Menu
HARIK MINASSI COALE
  • About
    • Team
      • Patricia Harik
    • Affiliation
  • Services
    • Accounting Services
    • Financial Planning
    • Business Consulting
    • Tax Strategies
  • Resources
  • Payments
  • News & Updates
  • Contact
  • About
    • Team
      • Patricia Harik
    • Affiliation
  • Services
    • Accounting Services
    • Financial Planning
    • Business Consulting
    • Tax Strategies
  • Resources
  • Payments
  • News & Updates
  • Contact

In Search of a Financial Advisor

8/30/2017

 
​Don't just pick anyone who calls himself a "financial planner." Make sure you search for a Certified Financial Planner, a badge of achievement awarded by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc., a nonprofit group that fosters professional standards in the largely unregulated world of financial planners. A CFP has completed an extensive course of study and passed tests on tax management, employee benefits, retirement planning, estate planning and investment management, among other subjects.
Choose a pay structure that fits your needs and budget
Financial advisors have to put food on the table, too. But the way they earn a living from their advice differs.
  • You pay an hourly or project fee, or a percentage of assets under management.
  • Commission-only: Compensation is rendered after you buy financial products from your advisor.
  • Fee-offset: Fees are deducted from commissions.
  • Combination Fee/Commission: You pay a fee for advice and commissions on recommended products.
  • Salary: The financial institution that hires the financial planner pays his salary.

Seek referrals from friends and family

Ask people you trust to refer their financial planners. If you've got kids, ask a friend with kids. If you're reaching retirement age, ask advice from someone in the same boat. Then, when you get a name, Google it to find out additional information about the planner. Has he or she been Yelped favorably? Any news stories pop up? The more you know about your financial planner, the better.

Make sure you mesh

If you pick wisely, your relationship with a financial advisor can last for decades. Although it's hard to see into the heart of anyone, ask leading questions to see if your financial goals mesh with the advisor's.
​
When you interview advisors, ask how they'll incorporate your particular situation into a financial plan. Ask if they personally research the products they recommend and whether they receive a financial incentive for pushing one product over another. Also, ask how long they take to return calls, which will become an issue on days when the market is in a freefall.
Remember that you're investing for the long term — you want to choose an advisor for the long term as well.

Comments are closed.

    Newsletter articles are posted every 2 weeks. ​

    If you would like to have our e-newsletter delivered directly to your inbox, please sign up. Your information is confidential; you can unsubscribe at any time. Subscribe.

    Archives

    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017

    Categories

    All
    1099 Form
    401Ks And IRAs
    529 College Savings Plans
    941 Form
    ACA Affordable Care
    ADA - Americans With Disabilities Act
    Americans With Disabilities
    Annuities
    Audits
    Back Pay
    Bankruptcy
    Basis
    Benefit Transfers
    Blockchain
    Bonuses
    Box 1
    Business Deductions
    Business Interruption Insurance
    Business Tips
    Capital Gains
    Charitable Gifts
    Communication
    Compensation
    Credit Cards
    Credit Score
    Crowdfunding
    Death And Debt
    Debt
    Deductions
    Depreciation
    Disaster Tax Break
    Diversity Training
    Divorce
    D&O Insurance
    Dress For Success
    Earned Income Tax Credit
    EIN Employee ID Numbers
    Employee Direct Deposit
    Employee Overpayment
    Employee Ownership
    Employees Cross State Lines
    Employment Taxes
    ESOP
    Estate Planning
    Estate Taxes
    Estimated Taxes
    Executor
    Expenses And Depreciation
    Expensing Rules
    Family Businesses
    Fiduciary
    Filial (Adult Child) Responsibilities
    Filing Status Options
    Financial Advisor
    Financial Planning
    Flood Insurance
    Floods
    Franchise Ownership
    Fraud
    Headcount Reporting
    Health Care
    Health Savings Account
    Hiring Compliance
    Hiring Help
    Hiring Tax Credits
    Hobby Vs. Business
    Home Equity Loans
    Home Office Deduction
    Homeowners
    HSA
    Hurricanes
    IC-DISC
    Identity Theft
    Income Tax
    Information Return
    Inherited Mortgage
    Insurance
    Investing
    Investors For Your Business
    IRAs
    IRS Disagreements
    Joint Tenancy
    Key Performance Indicators
    Kiddie Tax
    Lease Accounting
    Life Insurance Trusts
    Loans
    Long-Term Care Insurance
    Managing Employees
    Marriage Penalty
    Maternity And Paternity Leave
    Medicaid Trust
    Medical And Dental Deductions
    Mergers
    Morale
    Multistate Taxes
    Myers-Briggs Personality Types
    New
    Newsletters
    New Tax Law
    Noncompete Agreements
    Operating Loss
    Opportunity Zones
    Organize Your Finances
    OSHA
    Overtime Exemption
    Padding
    Papers For Taxes
    Part-time Help Tax Rules
    Passwords
    Payable On Death Accounts
    Payday Changes
    Payday Frequency
    Payroll Cards
    Payroll Scams
    Payroll Taxes
    Pensions
    Personal Finances
    Power Of Attorney
    Private Tax Debt Collection
    Property Taxes
    QSEHRA Benefits
    R & D Tax Credit
    Real Estate 1031 Exchange
    Real Estate Held In IRA
    Reciprocal Agreements
    Retirement
    Revenue Recognition
    Reverse Mortgage
    Sales Tax
    Self Employment Taxes
    Severance Pay
    Severence Pay
    Sexual Harassment
    Sharing Economy Tax Implications
    Sick Leave Rules
    Small Business Administration
    Social Media
    Social Security
    Spendthrift Trust
    State And Local Taxes
    Student Loans
    Success
    Succession Plan
    Supplemental Wages
    Tariffs
    Tax Brackets
    Tax Breaks
    Tax Changes
    Tax Debt Collection
    Tax Deductions
    Tax Forms
    Taxpayer First Act
    Tax Planning
    Tax Reform
    Tax Scams
    Trump's Tax Law
    W-2 Form
    W-4 Form
    W-4 Requests
    Wage Garnishments
    Wages And Overtime
    Wills And Trusts
    Withholdings

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly