Farrar Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 (edited) Other than the year we bought a house and dh won the game show money and we ended up having to hire an accountant, our tax and financial planning situation has been relatively straightforward. But as the kids are going to be (technically) adults soon and one headed to college and with me earning more money with a small business and with us not getting any younger and thinking about the future... I feel like I'd love for dh and I to talk to a financial planner. Does anyone use a financial planner? How did you find them? How do you know that person is a good fit? How do you utilize their services and how often? I'm a total newbie to this. We've always just muddled along. Edited January 27, 2021 by Farrar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjzimmer1 Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 We just met with one for the first time last fall. It was definitely helpful to have someone go through things with us. At this point we were just discussing retirement funding/investing so we didn't get into after retirement or end of life planning. DH's workplace hires this guy to meet with any of their employees who are interested and it's free to the employees so we didn't have to go and and find our own planner. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 I married a fund manager... 5 1 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 I have tried to find some locally but what I found was that all of them wanted me to invest in THEIR products and have them manage my accounts....all for an ongoing % fee of course. I am very happy with my Vanguard accounts. I just wanted some advice on how to be the most tax efficient with my accounts, point out things I might not think of, etc. I know you can ask them if they are fee only or work on commission. And also if they will do a one or two time fee only consultation. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 I have also learned a lot from reading books at the library as well as tons of articles on the Vanguard website. I enjoyed The Simple Path to Wealth the most. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teachermom2834 Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 I don’t have any idea other than to be careful. I know someone who was trying to make it as a financial planner. He is a good salesperson but he didn’t understand what he was doing at all 🙁 We would chit chat about money stuff and I would explain things to him that I just learned from managing my family’s simple finances throughout our marriage. I’m not even talking about investing specifics. I remember explaining to him the advantages of an HSA account for example. I also knew some things about his personal life- like he didn’t have life insurance. It just left me really skeptical about financial planners in general. He didn’t last long which is reassuring but he did counsel people for awhile under a famous name company. I guess I would try to get recommendations and make sure the person had been in the business a long time. This guy wouldn’t have lasted but he was very personable and would have lots of recommendations from people that just knew him. It can get complicated just getting older and having older kids either in college or launching (or half launched). 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 When I looked for an advisor a long time ago, it was considered better to pay a one-time fee for time spent, rather than a continuing percentage: it cost more up-front, but there was less likelihood that you would be sold products that were most lucrative for the advisor. I don't know if that's an option where you are. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusyMom5 Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 Ask for recommendations from those you know who run small businesses. We have had a tax accountant who is also a tax lawyer for years. We always run things by him before any business decisions are made. We do not buy and investment stuff from him, though; that we now do on our own with an account at TDAmeritrade. We do consult him if we are unsure about how a move will impact our taxable income. It sounds like you would like someone who can consult on business and personal taxes. You may also want someone who knows about investments. They don't have to be the same person. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 27, 2021 Author Share Posted January 27, 2021 I definitely don't want someone to manage our accounts, etc. I mean, we actually have someone who does that for the accounts I inherited from my dad. I got the accounts... and my dad's guy. Which is fine, I'm happy with that. I really just want someone I can pay to consult. And while investment advice would be part of it, I guess, I'm more interested in asking questions about where to move the money and stuff like that. Like, since one kid will not be going to college there's money that I'm not sure how to allocate and I'm not clear about all the penalties and ins and outs of moving it around. And there are decisions for us about retirement and college payments and the house... I know the general advice, but I'd love advice that's specific to our situation. I know my mother has someone she sits down with once a year and she pays him a fee for that time, but not for any other services. I'd hire that guy, but he's not local and he specializes in retired people. She found him through church. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 27, 2021 Author Share Posted January 27, 2021 So apparently what I want is a financial advisor, not planner? According to what I found... Planners do the management of accounts. Advisors give advice about a whole host of financial issues. So I'm such a newbie with this stuff that I don't even know what I'm asking for basically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bootsie Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 The term "financial planner" can mean a wide array of things. It is important to know what you want to achieve from talking to someone about finances, and it sounds as if you have a fairly good starting point. Some financial planners are focused on selling their products. Other financial planners know a lot about taxes. Still others know a lot about stock investments... If you have an employer-based retirement plan, I would suggest seeing if there is someone associated with that plan who will sit down at talk to you about overall long-run planning. If you have accounts with a major brokerage firm, like Fidelity, I would start by talking to one of their consultants about the set