Based in Minnetonka, Minnesota
Flames FP is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, about five hours west; Milwaukee relationships run virtually. This page describes the Milwaukee service area, not a separate Milwaukee branch.
Financial advisor serving Milwaukee
A flat-fee financial advisor serving Milwaukee, WI.
Flames Financial Planning is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota and works with Milwaukee households through a virtual planning relationship. Fixed quarterly memberships coordinate investments, taxes, retirement, and estate guidance without an AUM fee.
Minnetonka-basedA Minnesota firm serving Milwaukee-area households; Flames FP does not claim a Milwaukee office.
$150–$1,650/qtrQuarterly memberships billed in advance, with no annual commitment.
0% AUMThe advisory fee is not calculated as a percentage of the portfolio.
Virtual planningMeet and collaborate from Milwaukee or anywhere else you happen to be.
Direct answer
How Do You Find a Flat-Fee Financial Advisor Serving Milwaukee?
Compare each advisor’s registration, fiduciary role, total annualized cost in dollars, the services included, and who you actually meet with. Flames Financial Planning is based in Minnetonka—not at a Milwaukee office—and serves Milwaukee households virtually. Memberships cost $150, $900, or $1,650 per quarter, with no AUM fee and no annual commitment.
A truthful local relationship
Serving Milwaukee without inventing an office there
A location page should tell you who is actually available, where the firm sits, and how the relationship works day to day.
Built for virtual collaboration
Meetings, document sharing, dashboard access, and ongoing planning all happen remotely, so where you live does not limit the advice you get.
Verify before you hire anyone
Check any advisor’s registration, services, disciplinary history, and fee disclosures before you sign. That applies to this firm as much as any other.
Wisconsin planning context
What actually differs about planning in southeastern Wisconsin
Tax rules are set by the state, not the city, and they change which decisions are worth the most. The full Wisconsin picture, with sources, is on the Wisconsin page. How those rules bear on withdrawal order, Roth-conversion timing and Medicare premiums is set out in the retirement tax planning overview.
Wisconsin tax treatment
Wisconsin taxes income in four brackets from 3.50% to 7.65%, does not tax Social Security, and excludes 30% of long-term capital gains. From tax year 2025 anyone 67 or older can subtract up to $24,000 a year of IRA and retirement-plan income ($48,000 for a couple who both qualify), with no income limit, at the cost of the state's credits for that year. There is no estate or inheritance tax.
Retirement income: Social Security untaxed; up to $24,000 per person ($48,000 joint) of retirement-plan and IRA income subtractable from age 67
All Social Security benefits are subtracted. Beginning with tax year 2025, a taxpayer who is 67 by year-end may subtract up to $24,000 of payments from a qualified retirement plan or IRA, $48,000 on a joint return where both spouses qualify, with no income limit or phase-out; the Department of Revenue has confirmed that Roth-conversion income, required minimum distributions and inherited-IRA distributions can qualify. The trade-off: in a year the subtraction is claimed, no Wisconsin credit under s. 71.07 (the school property tax, married couple and itemized deduction credits among them) may be claimed, so the two have to be compared. The older $5,000 exclusion at 65 remains for households under $15,000 ($30,000 joint) of federal AGI.
Estates: None
Wisconsin has had no estate tax for deaths after December 31, 2007 and no inheritance tax for deaths on or after January 1, 1992. Only the federal exclusion applies.
How local households are paid
Milwaukee's households are paid by manufacturing and industrial headquarters (Rockwell Automation and Harley-Davidson among them), by Northwestern Mutual and Fiserv, by ManpowerGroup, and by two large health systems and the Medical College of Wisconsin. Long tenures at public industrial companies mean restricted stock and often a defined-benefit pension; the health and insurance sectors add 403(b) and deferred-compensation plans.
Rates change; check before you act
Brackets, thresholds, and retirement-income rules are revised regularly. The figures above are for tax year 2025. Treat them as a starting point and confirm the current year before making a decision on them.
Federal and state, together
How Wisconsin Tax Interacts With a Milwaukee Household’s Federal Return
At 5.30% on most of a working household's income and 7.65% at the top, Wisconsin income tax plus Milwaukee- or Madison-area property tax can approach the federal deduction cap, and above $500,000 of modified adjusted gross income the cap shrinks toward $10,000. In retirement the Social Security subtraction and the age-67 subtraction remove a good part of the state layer.
For tax year 2026 the federal deduction for state and local taxes is capped at $40,400, shrinking above $500,000 of modified adjusted gross income to a floor of $10,000. IRS, Instructions for Schedule A (2025), line 5e.
Worth doing here
Wisconsin planning opportunities
Things that are worth doing in Wisconsin that would not be worth doing, or would work differently, somewhere else.
Draw retirement income steadily from 67
The $24,000-per-person subtraction resets every year and has no income limit, so a couple both 67 or older can take up to $48,000 a year from IRAs and retirement plans free of Wisconsin tax, year after year, rather than in lumps. Conversion income qualifies. Run the year both ways, because claiming it forfeits the state's s. 71.07 credits for that year.
