When you are eager to develop a financial plan that will carry you through the years with peace of mind, it is vital you place your trust in a professional who has the training, experience, and knowledge needed to help you make the best decisions. In many cases, this means working with a Certified Financial Planner. While you may assume a Certified Financial Planner is a run-of-the-mill financial advisor, think again. In fact, a CFP can benefit you in numerous ways.
Training and Specialization
To begin with, not just any financial advisor can be a Certified Financial Planner. To be a CFP, an individual must undergo as much as 6,000 hours of training, and must also commit to continuing education after becoming certified. In addition, a CFP may also choose to specialize in certain areas of financial advice, such as tax or estate planning.
Put Your Best Interests First
If there is one thing that sets a Certified Financial Planner apart from a typical financial advisor, it is that a CFP is held to a strict fiduciary duty, meaning they are required to put your best interests ahead of their own. Therefore, when you are meeting with a CFP at Master Plan Tax Services in Flower Mound, TX, you will always know they have a duty of care, loyalty, and commitment to you their client. Actually, a CFP’s fiduciary duty is often much more strict than that which is required by state and federal regulations.
CFP or Financial Advisor?
Since a financial advisor can technically be anyone who helps you manage your money, they are not necessarily required to have any specific training, licensing, or certification. However, a CFP must meet basic requirements regarding their training, and of course place your interests ahead of their own.
Fee-Only vs. Fee-Based
While you may think there is little difference between a fee-only CFP and a fee-based CFP, you are wrong. If a CFP is fee-based, this means they may be paid commissions based on certain financial products they sell to clients. As a result, some people question whether a fee-based Certified Financial Planner can truly be impartial when dealing with clients. However, a fee-only CFP such as what you will find at Master Plan Tax Services in Flower Mound, TX will handle things differently. With no products to sell and no account minimums, it is easier to work with clients who have various financial goals.
Do You Need a CFP?
If you have recently come into an unexpected inheritance, are wanting to plan for your child’s college education, own a business or large amounts of real estate, or maybe are closing in on retirement, a CFP and the services provided by them can benefit you in many ways. Since you will receive financial advice that follows the highest of ethical standards, you’ll always have peace of mind.
Should you be in need of financial advice you can trust in Flower Mound, TX, contact a Certified Financial Planner at Master Plan Tax Services.