Financial Advice: Why You Might Need It – PillarWM

If you’re a high net worth or ultra high net worth individual, it is imperative for you to manage your finances with expertise. From allocating your assets to wealth management and investments, you need to ensure that your wealth is secured. At Pillar Wealth Management, we are skilled in providing financial advice to investors with $5 million to $500 million in liquid investment assets. Investors with $10+ million of liquid assets can take advantage of an exclusive offer on our guide to finding the best financial advisor.

When you have a clear set of objectives, you should formulate a personalized financial plan that meets them. You can also schedule a consultation with one of our wealth managers to learn how we can help you build your wealth. In this case, it may be advantageous to seek out an experienced, fiduciary financial advisor.

7 Ways to Get Free Financial Advice

1. Your bank or credit union

Your bank or credit union should offer free financial consultations. An initial consultation can put you on a path to improving your finances, such as creating a budget or savings plan.

2. Online brokers

Online brokers have great resources for investors. With access to an online brokerage account, you can take advantage of those resources, which include articles on a wide range of topics, posted regularly, as well as videos and online classes.

At Fidelity, for example, you can access the firm’s learning center without having an account.

3. Budgeting and financial planning apps

These apps are great if you don’t need a human advisor, and many are free, such as Ameritrade, Fidelity, and E*TRADE. Others charge as little as $1.

4. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)

The CFPB’s website provides educational tools. For example, it provides advice on buying a house, paying for college, and planning for retirement. You can calculate your financial well-being score and get information to help you with money management. The organization also provides free financial coaching in cooperation with the Department of Labor.

5. The Association for Financial Counseling & Planning Education (AFCPE)

The AFCPE certifies accredited financial counselors (AFCs), who are fiduciaries.  AFCPE, together with the Wells Fargo Foundation, and Coordinated Assistance Network, provide free virtual financial counseling and coaching to individuals and families.

6. Financial Planning Association (FPA)

Through its network of local FPA chapters and partners, the FPA offers programs for consumers, including pro bono financial planning. Its website can connect consumers to public education programs, such as Money Smart Week from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

7. Savvy Ladies

The Savvy Ladies mission is to empower women through financial knowledge. The organization offers free financial education, including a free financial helpline, free courses, Stacy’s Savvy blog, and webinars.

When Should You Pay for Financial Advice?

Volunteers and organizations that provide free financial advice may not have the resources to help with more complex financial situations, such as creating a trust fund or an estate plan.

Managing complex financial issues may require an advisor who can devote their time to working with you, and they will charge a fee for that service. You would pay a yearly fee for a financial advisor. However, the fee should pay for itself in a few years.

The 7 Benefits of a Financial Advisor 

1. Retirement planning

Through managing your retirement accounts and your investments, a financial advisor can help you ensure that you will have the income you need for a comfortable retirement. Financial advisors have extensive training in retirement planning. They help their clients with creating efficient budgeting and savings plans and making investments that balance revenue with risk, including products such as target-date ETFs.

2. Preparing for the unexpected

A financial advisor can help you prepare for the unknown, such as higher inflation or living an extra decade. Your advisor can also recommend investments that reflect changes in the market. For example, a decline in income could be offset by life insurance to increase your legacy.

3. Rational decision-making

Humans tend to make decisions based on their feelings and intuitions. A financial advisor can provide the element of rationality that keeps the client from making emotional decisions in the face of sudden or unexpected events, particularly in the stock market. An advisor helps their clients manage financial stress.

4. Managing taxes

As the tax system is constantly changing, working with a financial advisor can help you minimize your tax bill. For example, the advisor can use asset allocation strategies to reduce capital gains tax.

5. Increasing well-being

Various studies have shown that consumers who use a financial advisor experience higher levels of well-being, particularly those who do not feel financially knowledgeable or have difficulty controlling their finances in a consistent way. Others feel more self-confident when they reach out to an advisor when they have an increase in income.

6. Customizing a financial plan

Utilizing a financial advisor can add clarity to your understanding of the complexities inherent in financial markets. Your advisor can create an investment plan and a retirement income strategy based on the right asset allocation for your needs and financial circumstances.

Find an advisor with whom you can openly discuss your financial needs and desires to help them devise the best plan for you.

7. Using data-driven decision-making

With today’s technology, financial advisors have access to the data they need to help you make smart investment decisions and react effectively to changes in the market.

What is the Role of a Financial Advisor?

