Are you thinking about booking your first meet up with financial adviser? There is a common misconception that having a financial adviser means you have to be very wealthy. So, when you find yourself needing to seek advice and you do not fall into this camp, you may feel nervous and intimidated.
Often, your first meeting with an adviser will be free of charge. This initial meeting is crucial to starting a good foundation with your adviser.
When you’re meeting with a financial adviser for the first time, there are a few things you can prepare. These will make sure you get the most out of your session.
Your adviser will explain about them and the company they work for. This should give you some background and understanding of the qualifications and experience the adviser has and the processes and the regulatory permissions of the firm. We recommend you look for an adviser who is wholly independent and that should be confirmed to you within this meeting. An independent adviser means that they have access to the whole of the market when recommending solutions to you, rather than being restricted to those their company provides.
Your adviser will ask you about your area of concern and why you have visited them. It is important to be clear here about what you want help with. One of the main queries we get is around retirement. As an example, your area of concern may be that you want to know when you can retire. You should have a think before your meeting about your retirement, what does it look like to you, how much income do you think you will need? Think about your aims and objectives before the meeting to ensure you focus on what you want to achieve, whatever the area of concern.
Dependent on your area of concern, your adviser will want to know certain details of any existing assets including pensions, investment and savings and what provisions you are making at the moment. Please do not hold anything back at this stage. They may not wish to know all the finer details, but high level values and what companies they are with is a good starting point.
Your adviser will also want to understand your family details, in particular any dependants that you have. If you are a couple, a joint meeting is usually preferable.
Your adviser will confirm the service that they offer, highlight their charging structure and may confirm the charges that would apply to you, in the event you decide to engage their services. Some advisers prefer to send written confirmation following the meeting summarising your discussions, confirming the areas they will advise upon and what the costs and charges would be.
You do not have to decide to engage the adviser there and then, you are freely entitled to consider your options at that point.
In addition to the points highlighted above, a financial adviser will want to understand your high level financial and personal positions during this meeting. They are not here to judge, but to provide advice and help where needed; they can only do this based on obtaining this information. Holding information back from them might mean you do not receive the best advice you can. After all, you wouldn’t tell a doctor half the issue would you?
Most advisers do the same thing, though sometimes in different ways. Therefore, the true purpose of your first meeting with financial adviser is to get to know them. You can decide whether this is the person you are going to be able to like and trust with your affairs for years to come.
If you’d like to arrange your first meeting with financial adviser at YorWealth, please get in touch.
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