At the start of every year, people are more motivated to get off on the right financial foot. This might mean contacting a financial advisor for the first time.
Video recap: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEB2z530-Zc
So we put together a list of 5 questions we hear from those looking to hire a financial advisor.
If you are considering working with a financial advisor this year, you may want to use these questions to help you understand how the financial advising process works so that you can feel comfortable choosing the right advisor for you. Listen in to hear the most frequently asked questions and our answers.
Thankfully, the word fiduciary has gotten more publicity lately, so more people understand what it means. A fiduciary is a financial advisor that puts their clients’ best interests first. It is important to ensure that your advisor is a fiduciary so that you know that they will put your well-being ahead of the myriad conflicts of interests that can arise in this industry.
The first question most clients have is how often we will review their finances. This usually depends on the client’s situation, but we usually review a specific financial area for every client each quarter. The specific areas that we focus on regularly are taxes, estate documents and financial plans, and of course, portfolios.
We also have an automated system that checks each client’s portfolio every day. Our clients feel comfortable with these automated daily inspections. Our Client Center is another way that Financial Symmetry clients can assess their portfolios at their convenience.
At Financial Symmetry, we are fee-only financial advisors and completely open about what we charge. All of our fee information is available on our website. Our wealth management clients are charged quarterly whereas other clients choose to work on an hourly basis. Make sure you understand the fee structure of any financial advisor that you choose to work with.
Typically, in-person client meetings are held once a year, but of course, Covid changed everything. Communication can be had through phone calls, emails, or video conferencing. The frequency of meetings depends on the complexity of the situation.
Every advising firm has a different setup and who you meet with initially may not end up being your primary source of information that you work with. At Financial Symmetry, you’ll have the opportunity to work with a team of 2 advisors plus one other staff member. Listen in to hear why we work this way.
If you are thinking of hiring a financial advisor, make sure to add these 5 questions to your list of questions.
There are fundamental principles that we all need reminders of from time to time. As kids and grandkids are heading off to college, we're talking through 6 core principles to getting off on the right financial footing. We also include a chart demonstrating the power of saving 15% of your income.
Youtube video recap: https://youtu.be/LLlJjITn6B8
If you can follow these 6 steps, it's very likely your future self will thank you.
Your ability to create wealth impacted by your ability to earn as well as understanding how you spend money. If you have had trouble saving and investing, visualize your future self. When you are making a decision think about how it will affect you and your finances, not just now, but 20 or 30 years from now. What are you doing now to help your future self?
We read, write and talk a lot about better ways to build wealth, and after reading Dr. Daniel Crosby's latest book, The Laws of Wealth, we wanted to dive deeper on his 10 rules of wealth building. Daniel does a great job of weaving relevant stories in to topics that often can be overly complicated.
In this episode, we walk through our favorite rules along with steps you can take to put these rules in to practice in your own life. Daniel's examples of why so many of us are overconfident will provide a laugh along with some head-nodding. This discussion will help you take a step back and evaluate potential flaws in your current wealth building journey. Understanding why we have trouble doing this on our own could be the best Christmas gift you receive this year.
For many, the open enrollment period is just another email you quickly delete thinking nothing has really changed since last year. But this passive approach can be extremely costly if new benefits are being offered or life changes you forget about throughout the year may have happened. On this episode we share some of our unique perspectives given how many different employee benefit packages we see regularly. We also reveal some of the more unique benefits companies are now offering that could be a nice benefit for you this fall. Find out how to assure you are picking the best options for your employee benefits this year.
You can find show notes and more information here: http://bit.ly/2xqX7kR
Many people don't have a great idea of what do do with their bonus at the end of the year. Should you spend it? Invest it all immediately? Invest it over the coming year? In this week's podcast, Chad and Mike explore your options and help you decide how to end your year.
Music this week:
Celebration (Single Version) – Kool & The Gang from the Album Celebrate! (1980)
Don't Stop Believin' – Journey from the Album Greatest Hits (1988)
Used under Fair Use.
Much is made about keeping our physical fitness in good shape. But what about your financial fitness? In this episode, Chad and Mike discuss why its important to regularly take a survey of your financial fitness, and how you can improve it once you do.
One thing is certain, there are always going to be panics in the market. Political turmoil, natural disasters and other factors will cause markets to move, and can make you wonder: should I sell all my investments and hope that it gets better? Chad and Mike discuss these issues to discover how you can avoid making common investment mistakes with uncertainty in the markets.
In this episode, Chad and Mike discuss Prince's lack of estate documents, and offer advice for listeners who may not yet have considered the importance of preparing a will. You can read a text version of this post on Nasdaq.com.
This week, Mike and Chad take a look at the best financial gifts you can give a graduating high school or college student.
As we've done in years past, we compiled our view of the top 10 economic stories from 2015, and what these stories may mean for 2016.
You can find show notes and more information by clicking here: https://wp.me/p6NrVS-2uI