up of those accounts, penalties involved in moving money, etc. If you have someone who manages at least part of your accounts, they should be willing to sit down with you at least for an initial overview consultation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bootsie Posted January 27, 2021 Share Posted January 27, 2021 9 minutes ago, Farrar said: So apparently what I want is a financial advisor, not planner? According to what I found... Planners do the management of accounts. Advisors give advice about a whole host of financial issues. So I'm such a newbie with this stuff that I don't even know what I'm asking for basically. The terms financial advisor and financial planner are not necessarily distinct and do not necessarily fall along these lines. Financial planners may be very limited in what they do or may provide broad financial consultation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeachGal Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 The best thing you can do is to educate yourself. Otherwise, an advisor/planner could take advantage of what you don’t know or understand. They also might not thoroughly understand the pros and cons themselves. My husband (retired now) was very involved in these areas and this is the advice he gives. It may seem overwhelming to you initially but if you devote some amount of time each week to learning more, you’ll begin to figure things out. You could still use someone’s services but you’d be better off having a better understanding yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbutton Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 We have an advisor, and we do have investments with a company she recommends (American Funds). We found her word of mouth. As for credentials, she is a CPA, and I think she has a law degree (estate and tax stuff, I think). We pay her to do our taxes, and I think that gets us a free yearly review of finances with her, but we can also e-mail her questions or to let her know something has changed. She handles things on the fly like rolling over a 401k when we have a job change, though sometimes there is a small fee (percentage). She explained what her job is ethically--where the lines are in giving advice when she takes a small percentage of earnings (I just googled this, but this seems to be a decent resource: https://www.fpsb.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/110000_pub_CodeEthicsProfResp-A4-LR.pdf). She advises us based on our situation, not what she makes. She makes money if we fund our IRAs, but if it's best for us to max out the 401k that she has no stake in, then she tells us that's what's best. She would advise on college funds if we ask--she gave us a survey when we first started using her services that asked about our financial goals. She is based out of another state, so she can't do some of the things for us that she could do with other clients, such as brokering life insurance. She did get us on the path to know how to purchase life insurance (for whom and how much coverage), and she reviewed home and auto policies while suggesting an umbrella liability policy (which we purchased). For long-term savings we don't plan to touch but need access to in an emergency, she offered an account that makes more interest than a bank but isn't for growth (I think it's a money market fund of some kind). She is as hands-on or off as we're looking for, but she does do a big review up front to make sure all the big areas where people can mess up are covered. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 28, 2021 Author Share Posted January 28, 2021 1 hour ago, BeachGal said: The best thing you can do is to educate yourself. Otherwise, an advisor/planner could take advantage of what you don’t know or understand. They also might not thoroughly understand the pros and cons themselves. My husband (retired now) was very involved in these areas and this is the advice he gives. It may seem overwhelming to you initially but if you devote some amount of time each week to learning more, you’ll begin to figure things out. You could still use someone’s services but you’d be better off having a better understanding yourself. So, to note, we are pretty educated and whenever we chat with people about the "things you're supposed to do" or read up on them, then it seems we're doing most of those things. I've never considered hiring anyone because we have always done it ourselves - again, except for one year when we had some very strange tax situations. However, I really believe that it's okay to hire vetted and trusted professionals and that the DIY method is not the right way for all people in all arenas. I'll muddle with the electrical because I have some experience, but I never touch the plumbing. I know enough not to get stiffed by the plumber and I'm fine with that. Similarly, I'll never be a tax specialist and I'm fine with that. I just want to know enough to know when to consult the experts. We have some specific decisions to make and I would appreciate some detailed advice from an actual expert. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted January 28, 2021 Author Share Posted January 28, 2021 A couple of local friends suggested some small fee based companies that may be right for us that they have used in the past. It seems like it's purely a word of mouth business, so that's fine. Cheers, y'all. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeachGal Posted January 28, 2021 Share Posted January 28, 2021 49 minutes ago, Farrar said: So, to note, we are pretty educated and whenever we chat with people about the "things you're supposed to do" or read up on them, then it seems we're doing most of those things. I've never considered hiring anyone because we have always done it ourselves - again, except for one year when we had some very strange tax situations. However, I really believe that it's okay to hire vetted and trusted professionals and that the DIY method is not the right way for all people in all arenas. I'll muddle with the electrical because I have some experience, but I never touch the plumbing. I know enough not to get stiffed by the plumber and I'm fine with that. Similarly, I'll never be a tax specialist and I'm fine with that. I just want to know enough to know when to consult the experts. We have some specific decisions to make and I would appreciate some detailed advice from an actual expert. I see what you’re saying. There’s nothing wrong with hiring someone as long as you can trust their advice. Deciding who that is, is the hard part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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