Ask Shift of Tow: Financial Management
We want to find a financial adviser to help us get everything in order and start aggressively planning for retirement. How do we go about finding a good one? I know what questions to ask potential advisers, and I know what to look for and expect, but I can’t even FIND one! Citysearch and Google are no help; I’ve called two that I found from those resources and no one bothered to call me back. I’m happy to pay a fee for service, but don’t even know where to look. Help?
Start by looking into the plans you have available to you at work, if you haven’t already. You don’t necessarily have to use them (though, if they match what you save, absolutely use that plan up to the point where they stop matching, at least), but the various agencies they use to manage their 401(k) or 403(b) or what-have-you retirement plans will have a representative assigned to your workplace. Set up an appointment with one of them, or more than one, and talk with them to see what they have to say about retirement planning.
If that route doesn’t appeal, or if you’re already all set with your workplace’s plan and are looking for something more, look for companies rather than specific advisers. See if, say, Fidelity or Merrill-Lynch has an office in your area, and set up an appointment with one of their representatives. You should shop around.
You should also ask around amongst coworkers and friends and see what kind of financial management they have in place, and you could even try emailing a neighborhood listserv or two to see if there’s anybody independent out there that’s getting used.
You probably know this already, but you should also read and read and read about money management. I recommend the book Your Money or Your Life, to start, and I’m a big fan of Get Rich Slowly when it comes to finance blogs. There are tons of others out there, though. I recommend this for two reasons: You should know what you’re doing with your money, and most financial “advisers” aren’t going to be purely out to help you. They want to make money, and the way they make money is off of the fees you pay when they do anything with your money. It’s important to know when you need a broker and when you don’t.
I hope that helps!