‘Financial advisor’ is a general descriptor for trained or certified professionals who help people with money management and personal finance. They are able to assess your financial needs and create a long-term financial road map for your future, balance your expense and income, which gives higher returns and lower losses. In other words, they provide financial advice.

Your financial advisor can prepare periodic reports and analyses for you to review. This will provide you with more clarity on your current financial standing. At the same time, they will propose different investment strategies and approaches that will continue your wealth enhancement.

If you’re wondering, “Should I hire a financial advice expert?” you may want to recognize which kind you’re looking for. Typically, financial advisors can be categorized into various types based on their specialties. Those who have certifications or credentials are more proficient in their subject matter.

Once you identify in what areas of life you want financial advice, you can take action to find a suitable advisor. Our free guide can talk you through the process of selecting the best financial advisor for your purpose.

Financial Planners

Financial advisors who have met the requirements of the CFP board are known as Certified Financial Planners. They offer financial advice in budgeting, retirement planning, debt consolidation, credit card management, such as analyzing credit scores or credit reports and finding out how to get a low interest rate, risk management, investment advice, estate planning, tax management. Regarding how they charge for financial advice, they can be a fee-only financial planner or fee-based financial planner.

Their rigorous training ensures that they uphold a high ethical standard and fiduciary duty for their client’s best interests when providing financial advice. They create projections for how much return you can expect on a yearly basis while considering factors that can affect those returns.

Financial Consultants

Financial consultancy is a broad term for financial advice. Chartered financial consultants – ChFC’s – are certified professionals with a vast knowledge base in managing finances. In addition to financial planning, they can guide you with personalized advice that will help you build wealth.

They often partake in managing their client’s investments by identifying and purchasing or selling stocks or bonds. Similar to CFP’s, they also adhere to ethical, fiduciary standards for their clients, providing unbiased advice.

Investment Advisors

If you are looking for an expert’s financial advice on managing your investments, it is worth your while to contact a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA). You can choose to let them directly handle your assets, or you can consult them on your investment options. They analyze your financial history, portfolio, and future prospects to recommend the best course of action for you.

Wealth Advisors

High earners and affluent clients will benefit more from seeking financial advice from wealth advisors or wealth managers. Legacy planning, estate planning, tax mitigation, charitable giving, and even medical insurance are their fields of expertise. They possess comprehensive knowledge of the financial market and can prepare strategies for you to implement in your financial life. Our advisors at Pillar Wealth Management can offer you holistic financial advice to boost your finances. You can schedule a consultation with one of our wealth managers to learn how we can help you build your wealth.

Stock Brokers

Investment experts that provide financial advice on the best way to maximize your wealth are known as stockbrokers. They conduct in-depth research on the stock market to buy or sell securities. Depending on their licenses, this can include mutual funds, variable annuities, and more.

Investment or Portfolio Managers

Your investment portfolio summarizes your financial history, goals, and risk tolerance. Portfolio managers have the task of giving financial advice that ensures the best possible growth outcome for your investments. Their knowledge equips them with information on which steps you can take to ensure you have a top-notch portfolio. We have highlighted some of these steps in our performance guide.

4 Reasons to Seek Financial Advice

Building wealth can span a lifetime, and you may be unsure about trusting another person with your finances, especially if you’re self-sufficient.

Do you need financial advice for a specific reason? There are circumstances where a professional can assist you in making the decisions that will impact your future. You may be looking for someone to help give your financial life some structure or you may want to increase your net worth.

In either case, entrusting a knowledgeable advisor can be exactly what you need. Book a meeting with one of our experienced financial advisors and see for yourself.

If you’re still on the fence, here are four reasons why wealthy individuals seek financial advice.

1. Risk Management

High net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals have multiple high-value assets to keep track of. Besides, they also have numerous savings account that must be well-managed. You may be unaware of the risks this exposes you to. Market fluctuations can invite major losses and deplete your savings. While your wealth may withstand sustaining that loss, it could result in relocating some of your investment resources. Financial advisors can secure your assets by regularly rebalancing them after studying the relevant data.

Financial advisors can also help you understand the risks associated with your financial plan and, consequently generate strategies to overcome them. We discuss how you can protect your investments in our book: The Art of Protecting Ultra-High Net Worth Portfolios and Estates – Strategies For Families Worth $25 Million To $500 Million.

