Retirement Financial Planner

For retirees or people rapidly approaching retirement

Locate a Certified Retirement Financial Advisor™ in Your Area

CRFA™ - Certified Retirement Financial Advisor™
These graduates are experienced financial advisors and get trained specifically in the financial issues that face retirees. The can assist with retirement investing, retirement planning, estate planning, asset allocation and insurance protection. Many hold a CPA, JD or CFP® credential before graduating. These are excellent candidates if you seek an individual financial advisor. Some people mistakenly refer to these graduates as a "certified retirement planner" which is not an actual designation.

CSA - Certified Senior Advisor
These graduates are not trained in financial issues. This is a very diverse program focusing on a broad array of aging issues. Classes often contain nurses, gerontologists, nursing home administrators as well as life insurance agents and financial planners

CASL - Chartered Advisor in Senior Living
This training appears to be focused on helping pre-retirees as opposed to people already retired based on the verbiage on their web site "The aging of the baby boom generation presents tremendous opportunities - and challenges-for financial services professionals. With 77 million boomers rapidly approaching retirement, planners need focused, in-depth information on the financial and lifestyle issues of greatest concern to older clients. The CASL designation was developed to provide the skills and knowledge that planners need to effectively serve the senior market."

CRPC - Certified Retirement Services Professional
These people are trained in establishing retirement plans for businesses and are not really suitable for an individual retirees seeking retirement advice or planning.

All these designations are awarded by private organizations. While they suggest that a planner has a certain amount of experience or training, none is required or recognized by any federal or state government or regulatory agency. Planners voluntarily choose to obtain these. Many talented planners hold no designations; other talented planners hold several.

Federal Securities Licenses

State Insurance Licenses

Advisors wishing to offer life insurance and annuities must pass state-administered insurance examinations.

Registered Investment Advisors

Any person who provides financial planning services for compensation must be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission or their state regulatory authority. Stockbrokers, insurance agents, attorneys and accountants are exempt, provided that their investment advisory services are merely incidental to their work. All other planners must register as investment advisors. Therefore, do not work with any planner who is not registered.

Planners who hold an NASD securities license are registered with a broker/dealer, and it is through that firm that they buy and sell investments for their clients. The B/D has the responsibility of supervising the activities of the advisor, and verifying that his recommendations are suitable for the client. Consequently, NASD-licensed planners may place his/her NASD license with only one broker/dealer. Many who work within the B/D framework complain about what they consider to be massive amounts of regulatory scrutiny on their practices – all done in the name of consumer protection – while many others, both within and outside the broker/dealer community, complain that NASD and B/D supervision is inadequate to properly safeguard consumers.

Planners who hold state insurance licenses are actually licensed not by the states, but by individual insurance companies; passing the state exam permits the companies to grant agents a license. An agent is permitted to hold licenses with multiple insurance companies, and most planners do, enabling them to offer the products of many insurance companies. Thus, planners who hold both NASD and insurance licenses process their investment transactions through their B/D and their insurance transactions through one or more insurance companies (one of which, by the way, might be their B/D!).

How to Find a Retirement Financial Planner

One of the first questions to ask when interviewing them:

How are they compensated? Make sure you understand how they earn a living and what your costs will be.

Interview two or three retirement planners. Get references from neighbors, friends or co-workers. But before you ask someone for the name of their advisor, make sure the person you're asking is similar to you in age, income, net worth, and objectives.

10 Points to Ponder About Prospective Planners

• How many years have they been in business, and how did they get started? Don’t assume that a gray-haired advisor has decades of experience; many people become retirement income planners after leaving (or retiring from) other careers.
  
• What kind of people do they work with most often? Ask the planner to describe their typical client. If they describe you, it could be a good match. In other words, do they specialize in working with retirees and do they have the Certified Retirement Financial Advisor™ designation?
  
• What is the ratio of support staff to professional staff? Too few means the advisor has trouble getting work done. Too many means you're paying for the firm's big expenses. A good test: The planner should not be answering his own phone, but phone calls should be returned within one business day.
  
• What is the planner's reputation in the field and in the local community? Planners who have roots tend to be more careful than someone who just blew into town. Look for someone with a solid reputation.
  
• When setting your appointment, go to the planner's office instead of inviting him to your home. Inspect the office. How often does the phone ring before it's answered? Is the office organized? Is there a bustle of activity? Don't be taken in by offices that are too opulent, for clients pay the rent! If you see piles of papers all over, remember that one day, your file will be somewhere in that mess!
  
• Do you understand what they tell you? If you understand what they're telling you, you should be able to repeat to others what they've said.
  
• Does the planner have a clean record? Check the web sites of the regulatory authorities – the NASD and the SEC – to find out.
  
• Ask about the planner's investment methods. What types of investments does he work with? Is your money accessible or are there restrictions? Who makes decisions about investments — you or the planner? Can the planner execute transactions without your prior approval? Make sure you're comfortable with all the answers.
  
• Questions about style can tell you a lot about substance.
  Must you sign a contract (a registered investment advisor is required by law to have you sign a fee agreement)? What does it obligate you to do? Never sign one that doesn't let you cancel in 30 days or less. Never pay more than 50% in advance. When paying asset management fees, never pay for more than 6 months in advance.

CFP® is a certification mark owned by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. This mark is awarded to individuals who successfully complete the CFP Board's initial and ongoing certification requirements.

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