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What Women Need to Know About Working with Financial Advisors | Tip #5

What Women Need to Know About Working with Financial Advisors | Tip #5 - I was recently reminded of a troubling statistic: Two-thirds of women do not trust their advisors. This is troubling
Sarah Kordon

By Sarah Kordon, Wealth Advisor CFP®, CRPS®
Published On 01/12/2021

I want to acknowledge that all women are wonderfully unique individuals and therefore these tips will not be applicable to all of us equally and may be very helpful to some men and nonbinary individuals. This is written in an effort to support women, not to exclude, generalize, or stereotype any group.

 

I was recently reminded of a troubling statistic: Two-thirds of women do not trust their advisors. Having worked in the financial services industry for nearly two decades, this is unfortunately not surprising to me. But it is troubling, largely because it’s so preventable.

Whether you have a long-standing relationship with an advisor, are just starting to consider working with a financial planner, or are considering making a change, there are some simple tips all women should be aware of to improve this relationship and strengthen their financial futures.

 

Tip #5 – Go to the Meetings

 

I haven’t seen any studies on whether or not women attend fewer meetings. However, if two-thirds of women don’t trust their advisors, I have to believe they aren’t eager to sit in a room with someone they don’t trust for an hour. I sometimes hear that one spouse “just isn’t interested in finances” so they don’t attend meetings. It’s perfectly fine to not be interested. My spouse isn’t! One thing I always find fascinating about working with couples is seeing all the different ways we decide to divide and conquer household tasks. Those lines are often logically drawn based on who has the most interest or the most time. However, even if you completely trust your spouse to handle the finances and you don’t have any interest, it’s important that you are part of the big picture conversations. You may not have any opinion on whether you invest in mutual fund XYZ, but you may have goals that aren’t even on your spouse’s radar or strong opinions about whether your entire portfolio is invested conservatively or aggressively. I find that when one spouse “just isn’t interested in finances,” it means that they attended meetings with other advisors in the past where the conversation wasn’t properly framed to address their goals, or they felt uncomfortable asking questions.

In addition to making sure your financial plan properly addresses your goals and takes your comfort level into account, it’s also important to build a relationship with your advisor so that if you do have questions, if you separate from your spouse, or if they pass away, you have someone you trust to turn to for help.

Be sure to read our previous blog posts for additional tips to help women get the most out of working with a financial advisor. You may notice that all five of these tips are easier to follow when you follow tip #1—work with an advisor you like. There are many different considerations when hiring an advisor: Are they a fiduciary? Do they practice comprehensive planning? How are they compensated? What is their investment philosophy? They may check off all your other boxes, but if you don’t like them, you are unlikely to get all you need out of the relationship. If you’re looking for an advisor you’re compatible with, consider perusing our advisor bios.

Disclosure: The material is presented solely for information purposes and has been gathered from sources believed to be reliable, however Merriman cannot guarantee the accuracy or completeness of such information, and certain information presented here may have been condensed or summarized from its original source. Merriman does not provide tax, legal or accounting advice, and nothing contained in these materials should be relied upon as such.

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Sarah Kordon

By Sarah Kordon, Wealth Advisor CFP®, CRPS®

The client’s overall well-being is Sarah’s constant focus. She is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional and Chartered Retirement Plan Specialist with eighteen years of experience in financial services, and enjoys helping clients set and achieve goals so they can live life to the fullest.
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Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. owns the certification marks CFP®, Certified Financial Planner™ and federally registered CFP (with flame design) in the U.S., which it awards to individuals who successfully complete CFP Board’s initial and ongoing certification requirements. CFA® and Chartered Financial Analyst® are trademarks owned by CFA Institute.

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