It is important to realize that financial planning is not just about money, but also about your life and how you achieve your dreams. Financial planning is the process by which goals are achieved through sound financial management. Goals may include your home for sale, to save for your children's education or planning for your retirement. At South Cape Financial Services, we believe that financial products and services complex, and therefore a financial professional should be planned.

Good advice is onkoopbaar.

In terms of both the Policyholder Protection Rules, issued under the Long and Short Term Insurance Act and the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act, financial advisers, among others, reveal how much revenue is earned from the product they have a client sales. Kevin O'Conner, a financial "coach" in the United States says that "good financial planning is like a house paint. The preparation takes the most time consuming and if done correctly, the result dramatically improved. " If a financial adviser your financial future can dramatically improve, you must be willing to pay for.
Today, most advisors by their clients pay, but earn their commission from the financial products they sell.

Financial Advisers

The four most common financial advisors are as follows.


Company agents

Company agents include higher brokerage organizations like Citadel and Glen Rand MIB in.
The organizations have a large number of financial advisers and support staff. Although financial advisers who are employed by large companies, access to supporting resources and expertise are their target group of large companies with many employees. In general, brokers do not maatskapppy strong ties with banks and insurance companies.

Bank brokers

Bank brokers, brokers are used by a bank employed. Most major banks brokers a range of financial products to their clients sell. In line with worldwide "bankversekerings" trend, most South African banks shareholders in life insurance companies. Old Mutual has ties with Nedbank, Sanlam with ABSA, Liberty Life with Standard Bank and Momentum with First National Bank. Although this arrangement a bank broker enables a wide variety of products to offer independence to be limited.

Agents

Agents are commission-earning financial advisers most of whom are committed to an insurance company. Although life insurance companies agents formally employ, they have a formal contract that the agent enables all resources and facilities of the company to exploit.
Onhafhanklike financial advisers

Independent financial advisers are either an independent one-man brokerage business, either small, medium-sized brokerage business that provides financial advice to individuals or small businesses. The advantage of the services of an independent financial adviser to use is that they are not connected to any security, investment or financial product or company. So this is for their best possible options to explore without to be bound to a specific company. The downside is that independent financial advisers are not the same access to resources as the larger company or bank brokers, and access to specialist support is crucial.

Making a choice

It is worthwhile to thoroughly investigate the matter to which financial adviser your needs best address. Ask these questions to your financial adviser:

• Are you a licensed financial adviser?
• What is your educational background?
• What is your financial planning education?
• How long have you been a financial adviser?
• Are there customers to whom you can refer me to investigate the matter to your services?
• Will you or a partner with my work?
• How are you compensated?
• Is there a minimum fee payable?
• Do you have a written agreement regarding the fee?
• What services do you offer?
• Do you have a business plan that will ensure continued service delivery when you retire or sell your business?
• What is your planning process?

There are six steps in the financial planning process that a broker should follow:

Step 1
Establishment and provision of a professional relationship.
The financial adviser to the services rendered to the client are explained in detail and document, and thus both their and the client's responsibilities thereby determined.
The financial adviser should explain in detail how and by whom he / she is paid.
Both parties must agree on how long the professional relationship will last and how decisions will be made.

Step 2
Gathering information, goals included.
The financial adviser will ask for information about the client's financial situation.
Both parties must jointly the client's personal and financial goals determine an agreement regarding a time limit for results and discuss, if relevant, how customers feel about risk factors.
The broker must obtain all relevant documents before he / she has any advise.

Step 3
Analysis and evaluation of the client's financial status.
The financial adviser to the client's information in order to analyze their current situation and evaluate it by determining what must be done to established goals.
Depending on services required by the client, it can analyze the customer's assets, liabilities and cash flow, current insurance coverage, investments or tax strategy entails.

Step 4
Development and submission of financial planning recommendations and / or alternatives.
The financial consultant, financial planning recommendations that the client's goals, based on information provided by the client, accountable.
The broker must make recommendations to the client discuss and make sure everything is understood that an informed decision by the client can be taken.
The financial adviser must be responsive to the client's concerns and, if necessary, revise the recommendations.

Step 5
Implementing financial planning recommendations.
The client and the broker must agree on how the recommendations will be carried out.
The broker may execute the recommendations or serve as "coach" to the whole process to co-ordinate between the client and other professionals such as attorneys or stockbrokers.

Step 6
Monitoring of financial planning recommendations.
The client and the broker must agree on who the process of the client's progress in achieving goals, monitor.
If the financial adviser in charge of the process, he / she may from time to time to the customer reporting the situation and revise the recommendations to modify, if necessary, depending on changes in the client's life.


Let financial advice and planning work for you.

Customers are the focus of financial planning proses.Die results obtained from financial planning is as much the customer's responsibility as the financial advisor.
To get maximum results obtained from financial planning, it is necessary for the following advice into consideration:


Set measurable financial goals

Set specific goals you would like to achieve and when the results must be obtained. For example, instead of saying you want a "comfortable" retirement have or you want your children to be "good" schools go, it is essential that you are "comfortable" and "well" defined, so you will know when you reach your goals it.


Understanding the effect of each financial decision

Every financial decision taken may be several other areas of your life affected. An investment decision, for example, tax consequences, which in turn is to the detriment of your estate can be. Similarly, a decision on your child's education, retirement planning influence. Remember that all financial decision-making relationship with one another.


Re-evaluate your financial situation from time to time

Financial planning is a dynamic process. Financial goals may change over the years due to changes in lifestyle or circumstances, such as an inheritance, marriage, birth, buying a house or changing job. Ongoing review of financial planning for life changes display is essential so that financial goals can be monitored.


Start planning as soon as possible

Do not procrastinate financial planning .. Persons who are small amounts of money early and investing regularly, tend to achieve better results than those who postponed until later. At the same time, will develop good financial planning habits such as saving, budgeting, investing and regularly reviewing your situation finasiële early in your life, you better prepare for the challenges and emergencies of life to deal with.


Be realistic in your expectations

Financial planning is sound approach to managing finances in order life goals. It will not be a situation overnight change, it is a lifelong process. Remember that circumstances beyond control such as inflation or changes in the stock market or interest rates, financial planning results will be affected.


Realize you are in control

If you use a financial planner, make sure you have the financial planning process and understand what the financial planner is supposed to do. Provide financial planner of all relevant information regarding your financial situation. Ask questions about the recommendations made and played an active role in the decision making process.