Choosing and Working With a Financial Advisor
Michael LaVoy, ChFC, CFP®

1. Be Proactive: Be planful, and work with someone who will sit down with you and take time to understand your financial wants and needs.  Work with an expert to collaboratively craft a strategic plan. Don’t wait and be reactive based on market fluctuations, life status changes, etc.  Stick with your plan!  Stay the course!
2. Find Someone who is not Cookie-Cutter: Most financial consultants report to a corporation or a broker/dealer who decides what consumers should invest in.  There is no one size fits all in investing.  Find someone who looks at you as an individual and who will craft a plan that is as individual as you are.
3. Get Involved / Be a Collaborative Partner: Don’t let anyone tell you that you need to just sit back and let them do all the work.  GET IN THE GAME!  It’s your money!!! The more your investment advisor understands you and your financial needs; the more targeted (and successful) they can be.
4. Keep Informed of Current Events: We live in an information age, and markets change rapidly.  Work with an advisor who appreciates your keeping him/her informed.  E-mail articles; mail newspaper clippings.
5. Stay in Touch: If you’re having trouble getting calls returned from your advisor, it’s time to start shopping for someone who values communicating with their clients.  You should feel comfortable calling and asking questions, e-mailing, and being in “constant contact” with your advisor.
6. Don’t be overly vigilant: Your advisor should be expert enough that you don’t feel compelled to be a “day trader” checking on where your account is every day.  Just as you don’t get on the scale every day when you’re dieting, looking at your investment every hour may make you feel emaciated or bloated depending on the time of day.
7. Check References: Talk with people you know and trust and ask them who manages their investments and retirement accounts.  Your advisor should provide you with client references as well.
8. Check Credentials: Everyone seems to have a set of credentials by their names these days, but what do they mean?  Be assured that if RIA, Registered Investment Advisor, is beside their name, the advisor is bound to a set of fiduciary responsibilities that others may not be.
9. Check Performance: Your friends and family may really like their advisor, but how is their performance?  The honor of managing your hard earned money should not be won by a popularity contest, you need evidence-based outcomes in addition to a strong reputation in your advisor.
10. How is an advisor paid / Who does your advisor report to? “Everybody serves Somebody,” but a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) is in the business of serving YOU, the client.  Find an advisor who is not beholden to a corporation or broker/dealer to tell them what products to push. An RIA does not receive commissions for investment products.  Find someone who is a fee-only advisor, and rest assured that they only make money when you do!