Financial advisors spill the beans: How you can find a trustworthy advisor

How can you grow and preserve your wealth during this high inflation, high-interest rate environment?

You might wonder, what is the best step to take to ensure your hard-earned money is put to good use?

Some of us might consider getting help from professionals, such as financial advisors.

But with so many financial advisors out there, with many appearing to be selling similar financial products and services, how do you know how to choose?

Some people you know might also have had negative experiences, so you might be a bit more cautious. Who can you trust with your money?

Managing your wealth is a big deal, you would want someone with very good expertise, high credibility, and has your best interests in mind — you want an A-Grade financial advisor.

How can you start looking?

Based on our experiences in the financial advisory industry, below are some of the most crucial criteria you should look out for.

At The Money Folks, we help our clients invest and build multiple income streams that potentially enable them to retire with more than $1 million. Reach out to us for a financial assessment call (by application approval only).

Disclaimer: This post represents our personal views and opinions and is neither associated with any organisation nor reflect the position of any organisation. This content is also only for informative purposes and should not be construed as financial advice. Past performance does not necessarily equate to future performance. Please seek advice from a Financial Adviser Representative before making any investment decisions.

You would need to look out for the real advisors from the sales reps

The first impression many people have about the financial advisory industry is it is predominantly sales-based.

For example, if you are purchasing a life insurance policy, how would you know if the financial advisor representative (FAR) who is trying to sell it to you has your best interests at heart?

So in order to find the right FAR for you, you would need to filter out the ones who solely chase their sales target from the ones who genuinely want to help you.

One way to find out is by asking them how they are paid and seeing how they respond to the question. And they are actually legally required to disclose this to you when asked.

For example, if a certain policy is most suitable for you, a good FAR would be able to justify why, even if it happens to come with a higher commission.

Usually, most FARs are paid a commission or management fee that is a percentage of your invested monies or financial products purchased.

But some people might feel that commission-based advisors might not act in their client’s best interests, as they might recommend investments or products that only give higher commissions without any consideration of their clients’ needs.

This is why it is important to be cautious. You should not determine the competency of a FAR through their earnings. Those who earn the most are not always the best.

However, on the flip side of the coin, a commission-based advisor has the incentive to also do their best to help you grow your wealth. This is because the more wealth you grow, the more they earn as well.

On the other hand, there are also fee-based advisors in the financial advisory market. They primarily get paid a fee directly by clients for product or investment recommendations, thus reducing any conflict of interest.

FARs from financial advisory and wealth management firms that have access to different insurers’ products will also be able to help you compare different insurers in a more unbiased manner, as compared to FARs who are working for a single insurer. This is what our team can do for you as well.

But most importantly, regardless of how your FAR is paid, a good FAR will take the initiative to review your portfolio regularly (eg. yearly) to ensure that you are on track to reach your goals.

For example, with the changes in the current economic climate such as high inflation, high interest rate and looming potential recession — what can your FAR recommend so your investments remain resilient if a recession does happen?

Will the FAR guide you during such market turbulence?

These are some of the factors that show your FAR really cares for you.

You need to avoid cookie-cutter investment strategies — Not one person has the same financial milestones

Since there is a lot of investment philosophies and strategies to grow wealth, you would need to check with your FAR about what can they actually offer you.

How can their services value-add to your current portfolio?

Can they offer a personalised wealth growth strategy that can help you achieve your goals?

For example, an FAR who specialises in working with young professionals to grow wealth might not have the best expertise in working with high net worth retirees to preserve their wealth.

That said, regardless of the problems you are facing — from having too many assets but too little cash flow or if you are unsure of how to optimise the use of your idle cash – having a skilled FAR to guide you can put you on track to potentially achieve your financial goals.

It is best to have a consultation session with your advisor to better understand their strengths and weaknesses, and if they have the expertise to help you specifically, and craft a strategy that is tailored to your risk appetite.

Be sure that your advisor is flexible and attentive to your goals and needs. You would also want to avoid having a cookie-cutter investment strategy that is not tailored for your specific needs.

Our team uses a proprietary recession-resilient investment framework tailor-made for every client’s financial goals and risk tolerance.

If you are keen to find out more, feel free to get in touch here for a personalised financial plan.

You need to identify if your FAR has experience and qualification in wealth growth success

Financial adviser representatives or insurance agents have different experiences and backgrounds.

It is important to look out for good credentials, and it can be a huge plus.

You can look out for FARs who are also Certified Financial Planners (CFP). CFP is one of the most respected global certifications for financial planners and is seen as the gold standard in the financial planning and wealth management industry globally.

Why is this important?

As the popular saying goes….

A FAR with the right credentials, experience and expertise in achieving financial success for their clients would know how best to recommend financial strategies and products that are most suitable for you – so that you can reach your financial goals.

Your advisor essentially should be able to save you the time from managing your own investments and also potentially help you achieve better financial success than you doing it yourself.

Fortunately, the Money Folks team, all of whom are licensed financial advisor representatives, collectively have more than 10 years of experience.

Some of us are Certified Financial Planners (CFP®️) and recipients of the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT), which is awarded to the top 5% of financial advisors worldwide.

The right advisor can determine your financial trajectory for years to come

When you find your A-Grade FAR, it would be a life-changing decision.

The relationship will be long-term and you would have every confidence that your wealth is in expert hands.

The real value in an ongoing relationship with high-quality FARs is having someone who can help you walk through and potentially achieve many milestones to come.

Many of our team members are also recognised as the top 5% of financial adviser representatives worldwide, so you can be assured that with our guidance, you can potentially get your retirement planning on track.