Managing your personal finances and accomplishing your financial goals can be challenging, so it can be helpful to hire a professional financial advisor to assist you. When searching for a financial advisor, it is crucial that you do your research to ensure that you are hiring the best qualified advisor for your personal needs.
At a minimum, your advisor should be a Certified Financial Planner (CFP). This status is awarded by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards and must be maintained by the advisor through ongoing education. Anyone can call themselves a financial advisor, so make sure they have the right credentials and experience. You can visit www.cfp.net to check on your advisor’s status or to search for a new advisor.
You may also want to check out the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) at www.napfa.org. They have a database of certified financial advisors that you can search through. You can filter your search by fee structure, technical areas of focus, and the type of clients they serve to find the one that is the best fit for your needs. NAPFA also has a multitude of different resources available on their website that can help you properly interview advisors to make sure they are the right choice for you.
For more information on how to choose the best financial advisor for you, check out my article on page 9 of the latest issue of Living Safer magazine. You can find the article in digital form by clicking here.
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