How do you make the most of working with a Certified Financial Planner while in your 20’s?
Hi all! Today I want to talk about the options Crafted Wealth has for those just beginning to take control of their own financial lives.
Let’s say you’re out of school, making a decent income, feel like you are living a frugal lifestyle, working on paying off your student loans. You're starting to wonder if you’re on the right track, wondering what’s next, or if there is anything you’re missing. You feel like you want the help of a financial planner, but aren’t sure you can afford it, or if you need all the bells and whistles that come with a full financial plan. Well, don’t worry because Crafted Wealth has options for you!
Brief Industry History
Before we talk about what we do have, let’s talk about how this all started. Not too long ago your options to get financial advice were pretty limited. They were:
Investment managers - who weren’t likely to talk to you unless you had over $250k+ and even if they did talk with you, it only involved investments and not comprehensive financial planning. At a younger age, having investment only conversations without financial planning isn’t valuable.
OR
Brokers – who make a living through commissions on the products they sell, things like front-load mutual funds and insurance products. Brokers aren’t required to act in your best interests unlike Registered Investment Advisors (RIA). So how do you know, since brokers aren’t fiduciaries, meaning they aren’t legally required to act in your best interest like Crafted Wealth is, if the advice they give is what's best for you?
So, you either had to figure out how to get from $0 to $250k in investments on your own or you’re subject to working with a broker, neither being a very good option.
The good news is, over the last few years there has been a huge shift in the financial world. There are many of us that have been pioneering a new part of the industry. Fee-only firms with Certified Financial Planners on tap! You can get advice from a fiduciary for an affordable upfront, hourly, or annual fee. That is what we are offering at Crafted Wealth.
Case Studies
So let’s get back to you. What can Crafted Wealth do for you?
There are a ton of pointers and advice I can give to set you on the right track from the start. It's my job to help figure out what those pointers need to be based on what you want to accomplish and where you are currently standing. Some typical cases are:
#1- I’ve just got some questions
You don’t think you’re ready for a full planning relationship but want someone to go to for questions.
You feel that you could get your questions answered in around a two-hour period. Easy, a lot of advisors have a “Ask-Me-Anything” or a “Quick Start” program that is exactly that. $500 up front for two hours of their time and you can ask any question under the sun. If you need more time or have extra questions, you may be able to engage on an hourly basis after that.
This is a great way to ease into a relationship with a professional with a low cost barrier. Plus side is that you now have experience with a CFP that you can go back to for any other future questions. Crafted Wealth has that, schedule a “Ask-Me-Anything” here.
#2 – I have more than questions, I want some help with the basics.
You want a deep dive into your financial foundations: Net Worth, Budgeting, Emergency Funds, and Cash-Flow/Student Loan Planning. You’re also looking for access to an online tool to use to help track your progress. You are considering paying for an ongoing relationship with your CFP.
Cash flow planning is one of the core financial foundations to flexibility within your life. It’s the starting point for most conversations I have. Cash-flow planning starts with an audit of your existing monthly expenses that we can start to use for your personal budget. With an audit we will learn what percentage of your income you are spending every month on both fixed and variable expenses. As an example, if you’ve chosen to rent an expensive apartment and an expensive car that takes up a significant amount of your monthly cash flow (fixed expenses) it will give you less flexibility to take advantage of non-monthly opportunities like traveling, saving/investing, or other hobby expenditures (optional expenses). Neither is right or wrong but it’s good to be aware of these things to make sure you’re spending your money in areas that you actually value.
Working through your financial foundations is $1,000 for two initial conversations and $1,200 a year to continue an ongoing relationship with reviews and advice. The $1,200 can be broken out into monthly or quarterly payments. You could also get setup for $1k, opt out of the ongoing guidance and reengage with us on an hourly basis if/when you have more questions. This may be a more economical solution for you.
Crafted Wealth has the Get-Started program – schedule a meeting here.
#3 – I want help with Investments
What do you do if you’re looking for someone to help with investments too? Have no fear, we are here!
There are a handful of us that offer our traditional investment management services with no investment minimum as long as you are also engaging us for financial planning (Hourly, Ask-Me-Anything, or Get-Started).
I’m in that boat because investments are one of the power tools in your financial tool belt. It’s good to build an investment philosophy for yourself at a young age. Starting to understand investing early will give you a lot of flexibility as you grow older.
This service starts at 1% of AUM and falls as your assets grow.
#4 – I want help with everything.
You already know you want a full ongoing relationship with a Certified Financial Planner.
In this case you are a perfect fit for our Hand-Crafted Financial Planning process. This is where most of our client relationships fit. We have conversations around what you want out of life, discuss your values, goals, and big dreams, use the wealth building process to help you get there, and act as a guide throughout your life. The full wealth building process entails knowing your financial foundations, and engaging in retirement, income tax, insurance, education planning, and investment management.
You get access to the full Advizr suite which is a cloud based financial planning software to track your finances and goals. You warehouse your life planning on your own mindmap through MindMeister and receive your own “One (or more) Page Financial Plan”. If you have us managing your investments through TD Ameritrade, you will have access to their online platform.
When you start working with us, our goal is to get you to the hand-crafted planning process as quickly as you’re able. It’s where the full power of working with a financial planner is unleashed!
Starting fresh with a Hand-Crafted plan means there is a $2,400 upfront planning fee and a $2,400 minimum annual ongoing fee (broken out monthly/quarterly). Annual fees are based on your Net Worth and Income. This structure aligns our goals and reduces likelihood for conflicts of interest. As Hand-Crafted planning clients our only incentive is to help you grow yourself and your net worth!
Schedule a Hand-Crafted Planning meeting here.
Crafted Wealth has a variety of options that can be used by those in all different stages of your financial life. We want to provide services for you starting from your first job all the way through retirement so we’ve built ourselves to be able to do just that because there should not be a high barrier in order to get professional advice. We provide fee-only fiduciary services to those that want a “REAL” Financial Advisor. If you have any questions about any of our services, please don’t hesitate to ask!