2. Implementing Advanced Strategies

Dynamic changes are constantly occurring in the professional and corporate world. The strategies you may have been using for years may be outdated. Getting financial advice on how you can re-strategize to continue building on your wealth can help you attain positive results. They can help identify good opportunities to increase your investment returns that you may have overlooked.

Qualified financial advisors are well-acquainted with advanced strategies and how to implement them. This includes having widespread knowledge of the best investments for your portfolio. You can learn more about strategies for portfolio growth in our guide.

3. Understand Your Financial Health

Formulating a plan to ensure a strong current and future financial standing is essential. Working with a financial advisor can help you achieve your short-term and long-term goals successfully. They analyze your expenses, active and passive income, and your savings to determine the next course of action.

High value assets need to be monitored by someone who can use data to foresee economic trends and profit margins. Having an expert manage these details frees up time for you to concentrate on your business or advance your career. Contact us to gain an expert’s opinion on your financial standing.

Your financial health determines whether you can live out your day-to-day life the way you envision. This will include your lifestyle goals, such as purchases you want to make, real estate you want to own, how much you want to travel, how much wealth you leave for your legacy, and how charitable you are.

4. Safeguarding a Secure Future

It is best to plan ahead to maintain your lifestyle throughout your years of retirement. You need to take into account your savings, your expected income, and your future expenses. A financial advisor can present you with the best retirement plan for your unique financial profile.

You should also put thought into your life insurance, health insurance, and family inheritance. With the correct policies, you can rest assured that your savings will remain secure, and your wealth will be transferred appropriately.

How to Reach Out to a Financial Advisor

Now that you have made up your mind to reach out to one, the question that arises is, “Where and how do I find good financial advice?”

The answer to your question lies in the unique services you require. You can search for an advisor who specializes in your field of interest, or you could opt for a wealth manager who will oversee most of your financial aspects. With many firms now conducting their businesses online, the internet is a great way to look up potential financial advisors.

Every financial advisory firm should be licensed to work with corporate clients or high-net-worth individuals. Their main objective is to elaborate financial decisions and strategies for their clients. The financial decisions are varied. They can involve student loans, credit card management, a spending plan, retirement account such as 401(k), buying a house, and so forth. Planning those matters is very important because it can affect your financial goals in the future. The best financial advisors can provide you those financial decisions based on your needs. That is why the main reason why you need financial advisors are:

You need to engage with the market changes and your current advisors are not on the same page with you.

It should be in your interest to seek out certified and accredited advisors who are qualified for the position. If their services have been well-received, you should be able to find multiple positive reviews and ratings. Their webpage should be informative and should clearly state their verified accreditations. Based on your preference, you can look for commission-based advisors or fee-only advisors.

Besides, with the vast development of the internet, searching on Google can be one of your choices. To ease you on how choosing a financial advisor, you can also visit Investopedia, a financial content website that is part of the Dotdash publishing family, or you can visit Pillar WM directly to get the financial service that you are looking for.

If your priority is to find a trustworthy advisor to be in charge of your financial management, you can consult your network. Peers, colleagues, and other professionals may have more experience and success stories in dealing with financial advisors, and they could recommend you to a reputable one. Additionally, they could point out potential red flags and obstacles in dealing with certain advisors. You can use their experiences to streamline your own in a short amount of time.

Our Ultimate Guide outlines which key factors to take into consideration when choosing a financial advisor. If you have over $10 Million of investments in liquid assets, you can take advantage of our exclusive offer of getting this guide for free!

You can also narrow your search by looking for advisors who cater to a clientele with a financial profile similar to yours. This will allow you to get a clearer picture of what they can offer you and how they can benefit you.

Final Words

If you’re debating at what point should you get financial advice, the short answer is: the sooner, the better. The quicker you have an action plan in place, the sooner you can work towards fulfilling your goals. Your short-term and long-term financial goal, as well as the security and growth of your wealth, are impacted by who you choose to manage your finances.

Wealth protection becomes more challenging with age. As your assets and wealth grow, so do your liabilities and responsibilities. Everyone is at risk for financial mistakes and mishaps.

A consultant can guide you through drafting a contingency plan to safeguard your wealth and protect you from potential fines, overtaxing, and lawsuits. This plan will need constant revision over time to adapt to changes in laws, policies, market value, inflation, and more. At Pillar Wealth Management, we are skilled in financial planning for major life transitions of investors with $5million to $500 million in liquid assets. We work to optimize your performance by proactively taking steps to secure your finances and help you achieve financial serenity. Register your email address and Sign up to chat with one of our experts.

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