The Importance of Vetting Your Financial Advisor

Any time you work with a professional, including a financial advisor, it’s well worth doing the research to verify that he or she is the right fit for you. You will want to interview a few different options before choosing a financial advisor and look specifically into their backgrounds before selecting someone.

A few advisors should always be discussed before you settle on one. Having individual conversations with each advisor can help you figure out how your personality matches up with them.

Asking questions and looking through their disciplinary history and credentials can help you narrow down your list. In the initial interview, there are a few key questions you would want to ask. First of all, you would want to determine whether or not they have served as a fiduciary before, what specifics services they are offering, and their individual certifications. Furthermore, it is beneficial to understand their overall philosophy about financial planning and investing. Knowing how many years this person has been in practice can also help you. In some situations, it is important to realize that financial advisors have a minimum investable asset requirement.

You may not meet this minimum requirement so it is a good idea to rule these people out before you set up an initial conversation. The consultation with a financial advisor should help you to clarify what is truly in your best interests and scheduling a consultation with one sooner rather than later will help you figure out your next steps.

Your estate planning lawyer and your financial advisor are important people for your future; choose them carefully.