Answers to common questions about working with Financial Plan.
Trust and Transparency
Many advisors are "dual-registered." This means they wear two hats: they are fiduciaries when giving advice, but "brokers" when selling you a product (like an annuity or insurance). Under that second hat, they only have to meet a "Best Interest" or "Suitability" standard, which allows them to collect commissions on what they sell.
At Financial Plan, we are strictly Fee-Only Fiduciaries 100% of the time. We do not have a "broker" hat. We are legally and ethically bound to put your interests first in every situation, whether we are recommending investments, making trades in your portfolio, or building your retirement strategy.
→ Fiduciary Advice | Advisor Selection Checklist (points #1, #4)
No. Financial Plan is compensated only by clients, never by third parties. The firm is SEC-registered with a clean compliance record, and all advisors are bound by the CFP® code of ethics. Every business partner is disclosed with a plain explanation of the relationship and what FP does not receive from them. This business model allows us to remain clearly on the same team as our clients without split loyalties.
It means 100% of our compensation comes directly from clients. We are members of NAPFA (National Association of Personal Financial Advisors) and have signed a Fiduciary Oath to maintain this strictly Fee-Only standard at all times. We are personally and legally motivated to serve our clients to the best of our ability and our loyalty remains squarely with them. Fortunately, our fee-only business model allows us to be on the same team as our clients- we succeed when you succeed.
Financial Plan has no proprietary products and is not a “captive agent”. Our client assets are held at Pershing, an independent custodian with no products of its own. Financial Plan’s independence means there are no third-party investments that would be difficult or costly to transfer.
→ Advisor Selection Checklist (points #5, #14) | Business Relationships
Value Proposition
Your portfolio is one element of your comprehensive plan. Anyone can buy index funds but constructing and maintaining the correct allocation of funds that map to your goals is a completely different story. In addition to portfolio management and regular rebalancing, your Financial Plan advisor will look at the whole picture including tax strategies, risk tolerance, retirement timeline, insurance, social security claiming strategies, charitable giving, and estate planning. All of these elements are taken into consideration when building your plan and are reviewed regularly. Someone is looking over your plan and keeping it on track, even as tax laws change and your lifestyle shifts. Our advisors serve as your personal CFO (Chief Financial Officer): we worry about the financial aspects of your life, so you don’t have to.
→ Scope of Financial Advice | Advisor Selection Checklist (point #2)
At Financial Plan, we occasionally use AI tools for research and modeling, but it still lacks coordination and context. AI doesn't know your daughter's wedding is in June, or that your estate planning attorney just updated your trust. While AI can respond to your prompts, it may draw conclusions based on outdated data sources or what it determines you want to hear. This makes it a powerful tool- and potentially dangerous- as it depends on the user and the prompts they choose. On the contrary, we tell our clients what they need to hear, based on their unique situation and decades of personal experience. Finally, a human financial advisor can collaborate with your CPA, attorney, and insurance agent in ways AI currently cannot.
Our philosophy is built around the time-tested premise that no one can accurately predict the future with any sort of consistency. Instead of forecasting, we aim to build natural market fluctuation and turbulence into each plan. In other words, we plan in advance of a market crash rather than reacting to it. We also maximize returns by planning around what we can control: risks, costs, taxes, and investor behavior. Thoughtful planning, disciplined rebalancing, and factor-based diversification all help maximize returns over the long term.
During our initial, complementary conversation, before any commitment is made, we will outline our full process and scope of our advice. Rather than providing a generic, 80-page “sample plan” which often provides data, but no actual direction, we demonstrate to you how we translate complex data into a clear strategy. Sophisticated software can generate hundreds of pages of impressive-looking output that proves virtually useless if it’s not tailored to the clients’ actual life. A plan that isn’t executed provides no real value.
Our process is built to avoid that. We focus on:
- Direct Personalization – Every input is specific to your unique tax and cash-flow situation
- Actionable “Next Steps” – We filter out the noise to focus on what matters most right now
- Ongoing Adaptation – We adjust the plan in real time as your goals and the world around you change
Before any formalized relationship is established, you should expect to feel comfortable and confident about the scope of our services and advice.
At Financial Plan, we have no opinion regarding the future value of any of the various cryptocurrencies and do not recommend anything that is purely speculative in nature. As a highly volatile asset with no real earnings (some will argue that it does have “earnings,” but the interest is paid in crypto and the rate is adjusted frequently and dramatically), it would be irresponsible of us, in our opinion, to advise our clients to participate.
