You need to understand why you're doing what you're doing. Why are you moving from mutual funds to ETFs? Unless you have an advisor who is charging you a fee for their planning services, their compensation comes from the commissions earned on your mutual fund account. The commission structure is different depending on the class of share you own.
Why would you expect her to provide you service for no compensation? You could have gone and purchased no-load mutual funds or you could have purchased your ETFs from a discount broker, but instead, you chose to work with your advisor. Another example is that you could go online and purchase a will in a box for $20. But would you then take it to your estate attorney and expect them to stamp it for you without charging you?
Asking your advisor to change your portfolio from commissioned mutual funds to no-load ETFs would be like doing your taxes for free online using a free tax program and then taking your return to your accountant and asking him/her to bless the return and submit it for you for no compensation.
Incidentally, if you don't know the answer off the top of your head, you should ask your advisor what commission structure your mutual funds are in and what the expense ratios are. If you purchased A shares, it's likely that you have the lowest fees already and you wouldn't be served by transitioning to an ETF if your only reason for transitioning is expenses.
If you want to purchase ETFs through your advisor, she might be able to charge you a fee and handle the transition for you. Depending on your account size, I would charge a client between 1% to 1.5% of assets to manage their money. If you want ETFs, ask her if she can move you into a fee-based account and utilize an ETF strategy within the account.
If you want to find a good advisor, it's quite simple. Talk to a number of them and tell them what you're trying to achieve; also tell them what your biases and philosophies are. Then, choose the advisor you're most comfortable with.
If your sole investment goal is to minimize cost, use a discount brokerage and do it yourself. You don't need our services. Most of us who are extremely competent at what we do value our service and don't work for free. We have plenty of people who value our service and are willing to pay. It doesn't hurt our feelings.
You can indeed choose to work with a fee-only financial advisor. It's possible that your current advisor can create a financial plan for you in exchange for a fee. Be prepared to pay a significant fee for someone who is competent; I would charge you between $3,000 and $7,000 to prepare a financial plan for you if you only want to purchase fee-only services.
Many people who are following a Mustachian approach to early retirement wouldn't need a full-blown financial plan; the average Mustachian's situation that I read here in the forums is quite simple and the complex tax advice and investment advice that we render in exchange for our fees is unnecessary.
inthebiz is right. Those of us who are advisors have invested years of our lives and many thousands of dollars in our education to become professional, credentialed experts. We work very hard to help our clients achieve their goals and our clients gain many multiples of value beyond the cost of our fees.
It's possible that your goals don't need our help. That's fine. Usain Bolt doesn't have need for a weight loss coach, but that doesn't mean that a weight loss coach doesn't have a role to play in others' lives. You need to understand what you're trying to hire and then go and find an advisor who will fill that role for you.
I hope that helps...
