What can a Financial Planner do for you?

What is a financial planner?

Navigating the world of finance can be challenging without the help of a financial planner or financial advisor (used interchangeably in this article). A financial planner should be a qualified individual who can help you understand your financial situation, define your financial goals, assess your risk tolerance, and identify strategies to help you achieve them. To do this, your financial planner will work with you to build an actionable plan that will include key elements such as budgeting, saving, investing, retirement planning, estate planning, tax planning and portfolio management.

 

Types of financial planners

There are three basic types of financial planners in the industry: robo-advisors, fee-only financial planners and traditional advisors such as commission based financial planners and financial planners who charge a percentage of assets under management. Each of these types of financial planners do have the same basic goal: to help optimize your finances and make sure you can achieve your financial goals. However, the delivery method is quite different.

 

A robo-advisor is an algorithm that determines the optimal strategy based on the numbers that you provide for your goals. Robo-advisors are compensated based a percentage of your assets (usually around 0.5% of your portfolio value on an annual basis). A fee-only advisor provides unbiased financial advice and is only paid for the time they spend on your plan (on an hourly basis or for the project), and a traditional financial planner usually makes a commission on the sale of investment products or is compensated based on a percentage of your assets (for example: 2% of your portfolio on an annual basis)

 

Why do you need a good financial planner?

Regardless of your financial situation, a good financial planner can help you understand your financial situation and help you navigate through the complexity of available financial products and services to achieve your financial needs. It is important to find a financial planner that you feel comfortable to work with and to disclose your financial information. This is necessary for building a strong client-advisor relationship that will help you build a solid financial plan that is tailored to your financial needs.

 

 What areas can a financial planner help you with?

Saving

Before we dive into investing, it is important to have a saving strategy in place. The saving strategy will help you answer questions such as: What should be my target savings rate? Where should I allocate my savings? Which expenses can be eliminated or decreased to increase my savings rate? Saving is something that people all over the world struggle with, but a financial advisor in Ottawa can help you with some great strategies that ensure your savings are healthy and consistently growing.

Investing

If you want to grow your wealth and invest in assets that increase in value over time, then it’s important that you consult with a financial planner, especially if you have never invested before and have no experience dealing with investing in various types of assets. A financial planner Ottawa will help you understand investing, build an investment plan according to your risk tolerance and ensure that it is well-balanced and aimed towards your long-term goals.

Portfolio management

It is important to take a big picture approach when managing your portfolio. A financial planner should get to know you and your financial situation to take a holistic approach when it comes to helping you manage your wealth. Portfolio management does not only include investment management, but also cash-flow management and debt management.

Insurance needs

The concept of insurance is quite simple: You pay a premium (usually monthly) and for that premium you transfer a risk to an insurance company. The risk being transferred could be passing away pre-maturely, or losing your job due to a disability. It can be challenging to know how much insurance you need while ensuring that you do not overspend on unneeded coverage. A fee-only financial planner in Ottawa can help you determine your life and disability insurance needs with evidence-based recommendations. Finding an a financial advisor that does not sell insurance gives you more confidence that you are getting unbiased advice on your insurance needs.

Tax planning

You work hard to make money and you make your money work hard for you with sound investing. Now, it is important to incorporate tax planning strategies to ensure that you do not give more away than you have to. An Ottawa financial planner can help you with tax planning as part of your overall financial plan. Your fee-only financial planner can work with your accountant, to help you minimize taxes at different stages of your life. Tax planning becomes more important when you enter retirement and begin withdrawing from your various investment accounts to fund your life and retirement goals. Retirement Planning and tax planning go hand in hand!

Estate planning

We will all pass away one day. Therefore, estate planning is important for everyone. Early in life, estate planning could be as simple as having a will and sufficient life insurance to help your dependents if you were to die pre-maturely. However, later in life you might have a more complex financial situation which makes estate planning a significant part of your overall financial plan. Again, you do not want to give away money to taxes instead of your children or grandchildren. Estate planning is something that you can do now, especially if you are approaching retirement, to minimize taxes and enjoy the gift of giving to your loved ones!

What areas can a financial planner help you with?

 

As we can see, financial planning involves many key areas that evolve as you go through the different stages of your life. It is important to have a knowledgeable and trusted financial planner in Ottawa to help you achieve your goals and make the most of your hard-earned dollars. Having a fee-only financial planner on your team helps you maintain control of your finances with transparent of cost (usually an hourly rate), while having the help from an expert in the field of financial planning. A fee-only financial planner provides unbiased advice and a learning experience to his/her clients. Clients can expect to walk away with a financial plan as well as financial knowledge that they can keep with them forever. Now, that is valuable!

 

Curious about our fee-only financial advisor service? Book a complimentary meeting today!

If a fee-only financial advisor sounds like the right fit for you, then call our office today. We have strong fee-only financial advisors that only get paid to give you advice. We’ll walk you through our options and find a financial path that meets your needs.