The 30% capital gain exclusion
Wisconsin excludes 30% of net long-term capital gain (60% for farm assets) after netting the year's gains and losses, so the effective state rate on a large realized gain is well below the 7.65% headline. Depreciation recapture and other amounts taxed federally as ordinary income do not qualify.
The Edvest and Tomorrow's Scholar 529 subtraction
Contributions to a Wisconsin college savings account can be subtracted up to $5,130 per beneficiary for 2025 ($2,560 if married filing separately), with amounts above the limit carried forward. The limit is per beneficiary, so a grandparent funding three accounts subtracts up to three times that.
The first meeting
What the first meeting covers for a Milwaukee household
A discovery meeting is a conversation, not a pitch. For households here it tends to get to these three things.
A retirement-income design that draws steadily enough from IRAs and plans to use the age-67 subtraction every year from 2025, weighed against the credits it forfeits.
Restricted stock accumulated over a long tenure, and a schedule for reducing it that uses Wisconsin's 30% capital gain exclusion.
Pension elections against the rest of the household's income sources.
Who this fits
Households Flames FP often helps in Milwaukee
The common thread is a household with enough complexity that the decisions interact, and enough assets that a percentage fee gets expensive.
Corporate employees
See how the planning relationship works for this situation, what is included, and what it costs.
Pre-retirees
See how the planning relationship works for this situation, what is included, and what it costs.
Anyone comparing a 1% fee against a flat one
Run your own numbers before talking to anyone, including this firm. The calculator converts a percentage into the dollars it actually costs over time.
Watch and learn
Financial Planning, Explained Clearly
Start with three videos selected for this page, then use the controls to explore every published Flames FP video guide.
Videos 1–3 of 14
What Nobody Tells You About Earning $400K a Year
See why a $400K income can still leave too little investable margin and how taxes, lifestyle growth, and deliberate investing change the result.
The RSU Strategy Most $300K Tech Earners Miss
Understand taxation at vesting, check the withholding gap, and turn each RSU vest into a deliberate diversification and household-planning decision.
The 3-Account System for a $250K Income
Use cash reserves, tax-advantaged accounts, and a taxable brokerage account to turn a strong income into a repeatable wealth-building system.
The 6 Levels of Wealth for $200K+ Households
Use six stages to separate a high income from the wealth it actually creates.
The Most Underrated Retirement Account
How a taxable brokerage account can support retirement flexibility alongside tax-advantaged accounts.
How to Decrease Your Tax Bill
Review practical tax-planning decisions that can connect income, investments, retirement, and withholding.
Should You Invest or Spend Your HSA?
A practical framework for deciding how an HSA fits healthcare costs, taxes, and retirement planning.
Four Common Backdoor Roth IRA Mistakes
Understand contribution, conversion, pro-rata, and reporting mistakes before they create tax problems.
Direct Indexing vs ETFs in a Taxable Account
Compare diversification, tax management, cost, and complexity before changing an investment strategy.
My New Favorite Account to Gift Money to Kids and Grandkids
Compare the new child investment account with 529 plans, custodial accounts, Roth IRAs for earned income, and the family's actual goals.
Estate Planning Documents You May Need
A plain-English review of wills, powers of attorney, healthcare directives, beneficiaries, and trusts.
Flat Fee vs 1% Financial Advisor
See how a percentage fee changes in dollars as a portfolio grows and what to compare beyond the headline rate.
How Much Life Insurance Do You Need?
Think through income replacement, debt, children, childcare, education, and family risk.
Five Money Mistakes High Earners Make
Common coordination gaps involving taxes, cash flow, investments, insurance, and estate planning.
Common questions
Milwaukee Financial Advisor Questions
Does Flames Financial Planning have a Milwaukee office?
No. Flames Financial Planning is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and serves Milwaukee households through a virtual planning relationship. This page describes the service area and does not claim a Milwaukee office.
Can someone in Milwaukee work with Flames FP virtually?
Yes. Milwaukee households can meet by video, share documents securely, use the financial dashboard, and receive ongoing planning without travelling. Flames FP serves clients nationwide where permitted.
How much does Flames FP cost?
Flames Access is $150 per quarter ($600 annualized), Planning is $900 per quarter ($3600 annualized), and Premier is $1650 per quarter ($6600 annualized). Memberships are billed quarterly in advance with no annual commitment.
Does Flames FP charge an AUM fee to Milwaukee clients?
No. The advisory fee is a flat quarterly amount tied to the planning work, not a percentage of the portfolio, so it does not increase as investments grow.
What should a Milwaukee household compare between advisors?
Compare the total annual cost in dollars rather than percentages, exactly what is included at that price, whether the advisor is a fiduciary and fee-only, and who you actually meet with. Then verify the firm's registration and disciplinary history on the SEC's adviser search.
Is Wisconsin tax planning part of the relationship?
Yes. State tax treatment shapes withdrawal order, Roth-conversion timing, and where investments are best held. Planning includes tax guidance and review of a completed return; Premier adds tax projections and preparation and filing through an independent tax partner. The Wisconsin rules themselves are set out on the Wisconsin page.
Next step
Compare a Milwaukee-area planning relationship in actual dollars.
A discovery meeting covers your situation, your current advisor arrangement if you have one, and whether a fixed quarterly membership is a better fit than what you are paying now.