WORK TOGETHER WITH YOUR FINANCIAL ADVISER
Successful financial advisers are passionate about keeping up with changes in the industry and committed to educating their clients. This is important because financial and investment laws and products are constantly evolving.
A good financial planner will help you manage your total financial picture. Cash flow planning, retirement planning, investment management, insurance planning, estate planning, and tax planning are a few key areas that a financial adviser can help with. But even the best financial adviser is only as good as the information you share with him or her.
BE OPEN
Your financial adviser may ask for a copy of your:
- Account statements.
- Tax returns.
- Proof of income.
- Debts.
- nformation about accounts the planner won’t be managing.
While some of these things may seem like very intimate information, they are necessary for your adviser to get the true picture of your financial standing.
KNOW YOUR GOALS
Before you meet with a financial planner, you’re going to want to consider your financial goals. Ask yourself questions like:
- Who and what is most important to me?
- When do I want to retire? After I retire, will I be able and willing to work part-time?
- What worries me most about money?
- What kind of legacy do I want to leave behind?
EVERYONE MAKES MISTAKES
Don’t be shy about telling your financial planner things you may have done that were a setback to financial success, including things like:
- Not saving (or not saving enough) for retirement.
- Piling up credit card debt.
- Overspending.
- Losing a home to foreclosure and filing for bankruptcy.
Carrying guilt about these things is only going to hurt you, and your financial planner has likely seen much worse before.
DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK
Financial advisers aren’t therapists, and they’re not attorneys, either, so they can’t offer legal advice about your divorce or help you mend your relationship with your estranged sister. However, they’ll be happy to help you with decisions like:
- Buying versus leasing a car.
- Deciding whether to loan money to adult children.
- Protecting your assets.
- Planning for how to manage your finances into the future if you’re concerned about conditions like Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.
FINANCIAL ADVISERS RESOURCE DIRECTORY
Boys, Arnold & Company: Eric Magnin
4 Dunmore Court, Suite 201
Hilton Head Island
843-342-8800 and 843-338-8406
www.boysarnold.com
Wells Fargo: Bezilla Kinney Group
400 Merchant Street, Hilton Head Island
843.681.1400
www.Bezilla-Kinney.Wfadv.Com
Physician's Choice Financial, LLC: Christopher Tassone
200 Main Street, Suite 101 H
Hilton Head Island
843 682-4900
www.physicianschoicefinancial.com
