Financial advice and financial advisor perth fees, is it worth it?
A financial adviser can assist you in setting financial goals, ensuring you feel confident about achieving your future plans. If you’re not on track, they can help implement the right strategies or help you set more realistic goals.
Financial advice is particularly valuable during major life events, such as starting a family, facing retrenchment, planning for retirement, or managing an inheritance.
Perhaps you are a year or two away from retirement, and now worry about where money will come from. Will you be able to still afford an annual overseas holiday or remain able to help your children and grandchildren financially? Can you to continue to enjoy eating out at that lovely little Italian restaurant? Or perhaps you have been running a business for many years, having made many sacrifices and now realise there must be more to life than working seven days a week.
You recall at that dinner with those lovely and outgoing friends and how they spoke about their financial adviser. “You should really chat with a financial adviser,” they tell you with enthusiasm as they recall their own great experiences with financial advice. Though you ask yourself, what would I get from financial advice? Is it worth paying a financial advisor? Where do I find a good financial adviser?
The Value of Advice
More than 7 in 10 Australians currently receiving advice believe it has generated more value to them than it has cost
In 2019 fund manager Fidelity International, in connection with Core Data undertook a study, The value of advice.2 2,228 Australians were surveyed of which 594 were retirees and 1634 were non-retirees. Of those included in the research, 502 were currently receiving advice, 570 had previously received advice and 1,156 had never seen a financial adviser.
Some of the key financial problems identified within the report;
- 67% of Australians say they worry about money at least monthly
- 52% of Australians say financial issues have affected their mental health
The positive benefits identified after receiving financial advice;
- Almost 89% of Australians receiving advice believe it has given them greater peace of mind financially
- 86% of Australians receiving advice believe it has given them greater control over their financial situation
The report determined that advice helps Australians achieve their personal and financial goals. Many of the respondents from the survey said they sought financial advice due to a change of life situation, such as retirement. Four in five Australians receiving financial advice confirmed they were able to achieve their financial goals with the help of advice. When asked what personal goals has receiving financial advice help you achieve 43% stated living my desired lifestyle.
When asked what personal goals has receiving financial advice help you achieve, 43% stated living my desired lifestyle
Where to go for financial advice
Perhaps, now having some understanding of the value of advice as outlined in the Fidelity International and Core Data research, you wonder where to seek financial advice.
The government website Moneysmart, provides details of how to choose a financial planner 3. Moneysmart explains you should first understand what you want from advice, understanding how much you have and what you want to achieve. The site also explains you should choose the right financial advice for you. Do you have a simple, single-issue advice need? At first glance, many of us believe that our circumstances are quite simple. For some of us, when we dig a little deeper and start asking ourselves further questions, we discover our needs are more comprehensive.
Moneysmart suggests seeking advisers that are members of professional associations – including the Financial Advice Association of Australia. Moneysmart suggests meeting and comparing financial advisers. Asking advisers about their qualifications, are they Certified Financial Planners what fees you will pay and how they will consult you on important decisions will help choosing the right financial adviser for you.
Introducing a financial planning approach to living your best life
Many forward-thinking financial advisers understand their clients value lifestyle above all. Wealthwise financial advisers for instance do not provide any advice until they fully understand the lifestyle their clients seek. Only once they understand the goals, the resources and alternative strategies available and the value financial advice will provide does a Wealthwise financial adviser begin to prepare a financial plan.
A Wealthwise financial adviser will focus on you, not product. Rather then focus on returns or replacement of a product, Wealthwise financial advisers will focus on helping their clients understand now much is enough, and explain the steps to get there.
So, is financial advice worth it? As the research from Fidelity indicated, many people that had received financial advice had received value beyond the cost, including both a financial and emotional benefit. Perhaps for those going through the uncertainty from life transitions, including retirement, selling a business, losing money in downturn markets, it is worth it.
The benefit of certainty and peace of mind in knowing you have enough without fear of running out of money is all the value ever needed.
Paul Turner is a Certified Financial Planner and Senior Financial Adviser with Wealthwise
Reference:
1. https://financialservices.royalcommission.gov.au/Pages/default.aspx, retrieved 19 April 2020
2. https://www.fidelity.com.au/insights/investment-articles/the-value-of-advice/ 19 April 2020
3. https://moneysmart.gov.au/financial-advice/choosing-a-financial-adviser