Find a Financial Advisor in Illinois

Financial planning in Illinois at a glance

Illinois has close to 13 million residents, and most of them live in the Chicago metro area, which takes in Cook County and the collar counties of DuPage, Lake, Will, Kane and McHenry. Downstate is a different picture: Rockford and the northern river towns, Peoria along the Illinois River, Bloomington-Normal, Champaign-Urbana, the state capital of Springfield, the Quad Cities on the Mississippi, the Metro East across from St. Louis, and the hills and small towns of Southern Illinois.

Chicago is a global center for futures and options trading, banking, consulting and corporate headquarters, and its airports and rail yards make the region a national freight hub. Downstate economies lean on agriculture, manufacturing, insurance and higher education. Illinois ranks among the top producers of corn and soybeans, Deere and Company is based in Moline, State Farm is headquartered in Bloomington, and the University of Illinois anchors Champaign-Urbana. A floor trader in the Loop, a grain farmer near Decatur, a state worker in Springfield and a retired teacher in Carbondale all face the same state rules, even though their plans look nothing alike.

Financial advisors in Illinois: costs and services

Financial advisors help you set priorities, build a plan and make better decisions about saving, investing, insurance and retirement. Illinois has a deep bench of choices: national firms and private banks in downtown Chicago, independent advisers in suburbs from Naperville to Schaumburg, practices tied to insurance and agricultural lenders downstate, and fee-only planners who meet clients anywhere in the state by video.

These are the pricing structures you will see most often. Ask each firm how its fees apply to your own situation.

Wealth management in Illinois

Wealth management blends portfolio management with tax strategy, estate and charitable planning and, for owners, business succession. Illinois wealth managers commonly work with situations like these:

• Farmland and family operations. Productive Illinois farmland can be worth a great deal, which can push a farm family toward the state estate tax threshold. Succession plans need to keep the operation running while treating heirs fairly.
• Trading and financial industry pay. Traders, bankers and consultants in Chicago often have volatile income, deferred bonuses and partnership interests that require careful tax timing.
• Corporate equity. Employees of large companies in the Chicago suburbs and downstate may accumulate stock awards and purchase plan shares that create concentration risk.
• Estate tax planning. Because the Illinois exemption is far below the federal amount, gifting strategies, trusts and charitable plans often come into play sooner here. Our estate planning guide explains the core documents.

Many wealth managers set minimum account sizes, so ask about fit and fee structure at the first meeting.

Financial planners in Illinois

A financial planner creates a written plan that ties together cash flow, savings, debt, insurance, investments, taxes and estate basics. Certified Financial Planner professionals meet coursework, exam and experience requirements and must act as fiduciaries when giving financial advice.

Questions Illinois families frequently bring to a planner include:

• Funding college. Bright Start is the state’s direct-sold 529 plan, and Bright Directions is sold through advisors. Illinois residents can deduct contributions to these in-state plans, up to an annual limit, on their state return. Our college savings guide compares the options.
• Workplace savings. Illinois Secure Choice, a state-run Roth IRA program, requires many employers without a retirement plan to offer payroll savings. A planner can help you decide how it fits with other accounts.
• Debt payoff. Student loans from the state’s many universities and medical schools, along with high housing costs in parts of Chicagoland, make a debt plan essential for many young households. Our debt management guide covers common strategies.
• Planning around property taxes. Homebuyers comparing suburbs, school districts and counties often find that property taxes matter as much as the purchase price.

Curious how your plan stacks up?

An Illinois financial planner can review your goals, budget and savings with you for free. There is no obligation to keep working together.

Request my free review →

Retirement planning in Illinois

Retirees often find Illinois easier on their income than its reputation suggests. Social Security benefits are exempt from Illinois income tax. So are pensions from qualified employer plans, government pensions and most distributions from 401(k), 403(b) and IRA accounts, and there is no minimum age to qualify for those exemptions. What the state does tax, at its flat rate, is wages and investment income, including interest, dividends and capital gains in taxable brokerage accounts. Our tax planning guide explains how to coordinate those choices with federal taxes.

