What Do Financial Planners Do?

Financial planners are responsible for helping their clients meet their short-term and long-term financial goals. They teach people about investment options and risks, make recommendations to meet the unique needs of their clients, monitor clients’ accounts to determine if any changes need to be made and are constantly on the lookout for new investment opportunities.

“The role of a financial advisor goes well beyond helping their clients respond to financial emergencies,” said Dustin Hall, MBA, CFP, ChFC and co-founder and chief investment officer of Hall & Burns Wealth Management, LLC. “I think it is important for people to understand that the best time to plan for an event is before it actually happens.”

If you think it might be time to get professional help to prepare your finances for the future, read on to see what a financial planner can do for you and your money.

Related: Your Cheat Sheet to Financial Professionals

What Do Financial Planners Do?

A financial planner can help you tackle many different types of monetary issues, to improve the strength of your financial health. Here’s an overview of what financial planners can do for you and when you might need their help.

1. Reassess your finances.

Financial planners help you decide where to put your money. They can work with you to set realistic financial and personal objectives to improve your fiscal health.

“When you decide to take the plunge and work with a planner, they will collect your data, analyze it and come back to you with an assessment of your strengths and weaknesses and areas for improvements,” said Stephanie Genkin, a financial planner based in Brooklyn, N.Y. “They will offer a plan or action items to help you move forward so you can realize your individual goals. They should help you implement the plan and monitor it, making adjustments if necessary.”

2. Strategize when to spend and how to save more.

Financial planners can help you develop a realistic plan to meet your financial goals. They’ll work with you to develop savings strategies and help you make any necessary modifications to your spending habits.

“Financial advisors can help their clients set appropriate goals and track their progress over time,” Hall said. For instance, Hall said his firm helps their clients “determine their Family Index Number. This number, which is really a percentage, represents the average annual return that you need to earn to make sure that you can meet your goals (i.e. spend in retirement).

“We like to make sure the number is enough to achieve the goals of a plan, which would include things like charitable giving, leaving a legacy behind, purchases, travel, and all the other things that go into a plan,” Hall said. “Over the years, I have come across many situations where people were taking on far more risk than their Family Index Number would dictate is necessary. It is important to know what you need to be shooting for.”

Read More: How to Choose an Affordable Financial Planner

3. Plan, save and invest for your retirement.

Financial planners can help you choose a retirement plan and provide advice on rolling over an existing plan. Genkin notes that the rules attached to retirement plans can be complicated and change frequently, making this a smart area to utilize a professional’s knowledge.

“For instance, the IRS recently changed the rules on how many rollovers you can do in a year without incurring taxes,” Genkin said. “Most people aren’t paying attention to this stuff. They are just living their lives and raising their families. But a financial planner keeps track of what’s changing, where the loopholes are and how to help their clients.”

4. Handle financial windfalls.

Approximately 70 percent of people who receive a financial windfall burn through it in just a few years, reports the National Endowment for Financial Education. A financial planner can work with you to help you invest at least some of your money so you’ll have it for the long-term. They can also help you understand legalities, such as tax payments, so you’re not hit with an unexpected tax bill you can’t pay.

Related: 31 Ways Financial Planners Can Make You Richer

5. Support you when facing financial crises.

If you’re facing a financial crisis, such as the loss of a job, a death in the family or realizing you haven’t saved enough for youre nearing retirement, a financial planner can help you devise a roadmap to get through it and come out on top.

“It’s happened that a client will come to me for one specific reason, such as help getting out of debt, and then a family crisis emerges that I can also help them navigate,” Genkin said. “It’s a relief for someone to have an established relationship with a trusted advisor when things start to go badly rather than flailing alone or trying to find someone when crisis strikes.”

“It’s also useful to be able to go for once-a-year check-ups like you would with a doctor,” Genkin said. “A fee-only planner can let you know if you are on course to achieve your goals or make recommendations for getting back on track.”

Your First Meeting With a Financial Planner

When meeting with a financial planner, you don’t need to feel embarrassed or worry the planner will judge you, said Genkin. “Many people expect it to feel like they are on trial for how they’ve been managing — or not managing — their finances. It’s not like that at all.”

Instead, Genkin said, financial planners will work to understand your financial “challenges, behaviors and values and see how you are currently positioned.” Come to the first meeting prepared to discuss these topics, and bring any documents that will give a snapshot of your current financial situation, like income, expenses, balances of credit cards and loans, and amounts you have in retirement accounts, savings account or investments. “Gather all your statements, insurance policies and estate planning documents so that you can show the planner what you have already,” Genkin said.

Once you’re in the meeting, your financial planner can review your situation and give you an idea of how they would help you meet your financial goals and estimate what their services would cost you. “By the end of that first meeting, you should have a clear understanding how the financial planner would work with you, how long the engagement will last and how they get paid,” Genkin said. “If someone isn’t willing to tell you how they get paid, find another financial planner.”

No matter what the current state of your finances is, scheduling regular meetings with a financial advisor can be a savvy move. Being proactive about your money gives you the security of knowing you’re on course for a fiscally-secure future.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: What Do Financial Planners Do?

This article by Laura Woods first appeared on GoBankingRates.com and was distributed by the Personal Finance Syndication Network.