Colefp is a investment adviser based in Birmingham, AL, that holds a 89.0/100 Fidelon TransparencyScore (75th percentile among SEC-registered advisers), with 2 registered advisors. Score based on public SEC and FINRA filings.
Colefp
Cole Financial Planning And Wealth Management · CRD #132562
A fee-only investment adviser with a clean regulatory record and fiduciary commitment.
Fidelon Fact Sheet
Colefp is an SEC-registered investment adviser in Birmingham, AL. It used to be called Cole Financial Planning And Wealth Management, INC. It has 2 registered advisors. It manages $102.1 million across 271 client accounts. It charges a yearly percentage of your account that gets smaller as the account grows, and it does not report earning commissions. Its services include financial planning and portfolio management. It reports that it can hold or access client money, which the SEC requires firms to disclose. Its record shows no customer complaints, regulatory actions or fines.
Peer Context
2,651st of 10,815
SEC-registered advisers
Top 25%
15th of 79
SEC-registered advisers in AL
Top 19%
4th of 37
SEC-registered advisers in Birmingham, AL
Top 11%
How This Firm Works
Registration & Standard of Care
Investment Adviser — this firm is a registered investment adviser, held to a fiduciary standard — legally required to act in clients' best interests.
How This Firm Gets Paid
- Charges a percentage of assets under management
- Charges fixed fees for specific services
- Does not earn commissions on product sales
What you’d pay
Blended across 1 tiers, from $0 - $1,000,000.
This fee is negotiable
“All fees are negotiable at the sole discretion of the advisor.”
From their Form ADV Part 2A. Most investors never ask.
Not included above
- • Fees for time based financial planning services: $270 hourly. Divorce planning: initial 10 hours at hourly rate. Real time planning: $750 flat. All fees negotiable. Separate from mutual fund and brokerage fees.
Estimated from the firm’s Form ADV Part 2A brochure — not a quote. Actual fees are set in your agreement and may differ. Costs charged by others (custodians, fund managers) are not included.
What This Firm Charges
| Account Size | Annual Fee |
|---|---|
| $0 - $1,000,000 | 1.00% |
| $1,000,000 - $3,000,000 | 0.60% |
| $3,000,000 and above | 0.40% |
Billed quarterly in arrears
Extracted from Form ADV Part 2A brochure
Specializations
Extracted from Form ADV Part 2A brochure
Key Findings
Strengths
- Fee-only compensation — no commission income reported
- Registered as investment adviser with fiduciary obligation
- No broker-dealer registration — advisory services only
- Clean regulatory record — no disclosures, arbitrations, or fines
- Transparent fee structure — charges advisory fees, no commissions
Conflict Audit
Zero material conflicts identified in regulatory filings.
Source: Form ADV Part 1, Items 6-8; Part 2A, Items 10-14
Regulatory Track Record
0
Disclosures
Clean record — no disclosures found
$0
Total Fines
Clean record — no fines found
Regulatory Events
TransparencyScore Dimensions
Disclosure Record
Customer complaints, arbitrations, and fines. Frequency and recency matter.
100/100
Strong
Avg for investment adviser firms: 82.6 | Top 10%: 99.5
Filing Quality
How clearly the firm describes services, fees, and investment approach in regulatory filings.
87/100
Strong
Avg for investment adviser firms: 84.1 | Top 10%: 100
Conflict Disclosure
How openly the firm explains who pays it and what it's paid to sell. The conflict isn't the problem — hiding it is.
70/100
Fair
Avg for investment adviser firms: 54 | Top 10%: 67
Enforcement History
Self-reported legal and disciplinary history from Form ADV Item 11.
100/100
Strong
Avg for investment adviser firms: 99.7 | Top 10%: 100
Their two-page relationship summary
The SEC requires every SEC-registered investment adviser to hand you this summary, called a Form CRS, and says what it must cover. We checked this firm's against that list. What is a Form CRS?
Not read
We have not read a Form CRS for this firm yet.
We have not read this firm's Form CRS yet. Until we do, the score above cannot go over 90.
