Financial Planners

5 Things to Look when Picking Financial Planners

Managing your finances in a precise manner is a task and it is always better to take the help of a professional planner. However, the network of financial advisory system is somehow complex. Almost everybody can call themselves a financial planner or advisor as there is no need to be highly qualified for the job. […]

Managing your finances in a precise manner is a task and it is always better to take the help of a professional planner. However, the network of financial advisory system is somehow complex. Almost everybody can call themselves a financial planner or advisor as there is no need to be highly qualified for the job. Therefore, it becomes important to make your choice wisely and carefully. A good selection can help you make savings, grow them and protect them, while a wrong selection may land you into a big financial trouble. So, here is a list of things to look while choosing a financial planner.

  • Qualification and Experience- When you decide to hire a financial planner in Mumbai, you need to do a good research for finding the reputed professionals in your area. There are many. You can shortlist a few of them. After that, you must do a review about the educational qualification and experience of the professional you are about to choose. This will help you understand if that person is in a position to help you manage your financial matters. Look for the ones who have shown they can utilize their knowledge to plan the best strategy in order to support you in your current financial condition. You can get the information about their qualification and experience on their websites. Websites can also help you have an insight into the thought process they have. You can also get the information about the advisors from the brokerage firms to which they are connected.
  • Certifications – The strategies and rules of finance sector keep on changing every now and then and hence the advisor needs to be updated with the latest proceedings in the field. There are many certifications that help them to increase their knowledge. It is important to check if the planner, you are going to hire has taken the steps considering this perspective. By looking at various certifications achieved by the professional, you can gauge their knowledge. To know the certifications the person is holding are useful to perform the task, spend some time on learning about main requirements get the certification and also about the requirements for upholding the post of planner in current situation.
    • Fees- Many of the experts recommend that, whenever you interact with a financial planner, try to know about the way they are compensated for the services they are offering. This helps you significantly in having a better understanding of their possible incentives as well as conflicts of interest. Generally, financial planners are paid through client fees or commissions or a combination of both these methods. Conflict of interest arises mainly when compensation is taken in the form of commissions. They find it difficult to work independently and keep your interest ahead of theirs.  They are always affected by the method of compensations. So, it is recommended to choose the advisor who takes the compensation in form of fees to avoid the issues related to conflict of interest. These fees can be on hourly basis or fixed fees. They may also charge you based on the assets they are going to manage for you.
  • Standard of services- It is important for the registered financial advisory firms to think about the best interest of their clients above everything else. At present, the advisors working at banks and brokerage firms are considered to be only suitably standard. This means that they give you only the suitable recommendations which may or may not be the best for you always. So, try and find the advisor who will act as fiduciary in client relationship. As you are paying a good amount in the form of fees, you must make sure that you get the highest standard of services and care. So, don’t believe the false claims, rather judge the advisor wisely and then take the decision.
  • Relationships with clients – Before you sign the contract with the finance advisor, you have chosen, you have to understand every term and condition and need to clear a few things. It is important to know with whom and how often you will be interacting. Some of the advisors conduct a meeting initially and catch up with the clients annually, while some of them extend their support all throughout the year and workout the best plan for you with the help of others including insurance agents, accountants and loan agents. It is better to hire such type of planner.

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