Preview Our Planning Process
We’ve created a brief video to walk you through the various meetings of our planning process and to show you a fictional client’s financial plan from start to finish. In this video, you will see some of the software that we use, how the information is gathered, how we help our clients identify their goals, and ultimately, projecting their financial picture into the future and making recommendations.
In the video below (3:15 in length), take a look at how it works and what your financial plan could look like, using our financial planning software.
Discovering Your Life & Objectives
The foundation of your financial plan is based on your goals and objectives. Strategic Financial Planning, Inc.`s role is to understand and help with the formulation and crystallization of these goals and objectives, thereby making them more specific, achievable, and measurable. Your hopes and dreams as well as your risk tolerance, fears, and concerns are explored during the in-depth interviews as part of the first step in preparing your financial plan.
Analyzing Your Current Situation
The more we learn from your various documents (individual & business tax returns, investments, wills, trusts, business agreements, budget, etc.), the more complete will be our understanding of your situation. After a careful review and analysis, we develop an economic model of your current situation and project your cash flow and tax liability over an agreed upon period. We then review this information and your goals and objectives with you, noting any additions or changes. This information is then used as the basis for the development of your written narrative plan.
Recommending Your Strategies
Decisions should be made from alternatives. SFP`s role is both to identify and diagnose financial problems and then to research and develop viable alternatives. We will make specific recommendations based on our understanding of your current situation and your goals and objectives. Your financial plan can help serve as an implementation guide for our recommendations.
An additional element is the prioritization of objectives and strategies. The report covers elements ranging from asset allocation to retirement planning, so we sometimes see conflicts between resources and goals. We outline options which when blended together will make the most sense in a cohesive overall plan.
Implementing Your Plan
No plan can be achieved without taking deliberate action. The critical element is your commitment to making a decision and our role is to translate your decisions into action. This action may involve an ongoing coordination effort with your other advisors: an attorney for new wills/trusts or business agreements; a CPA for income tax changes, etc.
Because Strategic Financial Planning, Inc. is a fee-only firm, we never receive a commission from the recommendation of products or strategies for our clients. We also take the extra step to help avoid conflicts of interest by never paying nor receiving referral fees or any other compensation from third parties, with all of our firm's compensation coming directly from you our client in a completely open and transparent way. This allows us to serve as a fiduciary for our clients and put their needs and interests first in every situation with minimized concern for conflicted advice.
We remain ready to follow through with regular reviews of achievements and assessments of what needs to be done as part of recommended implementations, helping to keep you on track.
Continuously Providing Service
We live with constant change. There are changes in the environment (tax laws, economic factors, and changes in your situation), your goals, objectives, and personal circumstances. To help you control your financial destiny, it is vital for us to monitor these changes and the effects on your financial situation and to remain ready to provide advice and guidance on an ongoing basis.
Part of our advanced technology offered to clients is a website where you can see all your accounts in one place, retrieve reports we prepare, and exchange documents in a secure environment. This, along with web conferencing, allows us to communicate with you not just in our office but wherever you may be.