Choosing a financial planner may be one of the most important decisions you make for yourself and your loved ones. Financial planners can provide you and your family with guidance over your lifetime, or work with you to address specific concerns as needed. A planner can play a central role in helping you meet your life goals and achieve financial well-being. Consequently, take the time to select a financial planner who is competent and trustworthy, one on whom you can depend for professional advice and services. Your future depends on the choices you make.

When you hire a CFP® professional, you are hiring a trusted advisor who has made a commitment to putting your interests first. As part of their certification, a CFP® professional commits to CFP Board to act as a fiduciary—which means to act in the best interests of the client at all times when providing financial advice and financial planning. CFP Board is not a regulator and CFP Board doesn't guarantee a CFP® professional's services. However, CFP Board may sanction a CFP® professional who does not abide by this commitment and welcomes tips from the public. You want a financial advisor who has made a commitment to you to act as a fiduciary. Therefore, whomever you choose as your financial professional, including a CFP® professional, you should be sure to ask for—and get—a written engagement that requires them to have a fiduciary obligation to you.

Someone who is acting as a fiduciary in accordance with CFP Board’s Standards is required to fulfill the Duty of Loyalty, Duty of Care and the Duty to Follow Client Instructions.

Ten Questions to Ask Your Financial Advisor

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CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and are certification marks owned by Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. (CFP Board), which can help you identify financial planners who are committed to competent and ethical behavior when providing financial planning. Individuals certified by CFP Board have taken the extra step to demonstrate their professionalism by voluntarily submitting to the rigorous CFP® certification process that includes demanding education, examination, experience and ethical requirements. These standards are called “the four Es,” and they are four important reasons why the financial planning practitioner you select should display the CFP® certification marks.