The day financial peace comes calling at my door (with financial planning for hours)

I clearly remember the day when financial uncertainty hit me hard. I was in my office, reviewing my investments, which I manage personally, and analyzing my tax situation. And a feeling of anxiety invaded me. Despite having worked hard all my life and having accumulated a considerable savings fund, I felt that something was not right. I wondered, could it have to do with my financial advisor?

Was I really prepared for retirement? Were my investments protected against market fluctuations? Was I taking advantage of every opportunity to optimize my taxes? Although I considered myself competent in managing my investments and tax planning, these questions haunted me.

I knew perfectly well that any mistake or simply the simple fact of not knowing what you don’t know could weigh significantly on the financial future of my family. No matter how many YouTube videos I could watch or ask Gemini or ChatGPT, it did not give me peace of mind. Because each time I received more information, I became more confused. And I did not know if those answers applied to my particular case.

The awakening:

I needed clear and objective answers. And I knew that continuing to ask my friends, office colleagues or my family was not the solution.

But I also knew that my experience with investment advisors had not been good in the past, and could be divided into two large groups:

1.- The financial advisor selling insurance or financial products with high commissions where I was offered a fixed return

Regardless of what happened with the stock market. But where it was totally clear what was really happening. It is that this financial advisor (or better called seller of financial products) is really looking to earn a large commission with this sale.

And then my money would be frozen for years. So that the insurance or investment company would have the opportunity to first recoup the commission they paid the salesman. Plus, with all those years, he could invest my money earning substantially higher rates than he was paying me. But for that, they need my money to be frozen.

Therefore, I lose the independence that comes from being able to access my money whenever I need it.

2.- The financial advisor who offered me the financial plan for free and told me that they would make a detailed plan for me.

Where I only had to give them the documents they asked me for such as tax return, brokerage, 401K and bank statements. Fill out a very detailed form about my finances and they gave me two personalized sessions for free. At the end of them they would send me my financial plan in writing, with their suggestions.

But then I would remember the words of my uncle who worked for so many years in one of these large investment banks. He told me that in finance there is no free lunch.

Indeed, that was the case. After these sessions and receiving the financial plan, I began to realize that all the suggestions showed me the poor job I had been doing with the management of my investment portfolio. And also, how the mutual funds or index ETFs I had been using, despite being the ones that offered the greatest diversification and the lowest costs, were not so good. And I had to combine them with a complex investment strategy.

Which, by the way, they could manage for me for just 1% of the value of my portfolio. Which they would always charge as long as I was their client, regardless of whether the portfolio went up or down. With the supposed argument that when things were not going well for me, they were not doing well either.

But at the same time I asked myself the following question. Why do they offer me those insurance annuities where they earn high commissions or those structured financial products where it is practically impossible to know how much they are charging me?

Just then I remembered my uncle’s words “there is no free lunch”

With all this I realized that just because they say they are fiduciaries does not mean they are. Since perhaps the advisor could be offering me something that is very good for them in terms of the commissions they are going to receive and perhaps not so good for me.

At that moment I felt that there were no other options and I would simply have to let myself go and pay a percentage of my assets, although it was not what I wanted, but at the same time I felt that I did not want to do it without being able to count on at least the support of a professional.

The discovery: financial planning by the hour

Suddenly one day a friend told me: Did you see that the financial industry is finally starting to change and there are advisors who listened to you? To which I said “it can’t be.”

That was when I discovered “Financial Planning by the Hour.” The proposal seemed innovative and attractive to me:

Expert and personalized advice, paying only for the hours of consultation. “Financial advice adapted to your needs, when you need it,” they told me.

Finally, in the world of financial advisors and planners, they realized that clients are willing to pay for a professional’s time and knowledge. In the same way as we do with: lawyers, accountants, doctors and even a golf lesson teacher.

Since it still seemed incredible to me that this type of financial planning service existed on an hourly basis, I called them and asked them directly: Could you tell me what other commissions you charge besides the hourly commission? I wanted to know if third parties or companies paid the advisor in some way. And that was when the Planner told me that they were Fee-Only.

I asked him to explain a little more what being Fee-Only meant. And he told me that Only refers to the fact that only his professional fees came from the client. And not from third parties, so he did not receive commissions or incentives from third parties for suggesting investment or insurance products.

He told me that I should be careful with the difference between Fee-Only and Fee-Based. Although for most people they might sound like very similar words, they are totally opposite. The only thing they have in common is the word Fee.

Fee-Based advisors are advisors who, in addition to the fees paid directly by their clients for their services. They also get commissions for selling or suggesting other services like insurance annuities.

So now I had a new rule for my financial world. Every time I look for a financial planner or advisor it must be a Fee-Only.

After this call, I told them I wanted to move forward and hired their services.

Expert validation and savings

For those who have never worked with an hourly Financial Planner, I’ll tell you about my experience.

In my case, my main concern was having the peace of mind of having expert validation to validate whether everything I had been doing up to that point was what I should continue doing or if I was leaving out some strategies that could help me continue optimizing my finances.

My plan consisted of about 7 hours that included various aspects of my finances, among which I can tell you:

• • Review of my investment portfolio: analyzing asset mix, fees, Tax-Loss Harvesting opportunities, and rebalancing strategies.

• • Tax planning: they asked me for my tax return. Something that no investment advisor had done before. And they reviewed different tax optimization strategies, creating various scenarios for me.

• • Checking where my money was going: helping me see the main expense categories. And if there were possibilities to continue saving or rather if everything looked good.

• • They helped me write down and quantify my financial goals, but not just the traditional retirement goal. But also more short-term goals like vacations, changing my car every 5 years. And medium-term goals like that vacation home that I was thinking about whether or not I should buy.

• • We looked at topics that one doesn’t talk about every day: how to know if I should have a will or a trust. And they reviewed my insurance policies.

We had two sessions via Zoom. In the first session we validated all the information I had given them, we reviewed my investments and my taxes.

In the second session they showed me different scenarios. With the software they use I could see what my financial future could look like. And I even got to think about issues I hadn’t thought about, such as inheritances and legacy.

Peace of mind and control

I was finally given a written financial plan with clear lines of action. With priorities to know which ones I should implement first.

Finally, the uncertainty had dissipated and confidence had taken its place.

The transformation:

Since then, I have used Hourly Financial Planning’s services to validate my financial decisions and optimize my tax planning. I have saved money on unnecessary fees and have gained the peace of mind I longed for.

Bottom Line:

If you, like me, are looking for expert validation, tax guidance, and financial peace of mind, I highly recommend Hourly Financial Planning. Their motto is “Timely, personalized consultations when you need them.” Don’t let uncertainty keep you from enjoying your life. Contact them today and find out how they can help you transform your finances and your life.