How advisors are winning Gen Z clients — and keeping them

Conventional wisdom holds that Gen Z — Americans born roughly between 1997 and 2012 — prefers social media algorithms and AI chatbots over human financial advisors. The data tells a more nuanced story. A March 2026 CFA Institute study of more than 2,400 investors found that over 90% of Gen Z and millennial respondents reported engaging with some form of financial advice, including through traditional advisors. At the same time, Bank of America's 2026 Study of Wealthy Americans found that 86% of Gen Z and millennial investors now regularly use artificial intelligence — yet 71% worry it can provide incorrect information. That combination of digital fluency and residual skepticism is exactly the opening advisors say they are finding.

The challenge is not whether Gen Z wants advice. It is how firms reach them, earn their trust, and build relationships that are financially sustainable long before the assets materialize. Five practitioners share what is actually working.

Setting expectations early — and following the plan

Patrick Mundlin, market vice president at 49 Financial, says marketing and referrals are his two primary channels for acquiring Gen Z clients today, with some relationships also flowing through existing client families.

"When it's a client's child or younger sibling, I'll take the meeting, but I set clear expectations up front about what that relationship looks like, what they should expect from me, and where I can be most helpful to them," Mundlin said. "Being direct about that at the start makes the whole conversation flow much better."

Mundlin does not apply strict account minimums when the long-term potential is clear. One of his current Gen Z clients is a content creator whose income significantly exceeds his current balance sheet. The relationship is structured around a concrete milestone: if the plan calls for saving $400,000 in the first year and the client ends up at $50,000, that signals to Mundlin that the framework is not being used.

"When clients do follow the plan, those relationships tend to last," he said.

On how Gen Z differs from prior generations, Mundlin's answer is surprising: stability. Many of his younger clients are less risk-tolerant than the stereotype suggests, want a plan they can largely leave alone, and come into meetings well-informed but without overconfidence. They have read widely and run AI queries before arriving, and they are receptive to being corrected when something they have picked up does not fit their situation.

Campus seminars and the long game

Michael Lubrani, financial advisor at Sagient, a Beverly Hills, California-based independent wealth management firm affiliated with MassMutual's independent wealth management platform, takes a direct approach: he goes to where Gen Z is. That means college seminars, where students sometimes schedule consultations before they graduate.

"We work with them before they make a dollar because we know they can quickly become high earners capable of making substantial monthly contributions to an investment or retirement account," Lubrani said.

Lubrani, who is 27 and a member of Gen Z himself, built much of his initial client base from peers he graduated with. The timing challenge he encountered — most were not yet ready to engage financial planning services straight out of college — shaped how he thinks about the category. The solution is sustained relationship management over years, not a single outreach.

He sets no account minimums beyond the fund-level minimums of the investments used, typically $5,000 to $10,000, and evaluates prospective clients on character rather than current assets.

"This is a long-term relationship built on trust and potential," Lubrani said. "From an ROI standpoint in the first year, it is not worth it for us to open these accounts, but we are okay with growing with our clients."

His other key observation: Gen Z is in information overload, and the competition for attention is fierce. Advisors who rely on social media presence alone to stay connected risk being forgotten entirely.

Being a resource before being an advisor

Caroline Louis, financial planner at Prudential Advisors, says most of her Gen Z clients come from two sources — the children of existing clients and her own social circle — and that both relationships share a common origin point: she became a trusted resource for financial questions before anyone needed to make a financial decision.

"Gen Z often wants to learn before they commit, so being a consistent resource and providing value has been a great way to build trust and relationships over time," Louis said. "My goal is to build relationships before someone necessarily needs financial advice."

Louis does not apply strict account minimums to Gen Z clients. She looks instead for motivation: clients who are serious about building their futures, willing to invest in themselves, actively developing their careers, and open to adjusting spending and saving habits. Being a younger advisor, she adds, gives her an advantage in connecting with this generation — she is navigating many of the same life stages they are, and that shared context shows up in client conversations.

Family meetings as a pipeline

Jonathan Khalavsky, senior wealth partner at Endurance Wealth Partners, part of the Prospera Financial Services network, embeds Gen Z client development directly into his existing client service model. He holds regular family meetings, inviting clients' children to participate whether they are reviewing a retirement plan, opening a first investment account, or simply looking for general guidance.

He also offers complimentary estate planning through Trust & Will, which creates natural entry points into discussions about wills, powers of attorney, and other foundational documents — conversations that often evolve into broader financial planning relationships.

"Those discussions naturally lead to broader financial planning conversations and allow us to become a trusted resource early in their financial journey," Khalavsky said.

For younger clients connected to existing families, Khalavsky is flexible on minimums and often pairs them with junior advisors who have time to focus on financial education and investment fundamentals. For those with no existing family connection, he is still willing to point them toward resources and online planning tools, viewing the interaction as a way to provide value first and assess fit over time.

"We view those relationships as long-term investments and want to help the next generation build good financial habits from the beginning," he said.

Lead with the trigger event, not the age

Rylan Folts, co-founder and head of sales at WealthFeed, offers a framework that cuts across demographic assumptions: advisors who start with a prospect's age are starting from the wrong place.

"Advisors should identify the money-in-motion events that create a reason to seek advice — which could be a job change, a business sale, an inheritance or a relocation — then reach out at the right moment with something relevant," Folts said. "The behavioral signals matter more than the demographic profile."

He also cautions against two common errors in evaluating younger prospects: treating current assets as the full picture, and inflating the case with speculative future inheritance. The honest middle ground — current financial needs, career trajectory, and the real cost of developing the relationship over time — is what determines whether a Gen Z prospect fits a firm's service model.

"Better data can help advisors direct their efforts toward prospects who fit their service model, while targeted outreach and automated follow-up allow them to stay engaged without requiring the advisor to manage every touchpoint," Folts said. "The goal is to build promising relationships in a way that feels personal to the client but also remains financially sustainable for the firm."