Client Questions

Why work with a financial advisor?

By working with an advisor at Financial Transparency you are hiring someone at the helm of the investment ship that has seen all types of waves before, bull and bear markets. While it may be easy in this day of increased technology and information to invest, determining reactions to changing equity, interest rate, real estate, economic conditions is complicated. DIY investors often pull out of the market at a rocky point and then sit on the sidelines a lot longer than they intended to, trying to determine when it is a good time to get back in. An advisor is continuously monitoring the investments, and is able to use different strategies to try and limit volatility, target specific returns, or meet particular portfolio needs. When you are faced with a financial situation that is new to you, a Financial Transparency advisor is bringing their years of experience to guide you through the next steps. Dedication to being a fiduciary, who is putting client needs first, the financial advisors of Financial Transparency are here to serve you.

What am I paying for?

What does the Financial Advisor do?: 1. Initial Development of your customized plan: Savings & Budget Goals Taxes & Estate Planning Retirement Income Planning Determine Investment Objectives, Risk Tolerance, & Time Horizon 2. Implementation of Plan: Tax Management Select Investment Solutions Monitoring / Reviewing all of the above Behavior modification (help avoid emotional decisions) 3. Other customized services Retirement transitioning Social Security/Medicare/Pension assistance Insurance protection planning What does Financial Transparency do?: • Turns the investor profile information, submitted by the advisor, into a recommended portfolio for the client. • Proprietary portfolios that include passive, active or both investment types. • Portfolio diversification. • Working with the advisor to create a risk efficient investment portfolio. • Frequent communication with your advisor. • Daily, monthly, and quarterly monitoring of your portfolio. • Access to lower cost investment options. • Quarterly review, including economic & investment Information. • Handling of account services such as contributions, withdrawals and distributions. What do the Custodians do?: • Access to over 8000 mutual funds, ETFs, stocks, bonds that we can choose from with no, or low, transaction fees • Unlimited trading • Real-time internet access to account information • Tax Reporting (1099s, 5498, Cost Basis, 8949) with electronic downloads of data for CPA • Quarterly custodian statement either paper or electronic • Performance reporting on the client account website • Required Minimum Distribution Calculations for Clients over the age of 70.5 • ACH Withdrawals and Check processing

FINANCIAL PLANNING

A financial plan can make all of the difference in giving you the peace of mind that your investment portfolio and goals are aligned. We can assist you in identifying your goals, preparing the roadmap to meet them, and monitoring where you are on your financial journey. Many clients find that working with a financial advisor on specific goals helps them stay on track, focused on their priorities.

ASSET MANAGEMENT

With so many investment options how do you decide what to do? We take a quantitative approach and focus on the numbers. We see a broad selection of investments and then analyze them. With one look at our quarterly reviews, you will understand that we are putting financial transparency into practice.

SECOND OPINIONS

We understand that, whether due to friendships, business reasons, or something else, that sometimes investors are not going to stop working with their current financial advisory firm. Yet these investors would like to have a second professional opinion evaluate their portfolio. We understand the sensitivity of the issue and work with you to give you the information that you need.

INSURANCE PLANNING

In some financial plans there is a need to purchase insurance in order to protect your family or business. While we don’t want to have to think about the day that insurance planning helps your family, finding the right policy and ensuring that it is enough is one of the things that we do to help our clients.