Continuous Financial Planning

It’s more critical then ever to have continuous financial planning. Life situations change quickly and so do your financial projections. Even if we have an Initial Financial Plan, as I like to call it, it takes a tremendous amount of work to Execute and Monitor that plan. And then when LIFE happens, as it always does, it can be overwhelming for the average person to stay on top of it.

Once an initial Financial Plan is created, you have 3 options on what to do with it:

Implement it yourself
Pay someone to implement it for you
Let it sit on the shelf

Implementing a Financial Plan can be challenging for most people. The 3 key questions to ask yourself are:

Do I have the ability?
Do I have the time?
Am I willing to take the risk?

continuous financial planning

Let a Professional Do the Heavy Lifting!

If you have the financial and analytical skills, and the time, then implementing your Plan yourself may tempting. But the burden is heavy and most people are better off leaving it up to a financial professional. Select a finance professional that is a full-time fiduciary that will look out for your best interest in all your decisions.

The purpose of our On-going Financial Planning service (sometimes referred to in the industry as a “Retainer” or a subscription service) is to serve you long after your Initial Plan has been created. We help you execute, monitor, and adjust the Plan over time to help you stay on track with your long-term goals.

Trying to climb the steep hill carrying such a heavy burden all by yourself can be both laborious and futile! Roll that burden back over to us.

Why is Continuous Financial Planning Important?

Pre-Retirement

If you are pre-55 with family obligations, you may benefit from On-Going Financial Planning if you face:

Career decisions that affect your income and retirement savings
Decision on upscaling your living arrangements
College expenses for your children
Decisions regarding a spouse working or not working
Debt that is strangling your livlihood
Lease vs buy decisions
A host of other financial and life decisions

In Retirement

If you are at or near retirement, On-Going Financial Planning can help you in a number of different ways:

Model your Long-Term Care options
Help you with Roth Conversion strategies
Assist with a tax-efficient withdrawal strategy
Help you manage your financial “buckets” (income, cash reserves, and investable assets)
Assist you and your spouse as you go through diminished capacity
Assist you with legacy planning for your loved ones
…and many other financial situations that may arise

Benefits of On-going / Continuous Financial Planning

You just spent anywhere from $1,200 to $5,000 for a professionally written Initial Plan. Why should you consider spending more money to implement it? Because the truth is that most people do not implement their Plan properly or stay on track with it. Studies show that staying on track is very difficult. See the Schwab/Koski study below.

Whether it’s a matter of time available or skill required, most people need help following through on their Plan. The risk is that if the Plan is not implemented properly, you will not achieve the desired goals. Some benefits of our On-going Financial Planning service may include:

Accountability partner to keep you on track
Access to a Personal Finance professional (not a salesperson)
Fee-only, non-commissionable advice
Advice goes well beyond just investment management
Bundled services at low subscription level cost
Access to our financial planning software

The bottom line benefit is you may have a better chance of meeting your goals!

How Our Can On-going Financial Planning Service Help You?

The purpose of our On-going Financial Planning service (sometimes referred to in the industry as a “Retainer” or a subscription service) is to serve you long after your Initial Plan has been created. We can help you avoid the angst that many people feel regarding the implementation and staying on track with their Plan.

To help you implement your Financial Plan and stay on track, we have a flexible on-going service available to meet your needs. This service can be tailored to your specific situation, as each client is different in what may be needed.

Visit our On-Going Financial Planning services webpage.

How Do I Proceed?

Ask your Advisor if they provide fee-only services for your continuous financial planning needs. If not, shop around for one. We are happy to help! This is our approach:

The First Step is to create an original written Financial Plan. This will give you a written roadmap to show you how to get where you want to be. You will have a Plan that can be implemented and updated on a regular basis. To create an original Plan, visit our Financial Planning Fee-only Services page.

Secondly, consider the On-going Financial Planning service described on this page. We will help you determine which combination of these services is the best fit for you.

Thirdly, consider our flat-fee or very low AUM Investment Management Services. We will help you determine which is best for you.

You will now have an on-going Financial Plan at a very reasonable cost that will provide you with many benefits for you and your family. All at subscription-level cost.

Reference:

Schwab / Koski Research Study included “Staying on Track”

on-going financial planning

An online study among a sample of the general public was conducted by a team from Schwab and Koski Research. 1,000 Americans aged 21-75 completed the study. The Schwab / Koski Research study shows that “Staying on Track” with a Financial Plan was the lowest-ranked factor in the Modern Wealth Index – an index indicating how well Americans are planning, managing and engaging with their wealth. “Staying on Track” scored the lowest of the 4 factors making up the index. The 4 factors and their respective rankings on a scale of 1-100:

Goal Setting and Financial Planning (43)
Saving and Investing (52)
Staying on Track (24)
Confidence in Reaching Financial Goals (64)

Ironically, consumers ranked “Confidence in Reaching their Goals” as the highest.

Interestingly, there was a significant difference in the 4 factors ranking for those that had a written financial plan, although Staying on Track was still the lowest factor:

Goal Setting and Financial Planning (100)
Saving and Investing (67)
Staying on Track (46)
Confidence in Reaching Financial Goals (100)

View full report at Charles Schwab Koski study results and a press release of the results here:Press Release.

About Kastler Financial Planning

We are a fiduciary firm, providing fee-only, professional financial services with affordable and a transparent Fee Schedule. Our core purpose is to help improve your financial situation and to help you Get Retirement Ready. We do not sell financial products. We believe everyone should have access to financial advice without the pressure or bias of product sales or commissions.

For individuals, we offer fee-only Financial Planning services, Retirement Planning services, and fixed flat-fee Investment Management services. We have a special affinity toward Step Families and their unique financial planning needs.

For business owners, we offer Small Business Retirement Plan Consulting to help you and your employees leverage your company retirement plan. If you don’t have a company retirement plan, we’ll help you navigate the options to get one for you and your employees with our Guide to Selecting a Company Retirement Plan.

We perform these services either as hourly, a one-time fee-only project, as on-going financial planning, or Assets Under Management (AUM), depending on your needs. Whether you live in our backyard or across the country, we aim for a pleasant client experience through our Client Portal and computer screen-sharing technology.

Contact Us

If you have any question on how our services may apply to you, please contact us at the number below or submit an email through our Contact Us form.

Fiduciary Financial Planning and Retirement Planning

Is Continuous Financial Planning For You?