Property taxes are where many Illinois retirees feel the squeeze. Programs that can help on a primary residence include:

• The General Homestead Exemption and the Senior Citizens Homestead Exemption, which reduce the taxable value of an owner-occupied home, with the senior exemption available to owners 65 and older.
• The Low-Income Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption, which can hold the assessed value of a home steady for seniors whose household income is under the state limit.
• The Senior Citizens Real Estate Tax Deferral Program, which allows qualifying seniors to postpone some property taxes, with the deferred amount repaid later, usually when the home is sold or the estate is settled.
• Exemptions for people with disabilities and veterans with disabilities, applied through the county assessor.

Income limits and exemption amounts are set by law and change, so check with your county assessor or the Illinois Department of Revenue for current details.

Pensions shape retirement for a large share of Illinois workers. Downstate and suburban teachers belong to the Teachers’ Retirement System, university employees to the State Universities Retirement System, state workers to the State Employees’ Retirement System, and many local government employees to the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, with separate funds for Chicago teachers and city workers. Members hired on or after January 1, 2011, are generally in Tier 2, which has a later retirement age and smaller increases than Tier 1. Most Illinois public school teachers do not pay into Social Security through their teaching jobs, and the Social Security Fairness Act, signed in January 2025, ended the provisions that once reduced benefits for many of them. Our retirement planning guide covers the broader steps.

A typical Illinois retirement plan addresses:

1. A spending budget that includes property tax, home insurance, heating and healthcare costs.
2. Pension tier rules, survivor options and Social Security timing for both spouses.
3. Tax-smart withdrawals that rely on exempt retirement income and keep taxable investment income in check.
4. Estate documents and beneficiary forms reviewed with the Illinois estate tax in mind.

Life insurance in Illinois

Life insurance provides money for your family to replace income, pay off a mortgage or cover college if you die. Term coverage is the most affordable way to buy a large death benefit for a set period, while whole and universal life last longer, cost more and build cash value. Our life insurance guide explains how people decide how much to buy.

Things Illinois families should keep in mind:

• Estate tax exposure. Life insurance you own is generally counted in your estate, so a large policy can push an estate over the Illinois threshold. An irrevocable life insurance trust can keep proceeds outside the taxable estate when set up correctly with an attorney.
• Farm and business buyouts. Policies can fund buy-sell agreements between business partners or give non-farming heirs a fair share while the land stays with the family member who farms it.
• Creditor protection. Illinois law shields many life insurance benefits and cash values from creditors, especially when a spouse or dependent is the beneficiary. An attorney can explain how this applies to you.

The Illinois Department of Insurance licenses insurers and agents, accepts consumer complaints and offers license lookups. A fee-only advisor can review an existing policy without a commission riding on the outcome.

Investment advisors in Illinois

Investment advisers who are paid for advice are registered and owe clients a fiduciary duty. Smaller firms generally register with the Illinois Secretary of State Securities Department, and larger firms register with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Brokers are supervised by FINRA, and many professionals hold both kinds of registration.

Before hiring anyone, search the SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure site and FINRA BrokerCheck, and read the firm’s Form ADV Part 2 for services, fees and conflicts. Worthwhile topics with an Illinois investment advisor include:

• Concentration in one industry. Careers tied to trading, agriculture or a single large employer can leave a household overexposed if the portfolio leans the same way.
• Taxable account management. Because Illinois taxes investment income at its flat rate, low-turnover funds and careful timing of gains can help. Our investing basics guide covers diversification and account types.
• Pension coordination. Retirees with a large public pension may be able to take more risk in their savings, or may prefer a steadier mix. An advisor can help find the balance.

How to choose a financial advisor in Illinois

1. Decide what kind of help you want: a one-time plan, ongoing management, retirement income design or estate coordination.
2. Ask whether the advisor is a fiduciary for all advice, and ask for it in writing.
3. Get a clear figure for your total annual cost.
4. Search the advisor on the SEC and FINRA lookup tools, and check state registration with the Secretary of State if needed.
5. Ask about experience with people like you, such as TRS members, farm families, traders or small business owners.
6. Meet with two or three advisors and choose the one who answers clearly and takes time to understand your goals.

With phone and video meetings, it is easy to work with an advisor who fits your needs whether you live in a Chicago high-rise or a farm town far downstate.

Cities and counties we serve in Illinois

Cities

Counties

Illinois financial planning guides

Each topic has its own page with Illinois rules and costs:

Frequently asked questions