The Automatic Millionaire author David Bach (one of my personal favorites) says that the one question he's asked most is how to find a good financial advisor. Lucky for us, he answers this question in a recent post, listing five rules for hiring a financial advisor. His list:
- Rule 1: Get a referral.
- Rule 2: If you can't get a referral, do your own research.
- Rule 3: Go to your first meeting prepared.
- Rule 4: Treat the first meeting like an interview.
- Rule 5: Check out a prospective advisor's background.
I'd add one to this list: learn enough about personal finances yourself to know the key principles of handling your money. It will help you select a good planner, understand what he/she is recommending, and keep you protected (in part) from someone who might try and rip you off. The good news is that good, solid, basic personal finance advice is easy to find and understand, so there should be no problem at all for you acquiring a solid foundation of personal finance advice (just read Free Money Finance and you'll be better off.) ;-)
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