How to Start

“Financial Planning provides direction and meaning to your financial decisions.”

Certified Financial Planner™ – Board of Standards, Inc.

We begin with an initial face-to-face interview to describe our services and to allow you to ask questions. As documented, a professional financial planner can help you with expertise that you may not possess, to provide a professional opinion about financial ideas that you may have, spend time to develop a financial plan to address life events (planned or otherwise), retirement, cash flow, etc. A professional financial planner is analyst, coach, and cheerleader. This first meeting is without obligation and allows both client and firm to discover if it is a good financial relationship match.

Once you elect to retain CFG, we set up a meeting to collect pertinent information (many worksheets are provided on this website, under Useful Information). This gathered information is reviewed for completeness as well as to identify personal goals and objectives.

Subsequently, from the information gathered and opinions/goals expressed, we evaluate tax and financial circumstances applicable to you and yours and develop a comprehensive report summarizing findings and suggestions. For a comprehensive Plan, we address cash flow, retirement projections, tax projections and planning, estate planning, asset allocation, and insurance towards your achieving your goals. We make specific recommendations based upon your personal financial situation.

We schedule a meeting (or series of meetings) to personally deliver and discuss the report, develop a reasonable action plan, and follow-up with your implementation of the recommendations. As stated, discipline and “buy-in” are usually keys to planning success and we strongly encourage that spouses and partners, if applicable, participate in the meetings.

Per individual circumstance, we regularly hold follow-up meetings to monitor and adjust your progress, and we encourage regular evaluations, in person or via phone consultations.