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HOW DO I GET FINANCIAL AND INVESTMENT ADVICE FROM PROFESSIONALS?
Traditionally, advice is doled out through what is called an AUM (assets under management) model. In other words, you invest with an advisor who in turn gives you advice. However, not everyone has money to invest now. Or maybe your investments are tied up in assets you cannot invest with an advisor like a 401k plan, real estate, or a business. Another drawback is depending on your advisor, services offered, and amount you invest, you still may not be getting the advice you need. Perhaps you don’t invest enough to garner enough attention or need specialized advice.
A fee for service model allows you access to quality financial advice and not biased by a veiled product pitch. Conflicts of interest, fees and compensation are clearly laid out (fees, comp, and disclosures).
Our advisors' fees are determined by how many hours are anticipated for the engagement – not an arbitrary amount for a “plan” that may include areas you do not need advice for. You only pay for what you need based on our time and we use an hourly rate. For example Adam Pearce, CFP® has a rate of $175/hour as a general guideline. You may pick and choose what areas to cover, not cover or put off for next time to control how much you pay. We believe this is a transparent model giving you access to quality advice not determined by how much you invest and gives you flexibility on what you pay.
WHAT CAN I EXPECT?
After signing up for a meeting/phone call our advisors will send an initial questionnaire before a “get to know you better” meeting. Afterwards if we determine we can help you we will send you a proposal with a fee quote for the services we agree you need assistance with. You may pick and choose what services to engage at that time. If we cannot help you in many cases we can provide a referral to a professional who may be able to meet your needs (other recommendations).
WHAT SERVICES DO I GET?
Your deliverables will always include 5 things:
- Financial plan by Money Guide Pro™ a leading provider of financial planning software.
- The results of this planning will be spelled out for you in a cover letter written in plain English identifying the actionable steps to take.
- The plan, advice, and steps will be reviewed with you at a second meeting.
- Ongoing advice – As you work through the next steps we offer a complimentary checkup with you to answer questions. Finally, in a year we meet for a complimentary annual review to check your progress.
- Online services – Complimentary access to a client portal where you can view your financial plan, make changes, and test changes to your situation or things that concern you.
WHAT FINANCIAL PLANNING AREAS CAN I GET HELP WITH?
After our initial get to know you meeting and discussing your financials, goals and concerns, our advisors determine areas we can help. They may include any combination of:
- Retirement Planning – including making sure you are on track and will provide detailed recommendations if you are not on track. Additionally, our advisors will “stress test” your plan under various adverse market conditions to evaluate whether your plan would survive.
- Investment Planning – what is your risk tolerance, is your est. rate of return sufficient to meet your financial goals, where should you be investing Like where and how much to save, what to invest in, managing stock options, and specific guidance on if you are on track. Asset allocation*.
- Healthcare – planning for and funding the anticipated high costs throughout retirement.
- Taxes incidental to planning
- Cash flow – assistance with managing cash for short and medium goals, emergencies, and financial documents (money maps)
- Employee Benefits – your company sponsored benefits at work
- College Planning
- Retirement & Retirement Income Planning
- Estate Planning
- Small Business and Entrepreneurs
- Investment Planning
- Risk management and insurance
- Retirement income planning – pension, SS, investments,
- Charitable giving and legacy planning
- PERSONAL FINANCE PLANNING (Starting out-budgeting, debt reduction, and starting your plan)
*Diversification or asset allocation do not guarantee a profit or protect against a loss.