How Do You Know if You Need a Financial Advisor?

For Mark Roberts Use: We all know, or have heard of, someone who never went to the doctor for regular check-ups. Then, one day, they frantically make an appointment. A lump was discovered or some other unusually distressing symptom popped up. Tragically, this person discovers that they have developed a serious illness, that could have been prevented or at least detected in an earlier stage, had they visited their physician sooner.

In this sense, the process of caring for your financial health is not much different from caring for your physical health. We all think we’re doing just fine… until we aren’t. Failing to attend regular “check ups” can cost us some valuable opportunities or “preventive medicine”.

If any of these situations apply to you, you need a check-up with a financial advisor.

You’re thinking about retirement. Whether you’re early in your career or almost ready to retire, preparing for retirement is something everyone must do. Since no one wants to look back and realize they missed valuable planning opportunities, regular appointments with a financial advisor are key to a sound, comprehensive retirement plan.

You’re already retired. Retirement planning doesn’t end on the day of retirement. Staying on top of your finances, including planning for distributions and taxes, is a key component of maintaining financial health throughout retirement.

You’ve received some unexpected money. At some point, many people face decisions regarding a large, unexpected sum of money. Whether from an inheritance, a major promotion, or even gambling winnings, good luck can quickly turn into bad luck depending upon what you do with that money. Consulting with an experienced financial advisor can help you decide how to put that money to work for you, and make it last.

You’ve been procrastinating. You figure you’ll visit a financial advisor when it’s time to retire, or when a problem occurs and you need advice. But what if consulting with a financial advisor could have kept that problem from happening in the first place? Remember that time and money are closely related; the cost of missed opportunity can be great, so put your money to work for you now.

You’re a do-it-yourselfer. Many people simply prefer a DIY approach to everything in life. And that’s an admirable quality! But checking in with a financial advisor can lower the risk of mistakes. It’s entirely possible that you’ll only discover that you’ve done everything perfectly… But now you’ll sleep even better at night, knowing that for sure.

If any of these situations sound familiar, give us a call. We can help you identify any potential pitfalls in your current plan, and take advantage of upcoming opportunities.

About the Author: Mark Roberts

In addition to managing clients’ money and giving investment and diversification advice, Mark offers something that “the other guys” don’t - a unique approach to Retirement Tax Strategies and distribution. Time and time again, Mark meets with new clients who tell him they have a great relationship with their financial advisor but have never been offered information on this kind of approach to securing their financial futures. Mark has taken this feedback to heart and works tirelessly to ensure that his strategies focus on taxes and distribution. Mark started selling insurance for a major insurance company right out of high school to help put himself through college. After graduating with a degree in finance, he dove into estate planning on the financial side to set himself apart from other financial advisors. However, as changes were made to estate tax laws over time, Mark shifted his focus to income tax strategies. Mark’s philosophy is “the blue prints are more important than the wall paper or carpet.” The wall paper and carpet represent products like investments and insurance policies, whereas the blue prints represent the strategies. Once strategies that truly fit the client’s needs are put in place, our focus can shift to providing you with the right products. According to Mark, “It doesn’t matter what carpet we use if the walls are not in the right place.” Our approach to money management is designed to generate the largest alpha (quality) with the lowest standard deviation and beta (risk). By doing this, we help provide clients with the highest return on the lowest risk. Generating income for our retirees is also very important. Because withdrawing money from your portfolio hurts the account rather than helping it, our goal is to design income strategies to harm the portfolio the least making the money last longer.

How Do You Know if You Need a Financial Advisor?

How Do You Know if You Need a Financial Advisor?

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About the Author: Mark Roberts