The old adage goes: “Knowledge is power.” And while that’s true, having the proper knowledge can also be a significant help in making your financial decisions.
Even if you’re not planning on having a financial advisor, it’s still important to know when something might be wrong with your finances and what steps need to be taken next.
Here are five surefire signs that should alert you to the need for professional guidance:
Your “surprise” retirement blindsides you.
A surprise retirement can happen to anyone, even those who have been saving diligently for their future. It’s not uncommon for people to plan and prepare for their future in a way they don’t always anticipate. For example, you might be nearing retirement age and suddenly realize that your savings won’t last long enough to pay off your debts before Social Security stops coming in (and there’s nothing wrong with that).
If this happens to you—or if it has happened already—the best thing is not necessary to panic or freak out about how much money will be left over at the end of each month after paying off all bills and savings accounts; instead, ask yourself: “What do I need?”
Consider hiring an advisor who specializes in helping people with unexpected events such as these! Wealth management services in Charleston, SC, can help!
You don’t know when or whether to take social security.
When taking Social Security, it’s essential to consider how much you’ll get back in benefits. The amount of money you can expect to receive depends on the age at which your last birthday falls and the number of years spent working.
If your birth date is before 1937, then there’s no need for concern: This means that any time between 1937 and 1959 (or 1964) will be considered “full” retirement age—meaning that if someone meets this criterion, they should not have any trouble collecting their full benefits at age 65 or 70.
However, if someone was born after 1960 but before 1975 (or 1982), then they may still qualify for some benefits depending on their situation and financial circumstances at that time; however, again, there are no guarantees since these policies don’t always work out exactly as we expect them too!
You have no one to talk to about your finances.
You’re not alone in this situation, but it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to find someone who could help. Having a financial advisor can be excellent for many people, especially if they don’t know where to start or don’t feel uncomfortable talking with their friends or family members about money matters.
If an advisor is able to give advice on how much money should be saved each month, how much debt should be taken on (and when), and what investments are best suited for different goals—whether it’s retirement income or paying down credit card debt—then he or she is going above and beyond his or her job description!
Your investments are a mess of last year’s hot tip.
If you’re not diversified, the investments of your portfolio are likely a mess of last year’s hot tip. You might have one or two stocks that are doing well, but they may not be enough to save your entire portfolio from going down with the ship.
When investing for long-term success, it’s essential to have a balanced mix of stocks and bonds in each asset class. So that no matter what happens on Wall Street or around Europe/Asia, there won’t be any single sector taking over overall earnings growth. This means more money coming into retirement accounts from other sources like Social Security checks or pensions from previous jobs even though people aren’t saving as much as they used to because everything has gone up except their paycheck.
You’re too set on keeping everything in one place.
To be clear, by “keeping everything in one place,” I mean all of your financial information. Your bank account, credit cards, brokerage accounts, and retirement savings accounts—the whole shebang.
It’s a problem because every time you make an important decision about what to do with that money, it’s easy to get stuck on one solution (for example: “I want more money!”) without considering any others. If there’s more than one possible solution, and they’re equally good or bad options for using the money you’ve saved over time, then why not just try them all out? Why not take advantage of an opportunity that may come along later on down the line?
You’d be surprised at how often people miss out on making these sorts of decisions because they have so much trouble imagining scenarios where their life would change significantly if one option didn’t work out as planned.
Conclusion
There you have it. Five surefire signs that you need a financial advisor. If any of these apply to you, then it’s time to get help from an advisor who can guide your investments and help you achieve your goals. It may sound daunting at first, but with the proper guidance (and some hard work), anyone can succeed!
