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What is financial planning?  Financial planning is the process of meeting your life goals through the proper
management of your finances. With every one of the countless steps that make up a life, there are choices. Choices that often lead to new goals. Buying a home, saving for a child's education or planning for retirement, are all good examples. The step-by-step helps you to reach your goals by gaining perspective on where you are now and defining where you may want or need to be in the future. It provides direction and meaning to all your financial decisions, defining each in context with the other, how they are all part of a whole. In this way, financial planning should help you adapt more easily to life changes and keep you on track. Once the process is understood, it is a simple matter to see how just about anyone can benefit from some level of financial planning. How do I know if I need the advice of a professional financial planner? When in doubt about your finances, it is a good idea to get professional advice. Financial matters can seem, and often are, complicated. If you are in doubt as to your ability to make the most of what you have, or will have for the future, it may be time to consult a professional. Risk evaluation, retirement plan maximization, financial emergencies, estate planning, inheritance: these are a few of the many areas in which a professional financial planner could be beneficial, and at times, crucial to your long-term well being. Even if you haven't any doubts about your financial planning expertise, you may simply feel that you don't have the time to devote to looking after your financial matters. There are many reasons to consult a professional, all of them valid. When it comes to your financial affairs, it's usually worthwhile to take the view: when in doubt, ask an expert. How is a financial planner different from other financial advisors?  Financial planners are individuals who know how to use the financial planning
process, the big-picture approach, to help you figure out how to meet your life
goals. They examine and explore all your needs and can help you with budgeting and saving; and tax, investment, insurance, retirement and estate planning. While they may work with you on a single financial issue, it is always within the context of your overall situation. This big-picture approach to your financial goals sets planners apart from all other financial advisors, who may have been trained only to focus on one particular area of your financial life. Can Financial Planners sell me a financial product, like life insurance or mutual funds, and do they offer other related services? Services offered by financial planners vary. Their approach and the types of services they offer should be discussed at the beginning of the engagement. Most financial planners are licensed by provincial authorities to sell one or many types of financial products and, depending on their credentials and the organization for which they work, they may offer advice on a range of topics. Others may provide financial planning advice only or specialize in offering advice in specific areas such as estate planning or taxation. How are financial planners paid?  Planners can be paid in many different ways including commissions on the sale
of products, salary, fee-for-service on hourly rates, flat rates for specific
services or be paid a fee based on a percentage of assets or income. How you
pay for the services of your planner should be discussed at the outset. It may
be that your planner will offer you a choice of how he or she might be compensated
depending on the services you want. However, it is very important that the planner
disclose in writing how he or she will be paid for the services provided. How much do financial planners charge? The amount you pay the planner will depend on your particular needs and the planner's experience and specialized expertise. The planner should be able to provide you with an estimate of possible costs based on the work to be performed. Such costs would include the planner's hourly rates or flat fees or the percentage he or she would receive as commission on products you may purchase as part of the financial planning recommendations. Shaunavon Credit Union does not charge its members for the benefit of consultations with our financial planner. How do I know if my financial planner is qualified to help me?  Not everyone who uses the title financial planner is a Certified Financial Planner™ professional.
There exists in Canada a very confusing mix of acronyms and designations for
financial advisors who may or may not be qualified to give you the kind of big-picture
and unbiased planning advice you need - even if they say they can. FPSC licenses individuals who meet rigorous qualifications in experience, education, examination and ethics to earn the professional designation of Certified Financial Planner™ or CFP™. Finding the CFP trademark logo, or the letters "CFP" or the words "Certified Financial Planner" beside the name of an individual, will ensure that you have identified a professional who has been educated in, examined for, and has experience in all aspects of financial planning. You will know that you have found someone who has agreed to adhere to a strict code of professional conduct known as the CFP Code of Ethics. Additionally, you will know that the planner has made a lifelong commitment to continuing education (30 hours per year) to keep technical skills and theoretical knowledge current. What do the letters "CFP" mean? CFP stands for Certified Financial Planner™. The CFP™ registered certification marks identify individuals who are dedicated to a high level of professionalism in providing financial planning advice. The CFP credentials assure you that those using them have agreed to adhere to the highest internationally recognized standards of competence and ethical practice as set out by Financial Planners Standards Council (FPSC) What does it take to earn and maintain the CFP designation?  The CFP four-step qualifying process includes the successful completion of a
6-hour examination that is based on regularly updated research and in-depth reviews
of what planners do. The topic coverage for the exam is developed from a syllabus
that outlines 166 topics and additional subtopics covering areas of: estate planning,
investment planning, retirement and employee benefits planning, insurance planning,
income tax planning, fundamentals of financial planning and the Code of Ethics. To qualify to write the exam, the candidate must successfully complete a program of study (many of which take three years) approved by FPSC. Or they must hold a professional designation and three years experience in a field related to financial planning. Additionally, all CFP professionals must have at least two years financial planning experience (three for those qualifying to write the exam through a professional designation).
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