Practical Fee-Based Financial Planning
This is the area that people typically think of when they start looking around for a financial planner . . . you want to know if you're on track with your spending, want to pay off debt, see if you can afford a home, determine how to invest your 401k . . . the issues and advice are always different and specific to the individual. Every analysis and recommendation is customized to work with your current needs and situation.
And oddly enough, sometimes all we need is the complimentary phone call to assess whether you need me or not! I come across 1-2 people per week who might need me to point them in the right direction, but don't need a full-blown analysis for the time being. Or maybe they need to do something else before it makes sense to engage with Save-9.
Whatever the issue, we hammer out the details until you're satisfied you have a workable plan for your issue or situation. And before we even begin, you'll know exactly how much things will cost going into it, so you're never surprised or broadsided.
So here is the actual chronology of steps I go through with new clients:
Complimentary Phone Call - so we can meet and you can get a feel for how I think. If that 20-30 minute call goes well, then you are probably interested in one of two engagement formats:
Option 1: Mini-Engagement (I call it bite-size)
This is usually when someone feels 90% okay about their financial situation, and they have only 1-2 burning questions about something specific in their situation, but NO ONE TO ASK. Examples of Questions:
- How do I get started on a budget and do a better job of tracking my spending?
- How much mortgage can I afford?
- I feel like my cash reserve isn't working hard enough . . . is it?
- I just got some cash, do I pay off debt or invest for retirement? Or both?
- I've maxed out my 401k, where do I save now?
- I can start saving $XXX per month, where should I save it?
- I want to invest but am overwhelmed with the choices! Where do I start?
- I know WHAT kind of investment (529 plan, Roth, UTMA), but how do I figure out HOW to invest it?
- Which retirement plans should I look at as a self-employed person?
- How do I figure out what my hourly rate should be as a self-employed person?
In that case, you tell me before our call what you want to discuss, and I simply Paypal invoice you for my time, based on my hourly rate. If we talked for an hour, that would be $150.
Option 2: Scalable Scope
You might have one area or several different areas of finance that you want help on, so we use that phone call to identify your objectives and define a scope for the analysis. We identify the paperwork I need from you and schedule a next meeting (in-person or webinar).
Then you get an email from me confirming what you need to gather and email to me so I can perform analysis for our meeting.
The number of meetings we hold is dependent on how many areas you want advice and recommendations in:
- Debt, Cash Flow & Cash Reserve
- Goal Planning & Retirement Savings Needs
- Investment Analysis (up to 6 different accounts)
- Retirement Income Projection
- Special Issues, such as real estate investments, mortgage issues, small business strategy, etc.
Each bullet point can be covered in one meeting, so you can have as many as you want, or just one area. We can discuss them when we chat.
My goal by the end of the engagement is that clients have a clear set of action items that they understand how to execute and feel good about—and that they have clarity on their situation.
After we get through the initial analysis and you have recommendations that you're comfortable with, then you basically just let me know when you need me again. For all of my clients, I am always available by email and phone to answer questions-—that usually only takes 5-15 minutes and helps them implement. The only time I would charge again is if you wanted me to analyze something in detail--one example is when the market went down, people wanted me to rerun retirement numbers to make sure they were still on track.
That's it . . . . the entire process! If that sounds good to you, check out my Planning Packages.