As the reality of this week sinks in, Merrill Lynch advisors are asking themselves the question many never thought they would: should I stay or should I go?

"Merrill Lynch people have a stronger feeling towards their firm than anyone else. It was Mother Merrill, and now Mother has married someone else," says Palos Verdes, Calif.-based recruiter Bill Willis, a former Merrill Lynch manager himself.

While advisors are still shell-shocked by the news, thoughts have understandably turned to retention packages. Willis says that he expects most advisors to wait and see what kind of deal Bank of America offers before deciding whether to make a move.

Recruiters suggest that advisors can use recent history as a guide and look to other big deals, including the packages offered to A.G. Edwards advisors by Wachovia and Bear Stearns advisors by JPMorgan, to get a hint of what to expect. Wachovia offered A.G. Edwards advisors with at least $1 million in production bonuses equal to 100% of their production, with bonuses scaling down to 20% for brokers producing $100,000 to $199,999. In addition, they were offered retention packages of up to 35% of annual production for the highest producers. JPMorgan offered Bear Stearns advisors who had $500,000 in production a 100% payout-75% in cash and 25% in stock.

However, Rick Peterson, a Houston-based recruiter, says Merrill advisors may be disappointed by the packages Bank of America offers. "The deal to keep them can't be outrageous because Bank of America already paid an enormous amount of money for a questionable asset. Now they need to pay more for the same asset," he says.

Peterson expects a similar deal to that offered to Bear Stearns brokers by JPMorgan. "Top producers could get 100%, but they can get 200% across the street," he says. "Most firms are still offering significant packages that are much stronger than the retention package is going to be."

Danny Sarch, a recruiter based in White Plains, NY, says Merrill advisors are already more comfortable than they were over the weekend, when there was widespread fear that their stock could become worthless in the event of a bankruptcy, but there's still concerns. "Bank of America's track record with mergers is not that reassuring," he says. "People are considering their options. They say they're not leaving Merrill but Merrill might be leaving them."

Meanwhile UBS's high-net-worth business is believed to have made offers to a number of Lehman Brothers' advisors. "UBS has been the most aggressive. They've had the most departures recently and they also have the newest high-net-worth business so they have to grow it," says Peterson. Deals for the highest Lehman producers are rumored to have topped 250-280% of trailing 12 production.