How to find a good financial planner

“How do we find financial planners or estate planners to help us execute in our best interests?” It’s a great question. The standard response one would get from a talking head on CNBC is “Find a licensed financial planner and then get at least three references, then make sure you see if they’re working towards their own goals and not yours, etc, etc. “That’s a good canned answer, but what does it really mean? Little bit.

As you know, we believe that the most suitable person for your personal finances is you. Nobody cares about you, like you. So premise one is that you really care about what’s going on and want to take the necessary steps to achieve your goals. What I find is that too many people tend to think that estate planning is too far fetched for their skills and pass the responsibility on to someone else. That’s not a particularly attractive way to do it. This is what I suggest.

The hardest part of finding good financial planning is finding someone who really knows what they’re doing but has the time to deal with you on a personal level. In other words, consider your tax preparer. Once a year you trot into his office with a box full of papers, walk through it for a couple of hours, and you’re good to go. You probably won’t see them again for a year. With a financial planner, this is a big no no. A lot can change in the course of a year and you want to be able to contact this person and discuss changes in tax laws, stock directions, assignments, real estate, etc. at least monthly. So, in addition to finding a knowledgeable person, one needs to find someone who won’t put you down when you call. But more importantly, not only should he not reject you, but he also has to listen to your concerns and make moves based on your feelings.

How do you find such a person? Well, it’s not easy, but it is possible. The first thing to do is this, contact the person who handles your life and/or home insurance. No, you don’t want the seller, you want the owner of the brokerage. For example, my friend’s house is insured by State Farm and his local broker is a wonderful guy who has been in the insurance and “money” business for 28 years. Even if he doesn’t know his broker personally, he has a reason to listen to his question and help him. Look, you pay this man through your bonuses. He will try to help you if he can. So he starts there. A common train of thought would be, “Hi Joe, I’m looking for a financial planner to help me get things ready for my retirement, help me with my taxes, and help me create a safe environment. I don’t want to be pressured.” guy who is going to try to sell me all kinds of services, I want to pay someone for the knowledge of him. Do you know someone who seems right for the job? Will Joe know someone who can help? Insurance companies are probably contacted by financial planners all the time trying to increase business.

Your life insurance provider is also a good place to start, although many life insurance companies have financial advisory services that are nothing more than offices run by 20-somethings who are reading the old company script. Obviously this is not acceptable, but in some cases your insurer may be acting as a certified public accountant or additional financial planner. If so, and you like it, start asking the questions. Your boss is usually a good place to ask, too. Don’t be embarrassed, in fact, keep your head up. If your employer is successful, chances are they’ve been through the same questions you’re going through. Find out who he uses. We’ve found that the human resources department of midsize companies is often a treasure trove of information like this. You can bet that if your HR person. H H. is making $150,000 a year, he has talked to many planners both on a corporate and personal level. Ask him. You’ll first be surprised that most people don’t think to use it for that information, but then you’ll be proud to feel that you find it important enough to ask.

If “Joe” is a square guy, he’ll give you a couple of names that will help. It is your job to eliminate them and see if any of them meet the requirements. What is the most important thing to ask your new prospect? I can summarize it in a paragraph. Ask him if he thinks it’s okay to “stay the course, take losses now, because you’ll win in the long run.” If he says that rubbish line to you, say “Sorry, no thanks” and move on. If he asks him “how can I maximize my profits, while limiting my risks and avoiding the taxman to the best of his ability?”, and he replies, I like to stay liquid and safe. I take chances when it’s appropriate, but only when we can maximize return and minimize tax liability.” This is a guy you want to meet. The economy changes, the stock market changes, and your planner needs to be flexible. Be sure to tell this to someone you know. you want to stay involved and that a personal relationship is paramount to success If he is not willing to take phone calls at 9 pm let him know that you will be involved and want interaction.

That doesn’t mean calling him ten times a day. That means if he sees something change, he wants to talk about it and its ramifications. Suppose you own several houses and start to see property values ​​plummet in your area due to a shortage of manufacturing jobs. We’d no doubt be on the phone asking “when should we sell one and then what should we do with the profits?” They may have suggestions you haven’t thought of and a discussion is probably in order. He will know if he can sell the house tax-free and, if so, how to minimize it by applying the proceeds elsewhere. That is his job.

Finally, don’t think your planner is going to be on top of everything. The guy will have a lot of clients if he’s good, and he won’t know everything that goes on in his accounts every day. It’s going to be his job to keep track of certain things and “get back to him” about it. Never stray too far from your own records and ask the right questions when they come up. Remember, it’s HIS money, not yours. If you have a feeling that you are doing something wrong, tell him about it, tell him why you think he is failing, and think of something that will satisfy both of you.