Best Fee Only Financial Planner St Petersburgh FL

Best Fee Only Financial Planner St Petersburgh FL

Are you trying to decide who to hire as your new financial advisor or wondering if the one you have is acting in your best interests?

With so many opinions and convincing sales pitches out there, it can feel like an impossible task.

What is a Fee-Only Financial Advisor

Fee-only financial advisors do not earn commissions from product sales.

Like other professional services, they charge fees directly to their clients.

They have what is known as a fiduciary duty to their clients.

This means they are required by law to act in their clients’ best interest and they are required to disclose all conflicts of interest.

There are several ways that fee-only advisors can be compensated, including charging a percentage of the investments they manage, a flat annual fee, or hourly fees.

But the fee must come from the client, and from no other source.

Because fee-only financial advisors don’t have an incentive to sell specific products, you are more likely to receive holistic and unbiased advice.

In addition, the relationship is often longer-term and collaborative, instead of transactional and high-pressure.

Why does Fee-Only Advisor make a difference?

We say it all the time but why exactly does “Fee-Only Make a Difference” mean?

Well, it mostly has to do with the compensation structure, called “Fee-Only,” and how it compares to “Traditional” commission based financial planners.

It’s this unique way in which Fee-Only financial advisors are paid that allows them to be objective in their advice and avoid conflicts of interest.

A “Fee-Only” registered investment advisor (RIA) is legally held to a Fiduciary Standard, which means by law they have to hold your interests above their own.

Fiduciary Financial Advisor St Petersburgh FL

The word fiduciary has grown in popularity since the Department of Labor’s hotly contested and ultimately delayed “Fiduciary Rule” in 2017.

What you need to know is there are essential two standards of care that financial advisors may follow.

The suitability standard is the lower standard of care.

It simply says an advisor cannot sell you something that is “unsuitable” – but says nothing about conflicts of interest or excessive, hidden fees.

The fiduciary standard is a higher standard of care that requires an advisor to put their client’s interests ahead of their own and disclose any potential conflicts.

Since the popularizing of the concept of “fiduciary”, more and more advisors are using the term.

In reality, some advisors operate at times under the fiduciary standard and at others under the suitability standard.

For example, they may offer investment advice for a fee as a fiduciary and then sell you an insurance product under a suitability standard.

What you want is something in writing that says your advisor acts as a fiduciary 100% of the time.

Yes, Mintco Financial Team of Advisors are a fiduciary 100% of the time and we are happy to state that in writing.

How Advisors are compensated?

How your advisor is compensated and more concerned with how much.

Even if your advisor’s compensation doesn’t favor specific products or services, the overall level of fees can also be detrimental to your long-term financial success.

Paying less is not always better than paying more, but you want to make sure you understand exactly what you are paying, what you are receiving for your money, and what alternatives are available to you.

Are Financial Advisor Fees negotiable?

You are likely looking at paying around 1% of your portfolio to your advisor every year.

Whether that fee is reasonable or not depends on the size of your portfolio and the types of services offered.

If your portfolio is $500,000 and you are receiving both investment management, as well as financial planning, then your $5,000 per year fee is probably reasonable.

If your portfolio is $2,000,000 and you are receiving little more than quarterly performance reports and a couple of meetings each year, you can probably get similar services for much less than $20,000.

Make sure your fee is fair for the services you are receiving.

What a financial advisor does:

• Knowing which investments to purchase and in what combination so your portfolio fits your situation. This is what we call a “low-cost, tax-efficient, globally diversified portfolio.”
• Knowing which type of accounts to open and fund based on your situation. I.e. can you open a tax sheltered account? If so, which type; deductible, non-deductible, Roth, back-door Roth? How do you utilize your employer sponsored account (401k/403b/Pension)? Do you need a trust account? How do you title those assets? After you know which accounts you need, which ones do you fund and in what order. Or when retired, which accounts do you draw from first and when?
• Integrating tax planning and tax preparation with your investments and overall plan, employing tax-loss harvesting and asset location strategies as well as saving you money when filing your taxes.
• Knowing when and how to rebalance your accounts. Preserving the asset allocation designed specifically for your situation. How much do you let your accounts “drift” in order to keep costs down and also take advantage of momentum?
• Helping you analyze and determine the best course of action with Social Security, ultimately increasing your income during retirement.
• Knowing how much to save and finding creative ways to save more without sacrificing your lifestyle.
• Avoiding panic selling and euphoric buying (buying and selling at the wrong times).
• Knowing how much and what type of insurance you need and avoid over-paying for it (life, long-term care, umbrella liability and more).
• Knowing how to get the most from your employee work benefits (non-cash compensation can make up over 40% of your total compensation).
• Knowing the best way to save and pay for your children’s college education
• Reviewing and analyzing alternative investments such as real estate or starting a small business.
• Knowing how much house you can buy and then knowing the best way to set up your mortgage or analyzing your current mortgage to see if a refinance makes sense.
• Helping design your estate plan to protect you and your family, while you’re healthy, after you are no longer able to manage your affairs, and finally, after you pass away.
• Having the knowledge, expertise, and time to get all the above done not only once but on an ongoing basis. Each of these financial decisions need to be reevaluated as you, your spouse, your parents, and your children’s lives change and evolve. Health, job status, income, marital status, births, deaths, relationships, tax law changes and many other life events are all reasons to monitor and update your plan.

Mintco Financial-  Financial Planning Best Fee Only Financial Planner St Petersburgh FL

Mintco Financial was created  to provide holistic, unbiased advice that helps people simplify their lives and reach their financial goals.

Whether you’re a young professional trying to figure out how to balance paying down student loans with saving for your children’s education or a seasoned business owner wondering how to invest for retirement, we can help free you from the burden of managing your own finances on a day-to-day basis and give you peace of mind knowing you have a plan in place for your future.

To learn more, visit our website at www.mintcofinancial.com

Email us at info@mintcofinancial.com

or call 813-964-7100 or 716-565-1300.

To schedule a complimentary, no-obligation introduction click here.