A CPA and a CFP® are solving two different problems and having one doesn't substitute for the other. A CPA's job is primarily backward-looking: they file an accurate return based on what already happened last year. They are expert reporters of your tax reality. A CFP's® tax planning role is forward-looking: taking into consideration your projections for this year, the next 5, 10, and even 30 years.
Much of your current tax reality is the result of the investments selected, asset location strategies, order of withdrawal strategies, Roth conversions, and gain realization strategies. A good CFP® will plan in advance to improve your lifetime tax efficiency before executing any strategies.
With proper, long-term tax planning, your CFP® can help make sure the tax return filed by your CPA is as favorable as possible now, in the near future, and even when planning ahead for the next generation.
→Scope of Financial Advice | Advisor Selection Checklist (point #10)
With over 100 years of cumulative experience, there isn’t much we haven’t seen. Each advisor at Financial Plan has developed a dedicated area of expertise, whether tax planning, generational wealth transfers, business ownership, charitable giving or trusts. Whatever your situation, we are likely to have an expert right here.
Roles, Process & Professional Coordination
Titles like "Financial Advisor," "Financial Planner," and "Wealth Manager" are used interchangeably by both fiduciary advisors and investment salespeople. Anyone is “allowed” to refer to themself in these ways without regulation. More meaningful terms to look for when selecting an advisor include “fee-only”, “independent RIA” and “NAPFA member”. Additionally, the CFP® designation following a title means that an advisor has completed a rigorous course of study and is required to abide by strict ethical requirements.
→Fiduciary Advice (add the 14 point advisor checklist?)
After our “Mutual Commitment Meeting” (step three of the planning process), your accounts are adjusted and the investment strategies from your plan are put into action. From there, we essentially operate as your personal CFO (Chief Financial Officer), keeping an eye on your investments, rebalancing as needed, and making strategic moves based on any life changes that take place throughout the year. At least annually, we will hold a meeting (we call this your “annual review”) to review your plan and any life changes, cashflow needs, or timeline adjustments. From there, we are available year-round to address any circumstances that may arise whether through an in-person meeting, phone call, or quick email. We work with you to ensure your financial goals remain on the most likely path to success now and in the future.
Many times it is necessary for your Financial Planner to coordinate with other professionals (CPAs, Insurance Agents and Estate Planning Attorneys) to ensure your finances, taxes, estate plan, etc. are all working together in a cohesive way and mapping to your long-term goals. We maintain strong business relationships with many of these professionals locally and are always happy to work with your existing professionals or recommend someone we believe to be a good fit.
→Advisor Selection Checklist (point #10) | Scope of Financial Advice (Chapters Four & Five)
Logistics
Each client is assigned a dedicated Lead Advisor who is the creator and expert of their plan. In addition, each client is supported by a three-person team including a Lead Advisor, Associate Advisor, and Operations Director. Each team is overseen by a seasoned Principal advisor (on some teams, the Principal Advisor will also be the Lead Advisor). Any of your team members will be well equipped to handle various needs and questions that arise. Your Operations Director is generally the best first point of contact as they will either be able to help you directly, or contact the person who can.
→Advisor Selection Checklist (point #9)
Our business structure means you will always have coverage and multiple experts on your plan. With 21 staff members and 9 CFPs® across the firm, continuity is built into our business model. If your advisor takes a leave of absence or is otherwise unable to service your plan, your team (with the guidance of a different Lead Advisor) will step in to maintain your plan at the highest level. In the unique case of an advisor retiring, conversations will take place months, or even years in advance, and you will gradually establish a relationship with a new Lead Advisor. Because of our shared investment philosophy and processes, you can rest assured you will remain in good hands.
→Advisor Selection Checklist (point #9) |Our Team
Both! While annual review meetings ensure the plan remains on track and that everyone is on the same page, we also make adjustments along the way as life happens. We treat your plan as a living document that we proactively update whenever the world around you changes. We encourage our clients to let us know as things come up that may affect their plan and remain in close contact throughout the year- we are always a simple phone call or email away.
The Series 65 certification is the bare minimum for providing financial advice, and all of our advisors carry this designation. We have gone a step further and require all Lead Advisors at Financial Plan to also hold a CFP® designation. We currently employ 9 CFP® Professionals. This is far from common, and we are proud of the high professional, technical, and ethical standards we uphold. The Client Safeguards page explains what earning the CFP® requires (two-year work experience, rigorous curriculum, comprehensive exam, ethics code, ongoing continuing education).