There was a good article in Research magazine last month about the business of financial advice and how it needs improvement. Research is an industry publication so it’s not the sort of article which would be distributed to the general public.

When it comes to the question of Social Security income, the choice looms large. Should you apply now to get earlier payments? Or wait for a few years to get larger checks? The first thing you want to do is consider what you do and don’t know.

It’s no secret that financial advisors prefer to work with wealthy people. Speaking from experience, managing a $2,000,000 account only takes a little more time and energy than managing a $500,000 account, yet the $2,000,000 account generates nearly 4x more revenue for the advisor.

When the Supreme Court affirmed the legality of same-sex marriage in June, its ruling profoundly altered the financial planning landscape for gay and lesbian couples – resulting in some “night and day” differences.

If there is something women hate, it’s being invisible. If you are meeting with a couple, make sure you speak with both parties. Ask each of them questions and allow both to answer. When scheduling client meetings, be sure to ask that both parties attend. Going above and beyond to do this in the early stages of your interactions can pay dividends later.

People often wonder about the different ways financial advisors get paid. The issue is discussed not only by investors but also within the industry by professionals as compensation methods have been hotly debated over the past decade

My clients know that one of the first steps in my financial planning process is creating personal financial statements – specifically a net worth statement. I think that knowing and accepting your current financial situation is a necessary step in the path to making it better.

When people ask me what I do, it’s easy enough to respond “I’m a financial advisor.” But the technical explanation as to how my organization operates is more complicated. I figured why not write an article about it because it reflects an industry trend and may be interesting to my clients and other readers.

Many people want to develop a relationship with a financial planner but don’t really know what that relationship entails. It will likely vary a bit from advisor to advisor but here is a general idea of how it works. I learned this process in the first module of the Certified Financial Planner program several years back and, for the most part, I’m still using it.

There is still time to establish a plan for the current tax year and take advantage of deductible contributions, but the deadline is very close. Owner-only businesses have until December 31 to establish 401(k), Profit-Sharing, or Defined Benefit Plans. Funding may be completed next year, by the business’ tax filing deadline, including extensions

I had a client in yesterday who asked me how much money he would need to retire comfortably. It’s probably one of the more common questions which people ask their financial advisor and each of us has a different way of handling the process.