Zimmerman Wealth Management is a investment adviser based in Evanston, IL, that holds a 89.6/100 Fidelon TransparencyScore (90th percentile among SEC-registered advisers), with 6 registered advisors. Score based on public SEC and FINRA filings.
Zimmerman Wealth Management
Zimmerman Wealth Management, LLC · CRD #127526
A fee-only investment adviser with a clean regulatory record and fiduciary commitment.
Fidelon Fact Sheet
Zimmerman Wealth Management, LLC is an SEC-registered investment adviser in Evanston, IL. It used to be called Hefter Wealth Management, LLC. It has 6 registered advisors. It manages $472.4 million across 225 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. Its record shows no customer complaints, regulatory actions or fines.
Peer Context
2,471st of 23,937
SEC-registered advisers
Top 10%
93rd of 860
SEC-registered advisers in IL
Top 11%
4th of 20
SEC-registered advisers in Evanston, IL
Top 20%
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 - $5,000,000.
This fee is negotiable
“Although Zimmerman Wealth Management, LLC has established the aforementioned fee schedule(s), we retain the discretion to negotiate alternative fees, including fixed or hourly fees, on a client-by-client basis.”
From their Form ADV Part 2A. Most investors never ask.
Not included above
- • Mutual fund/ETF/closed-end fund fees and expenses (management fee, other fund expenses, possible distribution fee, sales charges)
- • custodian, broker-dealer transaction charges, wire transfer and electronic funds fees, markups and markdowns (bonds)
- • financial planning fees may be hourly ($95-$600/hour), fixed ($8,500-$20,000), or asset-based
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 - $5,000,000 | 1.00% |
| $5,000,000 - $10,000,000 | 0.75% |
| $10,000,000 - $15,000,000 | 0.65% |
| $15,000,000 - $25,000,000 | 0.50% |
Billed quarterly in advance
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
Things You Should Know
- Its brochure names research or services received from a custodian or broker (soft dollars) as a conflict, but it does not explain what this arrangement tempts the firm to do, say what the firm is paid for it, or say what it can cost you. Ask what the firm receives from the custodian or broker it uses for you, and whether that costs you anything.Items 10, 11, 12.B and 14
Conflict Audit
Zero material conflicts identified in regulatory filings.
Source: Form ADV Part 1, Items 6-8; Part 2A, Items 10-14
What this firm says about how it gets paid
“To the extent we charge an asset-based fee with respect to your account, we have an incentive to encourage clients to increase the amount of assets in their accounts.”
“The Brokers charge our clients commissions and other fees for transactions that are conducted through the client accounts established with the Brokers. In connection with our clients’ participation in these institutional platforms, the Brokers provide us complimentary access to information, software and technology that assists us in managing and administering client accounts, along with certain operational support services.”
Source: the firm’s own Form CRS, filed 2025-03-18 — quoted directly
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.
93/100
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.
51/100
Weak
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?
- Does it include everything the SEC requires?
- Required sections
- 96/100
- Does it explain how the firm's conflicts affect you?
- Conflicts of interest
- 79/100
- Can you tell what you would pay?
- What you pay
What to askAsk what you would pay in a year, in dollars, including fund and trading costs.
- 51/100
- Is it written in plain English?
- Plain language
- 94/100
This firm's Form CRS averages 80 out of 100. It adds 5 points once the firm's filings and record score 90 on their own; they score 89.57 today.
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.
The annualized fee for investment supervisory services is typically charged as a percentage of assets under management, according to the following schedule:p. 7
- 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.
Although Zimmerman Wealth Management, LLC has established the aforementioned fee schedule(s), we retain the discretion to negotiate alternative fees, including fixed or hourly fees, on a client-by-client basis.p. 8
- 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 firm may invoice a client for its fees, but more typically fees are debited directly from the client’s account by the custodian in accordance with the client authorization.p. 7
- 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.
Fees are typically billed quarterly, in advance, at the beginning of each calendar quarter based upon the value (market value or fair market value in the absence of market value), of the client’s account at the end of the previous quarter.p. 7
- 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.
In addition to our advisory fees, clients are also responsible for the fees and expenses charged by custodians, broker-dealers and other third parties, including, but not limited to, any transaction charges imposed by a broker-dealer with which the firm effects transactions for the client’s account(s)p. 9
- 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.
Upon termination of any account, any prepaid, unearned fees will be promptly refunded.p. 9
Does it explain each conflict of interest and what it could cost you?Brochure Conflict Specificity51/100
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.
As part of Fidelity’s institutional platform services, Zimmerman Wealth Management, LLC receives access to information, software and technology that assists it in managing and administering clients’ accountsp. 20
- Does it explain what this arrangement tempts the firm to do?Not found in the brochureStaff Bulletin Q11
You can only judge advice when you know which way it is being pulled.
What to askAsk what this arrangement gives the firm a reason to recommend, and how often that happens.
- Does it describe what the arrangement actually is?CoveredStaff Bulletin Q11
A conflict described in one vague sentence tells you it exists but not how it works.
The institutional platform services include, among others, brokerage, custody, consolidated statements and other related services.p. 20
- 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.
Fidelity also offers other services intended to help Zimmerman Wealth Management, LLC manage and further develop the firm’s advisory practice but may not directly benefit our clients.p. 20
- 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.
If the firm pays people who refer clients, does it explain those payments?
Payments to people who refer clients to the firm
- 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.
In the past, one non-related person provided one referral and is paid a fee on an ongoing basis for that client.p. 25
- Does it explain what this arrangement tempts the firm to do?Not found in the brochureStaff Bulletin Q11
You can only judge advice when you know which way it is being pulled.
What to askAsk what this arrangement gives the firm a reason to recommend, and how often that happens.
- 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?Not found in the brochureStaff Bulletin Q11
Benefits that are not cash, like free services or referrals, still shape advice.
What to askAsk what the firm gains from this arrangement beyond fees.
- 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 whether anyone was paid to refer you to the firm, and whether that affects what you pay.
- Hedged wording
The firm may not obtain execution as favorable as the execution obtained by using broker-dealers other than Fidelity.p. 21
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 DollarsNot applicable
Not applicable: the brochure describes custodian services only, not research or other benefits received
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
6 advisors
| Advisor | CRD | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas H Zimmerman | 1198889 | — | — |
| Daniel James Wood | 6611781 | — | — |
| Mona Hope Edwards | 5083738 | — | — |
| Marshall Garrett | 7350982 | — | — |
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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: 3.14 · CRD #127526