often courted by wealth firms and multi-family offices. A New Orleans tax attorney lists twelve questions to ask before signing, based on his book’s distinction between wealth management and a family office, with New York’s estimated top 1% line of $959,562 and current national figures for context.
Owners in New York hear from wealth firms constantly. A sale, a press mention or a birthday seems to be enough. The pitches sound alike: personalized, comprehensive, family-focused. The difference lies in what the firm is built to do. A wealth manager is built to manage investments. A family office, in the sense used in Entrepreneurial B.E.A.S.T. Mode™ by New Orleans attorney Todd M. Villarrubia, is built to coordinate everything the family owns and owes. These twelve questions help an owner tell which one is knocking.
Why Does the Distinction Matter?
Because the product shapes the advice. Villarrubia states the difference carefully: “While similar to wealth management firms, family offices place a greater emphasis on personalized, long-term goals and legacy.” A firm that earns its fees by the size of the account it manages has reasons to focus on the account. A firm that coordinates the family’s affairs has reasons to look at the whole.
Neither model is wrong. The mistake is buying one while expecting the other.
Does New York Make It Harder?
It makes the choice more frequent. SmartAsset’s 2026 estimate, projected from IRS data and counting filers and not households, puts the income needed to reach the top 1% in New York at $959,5621. The state is full of owners near or above that line, and of firms eager to serve them.
What Are the First Four Questions?
They concern scope.
• What exactly do you do for a client, and what do you leave to others?
• Who on your team handles tax, law and insurance, and are they employees or outside partners?
• Will you speak with my attorney and accountant, and how often?
• What would you want to know about my business before giving advice?
The last question is revealing. A firm that cannot say what it needs to know about the company has not thought about how the company fits into the family’s wealth. The book describes a coordinated team of specialists in taxes, law, investments, insurance and business strategy who share the work. The test is whether the firm can show how it does that.
What Are the Next Four?
They concern money.
• How do you charge, and what are all the ways you are paid?
• Do you earn anything from products you recommend?
• What would my total annual cost be, in dollars, under a realistic scenario?
• What do clients pay for services you do not provide, such as legal or tax work?
Ask for answers in writing. A clear fee schedule is a sign of a firm that expects questions. Evasive answers are a sign to keep looking.
What Are the Final Four?
They concern fit and exit.
• What does a typical client look like, and do I resemble one?
• What happens if my family’s needs change or someone dies?
• How do I leave, and what does it cost?
• Can I speak with a client who has been with you for several years?
The point of the last two is not to doubt the firm. It is to make sure the relationship can end cleanly if it must.
How Does a Family Decide How Much to Spend?
By comparing cost to value, not by comparing to others. Schwab’s 2025 Modern Wealth Survey, which polled 2,000 adults, found that people put the cost of being financially comfortable at an average of $839,000 and the cost of being wealthy at $2.3 million2. Those are opinions about what wealth takes. They are not guides to what coordination should cost.
A better comparison is the cost of the disorder the firm would fix. If the family now pays several advisers who do not talk, loses time looking for documents and risks conflicts between plans, those costs belong on the other side of the ledger when weighing a coordinator’s fee. If the family is organized, a lighter arrangement is likely enough.
Is Bigger Always Better?
No. The book is direct: “Not every family requires a full-service family office.” A large firm with many services may be wasteful for a household whose main need is a lead adviser and a calendar. A boutique may be right for a family that wants personal attention and a limited scope.
Data on wealth concentration show why firms court the top end. The Federal Reserve’s distributional accounts, reported through FRED, show about $60.3 trillion of net worth held by the top 1% in the second quarter of 20263. A firm’s marketing reflects its interest in that pool, which is fair, but the family’s interests are what matter in the decision.
What Should the Family Do Before the Meeting?
Make the one-page map of entities, accounts, documents and advisers. Write down the family’s goals in a paragraph. Decide which questions in the list matter most. Bring the attorney and the accountant into the conversation early, and ask what they think.
If the firm resists input from the existing advisers, that is a sign. The book says a good professional views colleagues as partners and not rivals, and the same standard applies to a firm that wants to join the team.
What Is the Quiet Red Flag?
A firm that talks mostly about itself. Listen for how many sentences begin with the firm’s name and how many begin with the family’s goals. The strongest firms ask more than they tell in a first meeting. They want to know who depends on the owner, what happens if the company is sold, and which relationships in the family are delicate.
A good first meeting should leave the owner with a clearer view of their own situation, not just a clearer view of the firm. If the owner leaves with a brochure and a promise to follow up, the firm has sold itself. If the owner leaves with a list of questions about their own affairs, the firm has started to serve.
Common Questions
Should I ask for references? Yes, and speak to at least one long-term client.
Is a fee-only firm better? It depends on the arrangement. Ask how every fee works and judge by clarity.
Can I hire a firm and still use my lawyer? You should. A good firm will welcome it.
Sources
• SmartAsset, Income Needed to Be in the Top 1% in Every State (2026)
• Charles Schwab, 2025 Modern Wealth Survey (Business Wire)
• Federal Reserve Distributional Financial Accounts, Net Worth Held by the Top 1% (FRED)
About the author. Dr. Tamara Patzer is a publisher and former newspaper editor. She was on the staff of The Charlotte Sun when it was named a 2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist for its Hurricane Charley coverage.
About the source. Todd M. Villarrubia is an attorney with an LL.M. in Taxation and a Juris Doctorate. He is an Accredited Estate Planner, a Board Certified Expert in Estate Planning and Administration, and a Fiduciary Investment Advisor Representative. He is the author of Entrepreneurial B.E.A.S.T. Mode™. Wealth Planning Law Group, 101 W. Robert E. Lee Blvd., Ste 404, New Orleans, LA 70124. Phone: 504-982-8207; email: todd@lawealthplan.com; website: lawealthplan.com
Disclaimer: Attorney advertising. Sponsored feature written on behalf of Todd M. Villarrubia. This article is general information, not legal or tax advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Results vary.
