How to Choose a Planner
Why Choose a CFP® Professional?
Most people think all financial planners are “certified,” but this isn’t true. Just about anyone can use the title “financial planner.” CFP Board benefits the public by independently certifying financial planners. Although CFP Board does not guarantee their work, CFP® professionals have met rigorous qualifications for financial planning. Only those who have fulfilled CFP Board’s rigorous requirements can call themselves a CFP® professional.
As part of their certification, CFP® professionals commit to high ethical standards. What’s more, a CFP® professional must acquire several years of experience related to delivering financial planning services to clients and pass the comprehensive CFP® Certification Exam before they can call themselves a CFP® professional.
The CFP® Professional Difference
Your Interests should come first
Working with a CFP® professional can help you find the path to achieving your financial goals. Your goals may evolve over the years as a result of shifts in your lifestyle or circumstances such as an inheritance, career change, marriage, house purchase or a growing family. As you begin to consider how best to manage your financial future, you should feel confident knowing that with a CFP® professional, you’re working with someone who has committed to CFP Board, as part of their certification, that they will act as a fiduciary, and therefore, act in their client’s best interests, at all times when providing financial advice to a client. CFP Board doesn’t guarantee a CFP® professional’s services, but CFP Board may sanction a CFP® professional who does not abide by this commitment.
What Sets a CFP® Professional Apart?
When you hire a CFP® professional, you work with an advisor who has met rigorous qualifications for financial planning. Most important, a CFP® professional has made a commitment to CFP Board to act in the best interests of their client.
What Makes CFP® Professionals Different
When you choose a CFP® professional, you can be assured that you’re working with a financial advisor who has demonstrated competency and made a commitment to ethics. CFP® professionals must successfully complete a multi-year, multi-step process to obtain the skills and real-life experience they need to serve your best interests, no matter what your financial goals are.