What their brochure tells you
The firm must give you this brochure, Form ADV Part 2A, before you sign. We read it against the SEC's own instructions, item by item. Quotes are the firm's own words; page numbers refer to the filed brochure. What is in a brochure?
Can you tell what you'd pay and when?Brochure Fee Clarity100/100
The SEC asks every brochure to spell out the fee schedule, whether fees can be negotiated, how and when you are billed, the other costs you pay, and refunds.
The brochure answers every one of these.
- Can you tell what you'd pay?CoveredItem 5.A
Without a fee schedule you cannot compare this firm with any other.
1% on the first $1,000,000 0.60% on the next $2,000,000 0.40% over $3,000,000p. 6
- Does it say whether the fee can be negotiated?CoveredItem 5.A
If fees are negotiable, other clients may be paying less than you for the same service.
All fees are negotiable at the sole discretion of the advisor.p. 5
- Does it say whether the fee comes out of your account or gets billed?CoveredItem 5.B
A fee taken straight from your account is easy to stop noticing.
The fees are generally deducted from the client’s account but can be billed directly to the client if requested.p. 6
- Does it say how often you're charged?CoveredItem 5.B
Monthly, quarterly, in advance or in arrears changes what you owe when you leave.
The annual fee is paid quarterly at ¼ of the annual fee on or around March 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31.p. 6
- Does it list the other costs you pay, like fund and custodian fees?CoveredItem 5.C
The advisory fee is rarely the whole bill; fund, trading and custody costs come on top.
Fees paid to ColeFP for financial planning and advisory services are separate from the fees and expenses charged by mutual fund companies and their portfolio managers.p. 7
- Does it say how you get money back if you leave mid-period?CoveredItem 5.D
If you pay in advance and leave early, the refund rule decides what you get back.
ColeFP will refund any unearned, prepaid fees within thirty days of written request from the Client.p. 7
Does it explain each conflict of interest and what it could cost you?Brochure Conflict Specificity66/100
The SEC asks the brochure to name each way the firm gets paid besides your fee, what that tempts the firm to do, and what it can cost you.
Each point is marked Covered or Not found. When a point is not found, we say what to ask.
If the firm gets research or services from a custodian or broker, does it explain them?
Research or services received from a custodian or broker (soft dollars)
- Does the brochure name this conflict where the SEC requires?CoveredItems 10/11/12.B/14
A conflict named in the right place is one the firm has thought about; one buried elsewhere is easy to miss.
We may receive an economic benefit from our primary custodian(s) in the form of the support products and services they make available to us and other independent investment advisors.p. 11
- Does it explain what this arrangement tempts the firm to do?CoveredStaff Bulletin Q11
You can only judge advice when you know which way it is being pulled.
There is a conflict of interest since our firm has an incentive to select or recommend a custodian based on our firm’s interest in receiving these benefits rather than your interest in receiving favorable trade execution.p. 11
- Does it describe what the arrangement actually is?Not found in the brochureStaff Bulletin Q11
A conflict described in one vague sentence tells you it exists but not how it works.
What to askAsk the advisor to explain this arrangement in plain terms, including who pays whom.
- Does it say what the firm is paid for it?Not found in the brochureStaff Bulletin Q11
The size of the payment tells you how strong the pull is.
What to askAsk how much the firm or its people receive from this arrangement in a typical year.
- Does it say how the firm comes out ahead?CoveredStaff Bulletin Q11
Benefits that are not cash, like free services or referrals, still shape advice.
The availability of these services from a custodian benefits our firm because we do not have to produce or purchase them if our clients maintain assets in accounts at that custodian.p. 11
- Does it say what it can cost you?Not found in the brochureStaff Bulletin Q11
Every conflict has a price; the question is whether the brochure puts it in your hands.
What to askAsk what this arrangement can cost you, in fees, returns or choices you do not get.
- Does it say how the firm keeps this conflict in check?Not assessed yetItems 10.C-D, 11.B-D, 14.A
A conflict with no control on it is left to the advisor's goodwill.
What to askAsk what the firm receives from the custodian or broker it uses for you, and whether that costs you anything.
