# Adviser Fees Drain Bond Income

> Three ETFs keep bond income after 1% adviser fee takes 25% of earnings.
- Title: Adviser Fees Drain Bond Income · 24/7 Wall St. | Shortify
- Summary: Three ETFs keep bond income after 1% adviser fee takes 25% of earnings. A 1% advisory fee on bonds yielding 4% removes 25% of income annually; three low-cost…
- Keywords: adviser fee, bonds, etf, vanguard, vgit, vcit, hdv, dividend, income, corporate bonds, treasury bonds, investment strategy
- Source: 24/7 Wall St. — https://247wallst.com/investing/etf/2026/09/21/your-adviser-takes-1-of-the-bonds-that-only-earn-4-that-is-a-quarter-of-the-income-gone-these-3-etfs-keep-it
- Author: Ryne Mauck
- Published: 2026-09-21T22:15:23+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: adviser fee, bonds, etf, vanguard, vgit, vcit, hdv, dividend, income, corporate bonds, treasury bonds, investment strategy
## The Fee Problem
A 1% advisory fee on bonds earning 4% takes 25% of your income annually.

> A 1% advisory fee taken from a portfolio yielding roughly 4% amounts to a quarter of your income, gone before it ever reaches your checking account.
## The Math
On $500,000 portfolio, $20,000 annual income loses $5,000 to adviser fees.

> A 1% assets-under-management fee pulls $5,000 out of that same balance.
## VCIT ETF
Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF earns 5% yield with 0.03% expense ratio.

> VCIT tracks investment-grade u.s. corporate bonds with 5 to 10 year maturities.
## VGIT ETF
Vanguard Intermediate-Term Treasury ETF offers 4% yield with 0.03% expense ratio.

> VGIT holds u.s. treasury notes with roughly 3 to 10 year maturities.
## HDV ETF
iShares Core High Dividend ETF provides 21.88% growth with 0.08% expense ratio.

> HDV holds roughly 75 u.s. dividend-paying stocks screened by morningstar for financial health.
## The Trade-Off
DIY bond sleeve avoids adviser fees but lacks rebalancing and tax strategies.

> A three-fund diy sleeve saves you money. It does not rebalance itself, harvest tax losses, coordinate withdrawals against your social security claim.
## The Solution
Three ETFs keep 93% of bond income after 1% adviser fee takes 25%.

> Three tickers, seven cents of blended expense per $100 invested, and the income stays yours.
## Key takeaway

A 1% advisory fee on bonds yielding 4% removes 25% of income annually; three low-cost ETFs reduce this cost to 0.07%.