Finding Financial Advisors for Federal Employees by Nelson Secretario

June 1, 2016

Advice for Federal Employees about Financial Advisors by Nelson Secretario

Nelson Secretario – CLU, ChFC, LUTCF, ChFEBC, NSSA

Federal employees have a special set of benefits that are available to them in terms of retirement income. While this can provide a nice advantage for these individuals, it can sometimes make it difficult when working with a general financial planner – especially when that planner is unfamiliar with how the federal retirement system operates.

While there are many well qualified financial professionals who can offer general retirement planning advice, when it comes to providing information that is specific to federal employees, it is therefore best to work with someone who is specifically focused in this particular area.

Where to Find an Advisor with a Focus on Federal Employees?

When searching for an advisor who has a focus on federal employees, you will want to ensure that he or she meets certain criteria. For example, in most instances, the advisor will advertise either on their website and / or other materials that they work with employees of the federal government.

In addition to having a “Fed” focus, you will also want to be sure that the advisor has an ample amount of overall experience – a minimum of ten years, as well as proper licensure. In this case, possessing a Series 7 securities license is a must. You can typically tell if a professional is securities licensed by noting whether or not they have “FINRA / SIPC” noted on their marketing materials.

Once you have found a good potential candidate for your needs, the next step is to contact the advisor and set up a meeting with them. As you will likely be working with the advisor for many years – and turning over a bulk of your life savings to them – it is essential that you are able to work together, and that you have trust in him or her as a professional.

You may even want to bring along some questions to ask the advisor, such as:

What services to you offer?
What are your professional qualifications?
How are you compensated?
Do you work alone or with a team?
What licenses do you hold?
Do you possess any additional professional designations?

While the process of finding the ideal financial advisor may take some time, once you have found one who is well qualified to work with you, and who you are comfortable working with, you will be able to successfully move forward towards your retirement goals.