How To Interview A Financial Advisor
Once you have been able to narrow down your potential financial advisors to a few, schedule an interview with each of them separately to determine the best candidate for the position. Ask about his educational qualifications. He should preferably have a graduate degree. Does he have special qualifications that qualify him to give financial advice? How long has he been in the financial advisory business? Does he have a list of past and current clients that he can furnish you with? Can he give you their phone numbers? Ask about the sort of services he offers. Do they include estate planning, insurance and college education funds? Will he advise you about minimizing taxes? Will he recommend financial products. and help with their implementation? Finally ask about the type of remuneration plan he prefers? Most planners choose either a fixed fee, or a commission on financial products sold, or an hourly fee for their services.
Be prepared to be interviewed yourself when you go to meet a prospective financial advisor. Your advisor will need to know details about the sort of retirement life you see for yourself, your income and financial status, the location of your money, the size of your portfolio, etc. He will also need to assess your personality to determine the kind of investment options that will suit you. Make time to give well thought out answers that will enable him to get a complete and crystal clear picture of your present status and your future dreams. This is not the time to hide details, and not the time to be bashful. Don't give vague generic answers. In fact, if you can spend some time before you meet your personal financial advisor candidate, thinking over your answers and going over your goals methodically, you will find that hour chances of finding the perfect match are greatly enhanced.
A financial advisor in these uncertain economic times is not a luxury, but a necessary part of your investment. Money is easy to earn; it's retaining and keeping it that's the hard part. All it takes to fill out our financial advisor search from is two minutes of your time. In return, you will have the opportunity to meet with independent financial advisors who will help you secure your future. Make this investment right now!