- Hedged wording
Our clients should be aware that the receipt of any economic benefit by our firm or its associates in and of itself creates a potential conflict of interest and may indirectly influence our choice of custodian for its custody and brokerage services.p. 11
Do they earn commissions on products, and do they say so?Brochure Sales CompensationNot applicable
Not applicable: the brochure describes no product-sales commissions
Do they get free research or services from brokers, and does it affect you?Brochure Soft Dollars82/100
When brokers give the firm research or services in return for your trades, the SEC asks the brochure to say what the firm gets and what it may cost you.
Each point is marked Covered or Not found. When a point is not found, we say what to ask.
- Does it list what the firm gets from brokers for free?Not found in the brochureItem 12.A.1.e
Research, software and data paid for by your trades are a cost you never see.
What to askAsk what research, tools or services the firm receives from brokers or custodians at no charge.
- Does it say the firm benefits by not paying for those things?CoveredItem 12.A.1.a
A perk the firm would otherwise buy is money in the firm's pocket, paid with your trades.
The availability of these services from a custodian benefits our firm because we do not have to produce or purchase them if our clients maintain assets in accounts at that custodian.p. 11
- Does it say those perks can shape which broker it picks for you?CoveredItem 12.A.1.b
Your trades should go where you get the best deal, not where the firm gets the best perks.
There is a conflict of interest since our firm has an incentive to select or recommend a custodian based on our firm’s interest in receiving these benefits rather than your interest in receiving favorable trade execution.p. 11
- Does it say whether those perks stay within what the law allows?CoveredItem 12.A.1.e note
The law allows research paid for with client trades only within limits; outside them, it is your money.
While our firm does not think these services are considered "brokerage or research services" under Section 28(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, certain jurisdictions where we serve client accounts believe they fall under this definition.p. 11
- Does it say whether you pay more in trading costs because of those perks?Does not applyItem 12.A.1.c
Paying up for trades to earn the firm a perk comes straight out of your returns.
- Does it say whether every client benefits or only some?CoveredItem 12.A.1.d
Your trades may be paying for research that helps other clients' accounts, not yours.
Soft dollar benefits are not proportionally allocated to any accounts that may generate different amounts of the soft dollar benefits.p. 10
A point not found is not a finding against the firm; many points apply only when the firm has that arrangement, and state-registered firms file the same brochure form.
Next Steps
Advisor Roster
2 advisors
| Advisor | CRD | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scott Douglas Cole | 4845583 | — | — |
| Adam Jeffrey Warren | 7451339 | — | — |
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does the TransparencyScore measure?
The TransparencyScore measures how clearly and completely an advisor or firm discloses important information in their regulatory filings — things like fees, conflicts of interest, disciplinary history, and business practices. A higher score means better disclosure quality, not better investment performance.
Where does this data come from?
All data comes from public regulatory filings: SEC Form ADV (Parts 1, 2, and 3), FINRA BrokerCheck, and the SEC's Investment Adviser Public Disclosure (IAPD) database. These are official filings that firms and advisors are legally required to submit.
Does a low score mean they're a bad advisor?
Not necessarily. A low score means the firm's public filings are less transparent — they may use vague language about fees, skip details about conflicts, or have a more complex regulatory history. Some excellent advisors work at firms with poor disclosure practices. The score measures the filing, not the person.
How often is this data updated?
Fidelon refreshes data from SEC and FINRA sources on a regular schedule. Form ADV filings are updated annually by firms (with amendments throughout the year), and BrokerCheck data is updated as events are reported. Scores are recalculated after each data refresh.
Can an advisor or firm improve their score?
Yes. Scores are based on what's in public filings. A firm that rewrites its ADV brochure in clearer language, discloses conflicts more specifically, or resolves outstanding regulatory issues will see its score improve at the next refresh. The incentive structure is intentional.
Data Sources
Scores are generated using Fidelon's published scoring methodology and reflect the quality of public disclosures, not the quality of investment advice. A firm that improves its disclosures will see its score improve. Fidelon does not provide investment advice.
Verify on SEC IAPD
Last scored: · Score version: 3.15 · CRD #132562