How to choose a financial planner (pay, financial advice, charges, fee)

[doglover29]

My husband and I think it would be a good idea to get the advice of a financial planner--we've never done this before. How do we go about choosing one? We prefer fee only. We've gotten some recommendations from co-workers but how do we choose among these? I called one of them, and he said he offers a free one-hour consultation, and then charges $1000-$3000 per year for unlimited financial advice. Does that seem reasonable? I was thinking it would be more of an hourly fee.

[david_respond]

There is a very good article on choosing a financial advisor which I found intersting as well as informative. Check it out at Choosing a Financial Advisor

Or else, if you want to find a planner then you can try the free service for finding a planner offered by Respond.com at Financial Planners: Find a Financial Planner for Planning & Investment

[Morningsuccess]

The information provided by you was pretty useful.I would approach a financial planning agency first since they often help you with questions, testing and support while studying for the tests. If you take them on your own, you do not have financial or informational support.







http://www.saturdaymorningsuccess.com/

[StealthRabbit]

$1k > $3k is pretty steep considering the quality of advice given by most planners.

I have been quoted~ $850 / yr for fee only and meeting every 3 months, but as often as you like if necessary, (tho that is not recommended if you have a good strategy)

The premo managers charge less than 1.5%
Some managers will charge a larger %, but only on gains, and you don't pay them when they are losing your money, (that seems a better incentive than a 'flat rate'.)

What ever you do, get some real life referrals, from someone similar to your ideals, wealth, risk tolerance, and age. This should be a good time to see how well they have done in past 3 yrs. Good managers will be up 10-15% for the last three, including ALL of 2008. (at least through November, when data are available)