FAQs:

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Tell me about the financial planning process. The financial planning process involves multiple steps. The first is to assess where you are right now financially and the second is to create a long term plan giving you guidance to reach your goals and objectives for the future. The financial plan includes: tax planning and preparation, investments, retirement, college planning and estate planning.

2. Why should I chose a fee-only financial planner? Clients are frequently confused by all the different types of financial services available to them. Many financial service providers sell products such as insurance, stocks, annuities or mutual funds. Most financial service providers earn a commission in some form on the products they sell. Frequently clients do not know if a product is something they really need or the product is something that the financial service provider is just pushing because that person will receive a nice commission.  Most financial service providers are not required to put your best interests first before their own interests. Fee-only planners do not recieve any type of commission from the sale of products or from kick-backs. The client pays us directly for investment advice on an hourly or annual retainer basis, much like an attorney or accountant.  This removes the conflict of interest which exists when selling products for a commission.

3. What is a fiduciary relationship? A fiduciary is a person who must put your interests first before their own interests. As a Registered Investment Advisor, Legacy Financial Planning, LLC is required to comply with a host of regulations designed to protect the consumer. One of these is detailed guidance on fiduciary responsibilities. Legacy Financial Planning, LLC follows the Code of Ethics Fiduciary Code of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (www.napfa.org). If you have questions about your current financial service provider ask them to put in writing how they are compensated and ask for a copy of their ADV Part II. This document details their qualifications, compensation, fiduciary duties and history of violations.

4. What do I have to provide? For a full plan, you will be asked tell us about yourself and your dependents, your goals and your comfort level with risk. You will also be asked to supply copies of many different documents: bank statements, retirement and investment account statements, your most recent tax return, credit reports, insurance declarations for all coverages, listing of real estate and other commodities and a listing of how you currently spend your income each month. For people seeking hourly advise, you will still be asked about yourself and dependents, goals and risk comfort but you would only supply information pertinent to your specific inquiry.

5. And what do you do with this information? We review all the supplied information and create a full report detailing all the different areas of your current situation and with options on how you can make adjustments to either save more or have returns more consistent with your goals and your comfort level with risk. All information is private and kept secured in our offices. We do not share any of your personal information with anyone unless required be a court order or through a legal process.

6. What do I do with this report? Your financial plan will have an implementation checklist included where you can determine which items you want to implement first and check them off as you progress. A financial plan is a continually evolving document which will change as the family changes and as economic conditions change. It is entirely up to you to decide whether to actually implement the changes or not.  Many people request an analysis of different scenarios with the projected outcomes so they can make the best decision which will be consistent with their own personal goals. In this case, only one of the scenarios will be chosen. In other instances, clients will implement all the recommendations. The use of the completed financial plan is unique to each individual.

7. Will you help me implement the plan? Yes, we will help you implement any part of the plan. This may involve helping you fill out forms, reviewing contracts, or meeting with you and your other advisors such as attorneys, accountants or insurance agents.

8. How do you price your financial planning services? Clients may select either an hourly fee or an annual retainer. The hourly fees are based upon the actual time involved meeting with the client in person or on the phone, reviewing all documents, researching your options to meet your goals and providing specific recommendations in a report format. It also can include implementation assistance and monitoring of your plan. Hourly rates are $125.00 per hour for services rendered. The annual retainer is based upon a flat fee of $1,000 plus a percentage of the assets (0.7%) to be included in the financial plan. The annual retainer is for one full year and the client can discuss different questions which arise during the course of the year without incurring any additional financial planning fees from Legacy over and above the annual retainer.

9. If I decide upon an hourly fee, how much would a financial plan cost? Because each plan is unique to the individual, the costs will vary depending upon the complexity of the plan. The average plan will take between 8 to 24 hours of work. Very complex plans may take significantly longer.

10. Are fees deductible on my taxes? Yes, Section 212 of the Internal Revenue Code permits itemized deductions for tax and or investment advice in the miscellaneious section of Schedule A on the 1040 form. It is subject to a 2% floor of adjusted gross income on a personal tax return.

11. Do you provide investment education? We carefully explain all options to each client so they can make the best investment decision. In addition, we provide classroom education in different settings for employers on different subjects. Please call us for more information on providing educational information for your employees.

12. Is our relationship ongoing or one time only? Each client has different needs. Some clients seek our help for very specific questions which once answered ends their relationship with us. Other clients want us to provide ongoing monitoring services of their investments, tax planning and tax preparation.

13. What is the first step? The first step is to call us to set up an introductory meeting. This first meeting is no-obligation and no cost to you. It allows us to meet to determine if what Legacy offers can meet your needs. We can meet in our office, on the phone or at a mutually agreeable location. Call Legacy at (251) 219-4574. All meetings are by appointment only. We look forward to helping you create a plan to meet your goals and objectives for a successful future.