TIAA Institute: Financial Advice Changes How People Manage Money, Improving Financial Habits and Confidence

NEW YORK, N.Y., May 4, 2026 – The TIAA Institute's "The Value of Financial Advice" report released today finds that professional financial guidance is associated with improved financial behaviors, greater confidence, and substantially higher wealth accumulation across all income levels and life stages.

Advised Households Report Significantly Greater Wealth
Among those surveyed, advised households report an average net worth of $800,000, compared to $388,000 for those without an advisor, more than double, even after accounting for income and other demographic factors. The results also suggest that professional advice may deliver equivalent value of 140 to 240 basis points in higher annual returns. The value comes through better asset allocation, tax-efficient strategies, and optimizing employer matching contributions.

• Advised households demonstrate consistently stronger financial habits regardless of income.
  • 92% of advised households save consistently vs. 75% of non-advised individuals.
• People with advisors show 14-19 percentage points higher financial confidence on topics such as debt, emergency funds, healthcare expenses, and future financial preparedness.
• Advised households are also almost three times as likely to invest in mutual funds (23% vs. 8%) and nearly twice as likely to contribute regularly to a retirement account (30% vs. 17%).

"The TIAA Institute research supports our conviction that professional financial advice can be transformative for people at every stage of life," said David Nason, CEO, TIAA Wealth Management & Advice Solutions. "Millions of people are navigating their finances without guidance they not only deserve, but that could fundamentally change their outcomes. This report is both an affirmation of what financial advisors provide every day and a call to action for those who have yet to access guidance.”

The findings arrive during a time of market volatility while millions continue to forgo professional financial guidance based on misconceptions; that they lack sufficient assets (47%), that their situation is too simple (42%), or that the cost is not worth the benefit (40%). Yet, when asked about trust in an advisor, the data reveals more. Only 16% cite distrust of financial professionals, suggesting the primary barrier is value perception, not a trust problem.

The results also show that it is never too late to benefit. Even advice received at the point of retirement can increase sustainable annual income by 10%. Among people without financial advice, the perception of its value drops sharply after age 50, from 49% among those under 50 to just 20% among those aged 65 to 79. Yet this is precisely when longevity risks, including rising healthcare costs, long-term care needs, and the risk of outliving assets, make professional guidance most relevant.

“Our research has identified that financial advice can deliver both quantitative and qualitative results, including higher confidence about future preparedness. Importantly, while earlier is better, even advice just before retirement can significantly improve retirement security,” says Surya Kolluri, Head of TIAA Institute.

The full study, including detailed findings and complete methodology, is available at The Value of Advice.

About TIAA Institute

The TIAA Institute is a think-tank within TIAA, conducting cutting-edge research in the areas of financial literacy and longevity literacy, lifetime income, retirement plan design and behavioral finance in the context of retirement. The Institute provides consulting services for higher education and the broader nonprofit sector. For more information, visit www.tiaainstitute.org.The Value of Financial Advice is based on a survey of 1,864 nationally representative U.S. adults aged 18–79, conducted in October 2025 by Edge Research in partnership with the TIAA Institute.

About TIAA

TIAA aims to provide secure retirements and outcome-focused investment solutions to millions of people and thousands of institutions.ⁱ It paid more than $6.17 billion in lifetime income to retired clients in 2025ⁱⁱ and has $1.5 trillion in assets under management (as of 12/31/2025).ⁱⁱⁱ