Question

My mother keeps asking me for financial advice, but I don't feel comfortable with that because I'm not a trained financial planner. I'm not sure what to tell her other than to speak with a fiduciary financial advisor, but neither of us know where to start with finding one. I remember a LMM episode about The Financial Gym and thought that maybe a short-term membership (~1 year or so) might be helpful for her to gain her footing and understanding of her finances. Has anyone experienced a situation similar to this, or has experience with The Financial Gym?  

Answer 1

I did financial gym. They will look at all her finances and ask what her short term and long term goals are. They will provide her with a written up plan with steps to take. I believe it’s a great start. I gifted a membership to my brother.  

Comments

@activism50173 Thank you! That's good to hear. @proclus49 mentioned that he doesn't believe most of the Financial Trainers are CFPs, but to @stadtholder's point just because someone is a fiduciary CFP doesn't mean they are the most qualified depending on their credentials

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@uuge6 they never told me where to invest or anything of the sort. It was more learning those basics and giving a suggestion on how to better budget and organize. This is why it’s great, specially for beginners in the financial journey.  

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@activism50173 Yeah, that sounds good! It would be good for her to gain a full understanding of her current financial position, what she wants to achieve with her finances/what they advise, and how to get there. This sounds like that's something they can help her with.  

Answer 2

There is a book called personal finance for dummies. I know the title is silly but it really is a good book that gives a great basic overview. Find on Amazon or your local library.  

Answer 3

I did. Dm me

Answer 4

So I want to clear something up because a lot of people seem to think the fiduciary title means that's someone you can trust. Let's make it clear, the fiduciary rule makes it so you have to recommend what is in the best interest of the client, of the products you have. For this reason many houses have limited the products they will sell. Therefore going to a "fiduciary" may in some cases lead to a less fitting recommendation. Also don't think that because they have a title they are knowledgeable, ask credentials.  

Answer 5

If you are in this group, Im sure you could help out in at least some way as hopefully you gleamed a lot of advice from here.  

Comments

@transmigrant If I could, why would I be asking the group?  

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By following, reading articles, past posts, the podcast. How long have you been in the group? If you are in this group hopefully you have been learning things.  

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Please stop the patronizing if you're not going to provide any actual help or advice.  

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I know a bit about finance but I wouldn't feel competent to give much advice to someone else. I think we're all at different levels of understanding.  

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The podcast hosts are young adults and so the show is mostly tailored towards YA. It's easier for them to share their own experiences versus ones they haven't yet had. Also, @transmigrant, to answer your question I joined this past November. In this post I asked people about their experience in this situation and if they've tried TFG. People might have different things to say about their personal experiences since the podcast for TFG has been out for a while, or maybe people who have asked about CFPs in this group in the past have discovered something from their own experience and have new advice to offer. It never hurts to ask.  

Answer 6

Why not discover what advice she needs first, eg is it about saving on bills, is it about investments, is it about equity release etc? Then you can find the right source of information for her

Comments

@fitted339 It's kind of scattered questioning from her about her finances, not really about saving on bills or anything specific. I try to explain some things, but only the basics and her eyes glaze over. We're at different PF stages, and the organization I volunteer for targets financial literacy in young adults, so most of my focus on learning PF has been centered on younger age groups vs those closer to retirement age. Because the young adults and I have the time to dabble in investing, it seems less serious if I get something wrong, versus I don't want to be the reason my mother is put in financial turmoil. I'd rather work with her in finding a financial professional to establish a game plan and answer any specific questions. I also have no idea what sources to look into for her position. Do you know of any good blogs that focus on PF for retirees that you know of? I've googled a few to look into, but wondering if you yourself know of any

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@uuge6 understood. I’m afraid I don’t really follow blogs of that nature. I know what you mean though it’s a complex subject and giving people simple answers is dangerous in itself

Answer 7

Here is a fee only fiduciary place to start:  
https://garrettplanningnetwork.com/

Answer 8

Get a CFP that is fee-only. You can find them on NAPFA, Garrett Planning, XY Planning Network, or just use Google

Answer 9

Sounds like the financial gym is the good place for her to start. If you want to know more about it you can listen to the martinis and her money podcast also. I’ve been listening for about 3 years to her podcast and just joined so I can’t give you any experience good or bad yet. It has taken me this long to convince my husband we should do it.  

Answer 10

Usually when I don't feel qualified to give advice, I direct people to the LMM podcast. That way, they can get the info for themselves. @proclus49 and Andrew make a lot of recommendations on tons of different resources throughout the show and it's also motivational.