Why enlist the services of a financial planner when your holdings are down and you’re facing a host of financial problems? Because as dark as times may seem, you’re actually giving yourself a fresh start in building a stronger financial future.

Indeed, many people don’t make that choice. A recent Financial Planning Association/Ameriprise Financial survey showed that many people try to go it alone when it comes to a financial plan—and they suffer considerably worse performance in their investment and savings goals over time than those who do. The cost of a financial planner may not be prohibitive due to factors we’ll mention below and young people have a particular advantage on their side when using one—time.

Here are some things to know about financial planning process.

It’s a collaboration and a learning experience. 
A financial planner is not a substitute for your own final decision-making. Planners serve as guides, editors and strategists. They should begin by asking questions of you—plenty of them. Their purpose is to find out all the goals you have right now – and maybe determine a few you haven’t thought of.  Some of these dreams might include buying a home or business for yourself, saving for college education for your children, taking a dream vacation, reducing taxes and retiring comfortably. Financial planning is the process of wisely managing your finances so that you can achieve your dreams and goals—while at the same time helping you negotiate the financial barriers that inevitably arise in every stage of life.

Planners often specialize: 
Planners, like any professionals, tend to specialize in certain areas of interest, and they may receive continuing education in more than a dozen areas of expertise. CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER ™ professionals alone can earn continuing education credits in asset management, employee benefits, commercial real estate, insurance, investment management, estate management, retirement planning, 401(k) administration and health topics, among others.

Ask about tackling specific problems:
If your problem is credit card debt or difficulty refinancing, a planner may have specific contacts or the ability to make certain recommendations on how to get yourself in a better position to plan for the future.

They charge based on specific services:
Planners charge for their services in a variety of ways – always ask up front what they charge and how they expect to be paid. Some “fee only” planners charge for a consultation, plan development or investment management, and they may be charged on an hourly or project basis depending on the client’s needs or as a percentage of assets under management. Some charge commissions for the sale of financial products they are licensed to sell, and others have hybrid structures mixing fees and commissions. Discuss advisory services first before committing to buying any particular products.

 
They can talk about your personal investments as well as the ones at work:
One of the best advantages to working with a financial planner is the chance to have a second set of eyes look at your wages, investments and benefits at work vs. what you’ll be investing on your own outside work-based retirement and other savings plans. Be prepared to bring all of your finances into the discussion.

May 2009 — This column is produced by the Financial Planning Association, the membership organization for the financial planning community, and is provided by Martin V Higgins,CFP,CLU,AEP, a local member of FPA.
www.familywealthadvisory.com

When you sell your home or no longer use it for your primary residence, you or your estate will repay the cash you received from the reverse mortgage, plus interest and other fees, to the lender. The remaining equity in your home, if any, belongs to you or to your heirs. None of your other assets will be affected by HUD’s reverse mortgage loan. This debt will never be passed along to the estate or heirs.

The three ways are as follows:

A reverse mortgage is worth your consideration if it fits your particular circumstance. A reverse mortgage will allow you to cost-effectively tap into your home’s equity and enhance your retirement income. If you have some bills to pay, want to buy some new carpeting, furniture, need to paint your home, or simply feel like eating out and traveling more, a reverse mortgage may be the perfect solution.

Your home must be your principal residence - which means that you must live in it more than half the year.

For the federally insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgage(HECM), your home must be a single-family property, a 2- to 4-unit building, or a federally approved condominium or planned unit development (PUD). For a Fannie Mae Home Keeper mortgage, you must have a single-family home or condominium.

The value of your home must qualify to satisfy any existing liens.

If you have any debt or lien against your home, it can be paid off at the reverse mortgage settlement.

A reverse home mortgage is a great idea if you do qualify. 

One option is a Reverse Mortgage, but you should fully understands the implications of a Reverse Mortgage as well as all of their options.

Our goal is to give our customers the information and education they need to make the right financing decision, so whether you visit our website, read our brochures and free guides, or meet with one of our loan consultants in person, you know you are getting the honest answers you need to navigate your financing decision.
We Cut Out the Middleman
One Reverse Mortgage is a direct Reverse Mortgage lender. What does that mean? It means that we cut out the back and forth to make your borrowing process go faster and more smoothly. At One Reverse Mortgage there is no broker and no middleman. We make the final decision on your loan by underwriting the loan in-house.
We Save You Money
The One Reverse Mortgage Low Cost/Rate guarantee means you will never pay too much for your Reverse Mortgage.
Greater Choice in Loan Programs
With more loan programs than any other lender, One Reverse Mortgage is more likely to find a Reverse Mortgage that suits your individual needs. Not only do we offer the HECM variable rate products, but also the fixed rate HECM Reverse Mortgage as well as nearly a half a dozen proprietary Reverse Mortgage programs.
A Company You Can Trust
One Reverse Mortgage is a division on One Mortgage Network, LLC and is licensed to lend in over 30 states across the U.S. We are licensed by the U.S. governments Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the Administration of housing and Urban development (HUD). We are a proud member of NRMLA, the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association and strictly adhere to its code of conduct.