What Happens If My Financial Advisor Or CPA Retires Before I Do?

Advisor retirement is a documented industry trend, though the data has limits. Cerulli Associates' U.S. Advisor Metrics 2024 estimated that 105,887 advisors plan to retire over the next decade, which it put at 37.4% of industry headcount and 41.4% of total assets. In the same report, 26% of advisors who expect to retire within that decade said they were unsure of their succession plans. Cerulli's 2022 study cited 37% of advisors and $10.4 trillion, or 40% of industry assets. These are advisor-reported intentions, not completed retirements, and the exact percentages differ by report year and by how the sample is defined.

Comparable data on CPA retirements is limited, and surveys vary, so this article does not cite a figure. Many accounting practices are owner-run, so a single retirement can change who prepares your return. In my own work, clients in their 60s are telling me that their advisor, their CPA, or both are heading toward retirement. That is an anecdote, not a statistic, and nothing here describes your advisor or CPA in particular. Only they can tell you that.

The timing matters because your 60s are when planning needs peak. Social Security claiming, the window for Roth conversions before required minimum distributions begin, Medicare enrollment, the Medicare IRMAA surcharge that looks back two years at your tax return, and the order in which you draw from accounts all land within a few years of each other. An advisor and a CPA who have worked with you for years hold your history: cost basis on older holdings, prior-year returns, carryforwards, how a past decision was made and why. If both leave in the same stretch, you can lose that context at the moment you most need it, and a new planner starts with a blank file.

How a retiring advisor exits varies. Common models are selling the practice to a larger firm, bringing in an internal successor, merging with a peer, or winding down and referring clients elsewhere. For advisory clients, what usually changes is practical: the planner you work with, the fee schedule, the custodian that holds your accounts, the services included, and the minimum account size. Under the Investment Advisers Act, an advisory contract cannot be assigned without client consent, and a sale of a controlling interest in the firm can count as an assignment. SEC staff no-action letters have long been read to permit negative consent, where the client is notified and the contract continues unless the client objects within a stated period. How that works in your case depends on your contract and the successor firm's process, so read the notice carefully. State-registered advisers follow state rules, which are often similar. An adviser's Form ADV brochure is also where firm-level disclosures live, so you can check what the firm says there.

CPA transitions have fewer formal rules. A CPA practice can be sold or merged, and a preparer has no obligation to keep serving you. Under Circular 230, section 10.28, a practitioner must return records you need to comply with your federal tax obligations when you ask, even in a fee dispute. Where state law allows a retaining lien, the practitioner may need to return only the records that must be attached to the return, but must still allow reasonable access to review and copy the rest. Circular 230 covers CPAs, enrolled agents and attorneys who practice before the IRS, not every preparer, and state professional rules may add requirements. The practical point is simple: do not count on being able to rebuild your tax history later. Keep your own copies, and ask in advance how your files will be handled if the practice changes hands.

Treat succession as an interview question, not an awkward one. If you are choosing an advisor or CPA, ask when the person expects to retire, who would take over, how clients are told, and what happens to fees and services. If you already have one, ask the same questions at your next meeting. A clear answer with a named successor you have met is a good sign. A vague answer is information too. None of this means your advisor or CPA will fail you. It means the handoff should happen on a schedule you know about, not one that is announced with a few weeks of notice.

Think about the cost of a rushed switch. A hurried move during the year before Medicare starts, or in a year when a Roth conversion decision is open, can lead to missed planning steps or a conversion sized without a full view of your IRMAA tiers. A planned handoff, or a second-opinion review started early, lets a new professional see your file while your current team can still answer questions. Keep your own file as well: the last several years of returns, basis records, account statements, and plan documents such as beneficiary forms and your estate plan. Whatever you choose, ask the same succession questions of every professional you work with.

If a retirement notice has already arrived, slow down enough to read it. Check whether you are being asked to consent or being told the contract continues unless you object, and note the deadline. Ask how fees, custodian, and your planner will change, and whether you are free to leave without a penalty. You are allowed to interview alternatives before you decide.

• Never asking the advisor or CPA about retirement plans, and learning about it from a letter that gives a short window to respond.
• Assuming a successor will know your history, when the file may be a few forms and a spreadsheet and the context lives in the retiring professional's head.
• Replacing the advisor and the CPA at the same time, so that no one with prior knowledge remains to explain old decisions during your own retirement transition.
• Ignoring a negative consent notice, which can mean your contract continues with a new firm by default if you do nothing within the stated period.
• Relying on your preparer to hold your tax records indefinitely instead of keeping your own copies of returns and basis records.